Harewood – who became the first black actor to play Othello at the NT in 1997 – will play the role at Theatre Royal Haymarket opposite Toby Jones as Iago
David Harewood is returning to the role of Othello almost 30 years after he became the first black actor to play the character at the National Theatre in London. He will do so opposite Toby Jones as Iago and Caitlin FitzGerald as Desdemona at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, directed by Tom Morris, this autumn.
Speaking to the Guardian after an early read-through for the West End production, Harewood described Othello as “a fantastically challenging piece of work” for actors. When the suggestion was made that he play the part again, it “lit the touch paper”, he said. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it.” He picked up a copy of the play and discovered: “It felt very fresh to me. Most of the lines I already remembered, which was extraordinary. They’re sort of imprinted in my brain.”
