From Bristol Old Vic Theatre: Bristol Old Vic is delighted to announce the full casting for the new production of The Beautiful Future Is Coming, a bold new play set to captivate audiences from 15 May – 7 June 2025. The play, originally staged as part of the Jermyn Street Theatre’s Footprints Festival for four nights in early 2024, is now being further developed by Bristol Old Vic for a major run in the Theatre.
Written by Flora Wilson Brown and directed by Nancy Medina, this highly anticipated production will feature an exceptional ensemble cast bringing this powerful story to life.
The cast includes:
- James Bradwell as Malcom – A rising star of British theatre, James has garnered acclaim for his versatile performances across stage, film and television. Training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, he has built a strong stage career, including roles in The Garden of Words (Park Theatre) and Corrina, Corrina (Headlong, Liverpool Everyman). He has appeared as “Bradley” in the C4 series I Hate You and gained international recognition as “Lord Basilio” in Season 3 of Netflix’s Bridgerton.
- Rosie Dwyer as Ana – Known for her sharp comedic timing and compelling dramatic performances, she began her screen career with a recurring role as Grace Murdoch in Tracey Ullman’s Show (2017). Rosie gained prominence portraying “Alex” in the BBC psychological teen thriller The A List (2018–2021) and “Tilly” in Season 3 of Sex Education. Her film work includes Her film work includes Joseph Kosinski’s F1 (2025) and Kenneth Branagh’s Death on the Nile (2022), while in 2023, she appeared as “Kiki Zhang” in the Amazon Prime series Fifteen-Love.
- Michael Salami as Dan – Michael is a celebrated actor in both television and theatre with roles at theatres including The Old Vic, Soho Theatre, Lyric Hammersmith, and Theatre 503. Notably, he starred in the touring production of Dial M for Murder which traveled across the UK/Dubai and Two Trains Running directed by Nancy Medina for ETT. On screen, Michael gained recognition for his role as Shane Sweeney in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks (2017–2018). He also appeared in the Amazon Prime series Catastrophe, the Sky series Temple and plays “Uncle Teju” in Season 2 of Boarders (BBC). He recently starred as “Gabriel” in Netflix’s hit BAFTA nominated sci-fi drama Supacell.
- Nina Singh as Claire – Nina can recently be seen as Tara Virdee in BBC One’s new crime drama Virdee. Her theatre career started as Andy in Andromeda (Camden People’s Theatre). Since then, she’s worked mostly on screen, in The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (Film4) and series such as The Lazarus Project (Sky), The Ex-Wife (Sky), The Chemistry of Death (Paramount), Waterloo Road (BBC) and Beyond Paradise (BBC). Look out for her later this year alongside Stephen Moyer in new comedy drama Art Detectives as lead detective DC Shazia Malik.
- Phoebe Thomas as Eunice – With a career spanning three decades, Thomas has become a familiar face on British television and in theatre. She gained prominence portraying nurse Maria Kendall in the BBC medical drama Holby City from 2006 to 2010. Her television career includes notable roles in Rain Dogs, Agatha Raisin and Family Affairs and guest appearances in series including Call The Midwife, Teachers, and Death in Paradise. On stage, Phoebe has demonstrated her versatility in productions including Beautiful Thing, Annie Get Your Gun, Little Women and the Bristol Old Vic production The Life and Times of Fanny Hill. She notably portrayed the titular character in the stage adaptation of Jacqueline Wilson’s Hetty Feather, (Bristol Old Vic and UK tour) earning critical acclaim for her performance.
- Matt Whitchurch as John – His stage career features performances in productions such as The Herbal Bed (UK tour), the role of “Darcy” in Pride and Prejudice (Nottingham Playhouse/York Theatre Royal) and Moreno, directed by Nancy Medina (Theatre503). On television, Matt has portrayed roles including “Quinn” in FBI: International (CBS, 2022), “Chris Moran” in Doctors (BBC, 2022), and “Jason ‘Jace’ Dunridge” in Casualty (2019).
Director Nancy Medina said: “This extraordinary cast brings a depth of talent and passion to the production which is incredibly exciting to witness. In the time I have known them, they are all deeply aware of the importance of telling this story of climate emergency in a way that reframes the topic with humour, humanity and hope. I can’t wait to see them bring Flora’s beautiful play to life on our stage and I know that through the journey of making this show we will all be inspired to reach for a more beautiful and hopeful future.”
Flora Wilson Brown’s The Beautiful Future Is Coming is a fast-paced, funny and wildly inventive look at 250 years of real and imagined history through the eyes of three couples. Nancy Medina (A Good House; Choir Boy – Best Director, Black British Theatre Awards 2024) directs this powerful story about the climate crisis, and holding onto hope and humanity against all odds.
Flora Wilson Brown is a writer and dramaturg. She is a co-founder of DONOTALIGHT, a theatre company interested in new writing about living in the world today and telling political stories through a personal lens. DONOTALIGHT produced her first play I Know I Know I Know at the Southwark Playhouse in 2022 to critical acclaim. Her second play The Beautiful Future Is Coming, was first presented for a short run at the Jermyn Street Theatre as part of their 2024 Footprints Festival. Flora has also written a musical for families with Intrepid Fools, Viking, which was presented at Underbelly for Edinburgh Fringe 2019. She is currently developing a radical female-centric new stage version of Eugene Onegin called Tanya, and writing an episode for an anthology series about Gen Z for HatTrick.
Nancy Medina is Artistic Director of Bristol Old Vic, taking the role in 2023. In Oct 2023 she directed her first production for the theatre, a revival of Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Choir Boy which received both Best Play and Best Director Awards at the BBTAs in 2024. Her most recent critically acclaimed production for Bristol Old Vic’s 2025 season was A Good House, in co-production with the Royal Court Theatre. As a director, hercredits also include The Darkest Part of the Night (Kiln Theatre), Moreno (Theatre 503), Trouble in Mind (National Theatre), The Half God of Rainfall (Fuel/Birmingham Rep/Kiln Theatre), Two Trains Running (Royal & Derngate/ETT/RTST) and Strange Fruit (Bush Theatre).
Working with Flora Wilson Brown and Nancy Medina is a creative team including: Set & Costume designer Aldo Vázquez (The Boys are Kissing and Moreno – both Theatre 503), Lighting Designer Ryan Day (The Red Shoes – RSC; Pericles – Courtyard Chicago Shakespeare), Sound Designer Elena Peña (Trouble in Mind and Rockets and Blue Lights – both National Theatre), Composer Femi Temowo (Choir Boy – Bristol Old Vic; A Good House – Royal Court/Bristol Old Vic), Casting Director Sam Jones CDG, Assistant Director Ignė Barkauskaitė and Costume Supervisor Sophia Khan.
As part of this production, Bristol Old Vic is joining with The Festival of Nature, as Culture and Sustainability partners. The Festival of Nature is the UKs biggest celebration of the natural world, running in Bristol and Bath from 7–15 June 2025. This collaboration will provide resources to signpost audiences toward ways of finding out more about the environment, ways to turn inspiration into positive action and meet people at whatever point they are in their own journey towards shaping a sustainable future.
This production also reaffirms Bristol Old Vic’s ongoing commitment to supporting new writing, providing a platform for emerging and established playwrights to explore urgent and resonant themes on stage. By championing bold new voices, the theatre continues to enrich the landscape of contemporary theatre and engage audiences with fresh, thought-provoking narratives.
Tickets for The Beautiful Future Is Coming are now on sale and can be purchased via the Bristol Old Vic website www.bristololdvic.org.uk