Jonathan Groff had excited reply when asked to front all-male As You Like It
Jonathan Groff (RSC)
Tony Award-winning Jonathan Groff had a very excited response when he was asked to play Rosalind in an all-male production of As You Like It at The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC).
The actor, also known for roles in Spring Awakening and Hamilton on Broadway, and Deathtrap and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying on the West End, will make his RSC debut in As You Like It in September.
“‘Holy f****** s***,'” he recalled. “That was the subject of the email I sent to Daniel Evans in response to his email asking me if I would be interested in playing Rosalind in an all-male production of As You Like It at the RSC.”
Evans is the Co-Artistic Director of the RSC, and is the director of the upcoming production of As You Like It.
Groff added: “In 2019 I went to Stratford-upon-Avon for the first time to take in the historic town and see a gender-swapped production of The Taming of The Shrew.
“The experience of seeing Shakespeare performed so brilliantly in Stratford hit me in a very primal way. Since that stirring experience in Stratford, I’ve spent the last six years doing mostly theatre in New York.
“I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity to come back to Stratford and perform Shakespeare for the first time in my life. The early prep work I’ve been digging into with Daniel and Patsy Rodenburg, their Emeritus Director of Voice, has already got me in a state of ecstasy.”
‘Jonathan has a rare ability to connect deeply with an audience’
Director Evans said: “I have admired Jonathan for over 20 years, from his role in Spring Awakening to his Tony award-winning performance as Franklin Shepard in Merrily We Roll Along and, most recently, as Bobbie Darin in Just in Time. Jonathan has a rare ability to connect deeply with an audience. His generosity, his emotional availability and his total commitment are exactly the qualities I wanted for our Rosalind.
“In our production of As You Like It, where Jonathan will be joined by the wonderful Fisayo Akinade as Celia, I hope to give audiences an opportunity to experience Shakespeare’s most sweet-tempered comedy in a way which is playful and joyful, and which inspires conversation about our world now. Ultimately, this is a play which celebrates love in all of its many forms. Love is love and, however we identify, it falls where it falls. I can’t wait for us to share it with audiences.”
Fisayo Akinade, who has appeared in Russel T Davies’ Channel 4 dramas Cucumber and Banana, as well as Netflix smash Heartstopper, will join Groff as Celia.
As You Like It is on at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon from Saturday, 26 September to Saturday, 7 November, 2026. Tickets start from £10.
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