Disclosure: This preview is based on press information supplied by the production and current official Bristol Old Vic listings. Ticket links are included for readers’ convenience.
Latest update
Max Porter’s Lanny comes to the stage in a new world-premiere adaptation at Bristol Old Vic from 16 October to 7 November 2026. Adapted by Bea Roberts and directed by Bristol Old Vic Artistic Director Nancy Medina, the production is presented by Bristol Old Vic in association with English Touring Theatre.
The production is the flagship theatre show of Bristol Old Vic’s 260th year and brings Porter’s eerie, lyrical novel into a live setting shaped by folklore, community and the unsettling figure of Dead Papa Toothwort.
What is Lanny about?
A family leaves London for a village in the West Country. Their young son Lanny soon attracts the attention of Dead Papa Toothwort, an ancient, mythic presence listening from the woods. Reality, imagination and village life begin to blur in a dark story about belonging, fear and the stories communities tell about themselves.
Porter’s 2019 novel was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and sits neatly in the space Clarissa’s Corner loves most: literary adaptation with a darker, folkloric edge.
Cast
- Hanora Kamen — Jolie
- Raj Bajaj — Robert
- Richard Cant — Pete
- Rupert Holliday Evans — The Lecturer and other roles
- Amanda Lawrence — Peggy and other roles
- Liam Bergin — multiple roles
- Rose Wardlaw — multiple roles
- Atlas Johnson-Dutfield / Lucian Thomas — sharing the role of Lanny
Creative team
Lanny is adapted by Bea Roberts and directed by Nancy Medina. The creative team includes set and costume design by Rebecca Jane Wood, composition and musical direction by Dom Coyote, movement direction by Dan Canham, lighting design by Zeynep Kepekli, and sound design by Elena Peña and Dave Price.
Dates, tickets and age guidance
- Venue: Bristol Old Vic, King Street, Bristol BS1 4ED
- Dates: 16 October – 7 November 2026
- Tickets: from £11
- Age guidance: 13+
- Official booking: Bristol Old Vic
The official listing includes content guidance around the disappearance of a child, so it is worth checking the current guidance before booking for younger teenagers.
Accessibility
Bristol Old Vic currently lists dedicated access performances for Lanny, including a captioned performance on 30 October, an audio-described performance and touch tour on 31 October, and a BSL-interpreted performance on 4 November. Check the official listing for the latest timings and availability.
Why it caught my attention
This one has a very Clarissa’s Corner overlap: books, adaptation, folk horror and theatre all in the same place. The novel’s mix of ordinary village life and something ancient watching from the edges feels especially suited to a stage production that can play with sound, movement and atmosphere.
More dark stories and adaptations
If Lanny is your sort of strange, have a mooch through Chill & Thrill for more of the darker stuff. And because this production takes Max Porter’s novel onto the stage, it also belongs in From Covers to Curtains, where I follow stories as they move between books, screen and theatre.
