Yerin Ha, who will star as series lead Sophie Baek in the upcoming fourth season of Netflix’s “Bridgerton,” has been cast alongside Phia Saban and Lydia Wilson in a new production of Jean Genet‘s “The Maids” at London’s Donmar Warehouse.
The production marks the Donmar debut of director Kip Williams, who has written a new translation of the French playwright’s classic work. Williams, fresh off his critically acclaimed Olivier and Tony Award-winning reimagining of “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” will next helm an adaptation of “Dracula” starring Cynthia Erivo in all 23 roles at the Noël Coward Theatre.
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“My spurt of saliva is my spray of diamonds,” reads a line from the production, which follows two maids who act out their darkest fantasies by obsessively role-playing their mistress’s murder while she’s away, until performance and reality begin to blur.
Ha, whose credits include HBO’s “Dune: Prophecy” and Paramount+’s “Halo,” previously worked with Williams on Sydney Theatre Company’s “Lord of the Flies.” She’ll be joined by Saban, known for HBO’s “House of the Dragon” and Netflix’s “The Last Kingdom,” and Wilson, whose extensive theater credits include an Olivier Award nomination for “King Charles III” and recent appearances in “The 47th” at The Old Vic.
Williams, the former artistic director and co-CEO of Sydney Theatre Company from 2016-2024, describes the new translation as “a compelling, timely parable of modern identity and the destructive desire to both emulate and annihilate those we idolize.”
The production team includes set designer Rosanna Vize, costume designer Marg Horwell, and lighting designer Jon Clark, with sound by Dan Balfour, music by DJ Walde, and video design by Zakk Hein.
The production follows Mike Bartlett’s “Juniper Blood,” currently in performance at the intimate Covent Garden theater under the leadership of Artistic Director Tim Sheader and Executive Director Henny Finch.
“The Maids” runs Oct. 13 through Nov. 29.
