TV actress Ruth Wilson to star in 24-hour play opposite 100 men at the Young Vic

A twenty-four-hour “one-off” play starring award-winning actress Ruth Wilson, best known for performing alongside Idris Elba in the hit tv series Luther, is coming to a Waterloo-based theatre this spring – and here is how you can get tickets…

Ruth Wilson will star in The Second Woman – a special 24-hour performance which will see the award-winning actress perform alongside 100 men she has never met.

Over a full 24 hours – at the Young Vic in Waterloo – 100 different men are invited to star opposite Wilson, as she performs over and over a scene between a man and a woman in a relationship that has lost its creativity and romance.

Inspired by John Cassavetes’ film Opening Night, none of the 100 different ‘Martys’ has met or rehearsed with Wilson’s ‘Virginia’ and most of them are non-actors.

Whether you choose to stay for 24 minutes or the full 24 hours, The Second Woman has been described as a unique, cinematic theatre experience in which the stage offers the audience a wide-angle view of the action, while multiple cameras capture and share live close-ups.

Ruth Wilson, who played Alice Morgan in the BBC crime drama Luther and Alison Lockhart in the Showtime drama The Affair, said: “I have a feeling that The Second Woman will challenge all norms of what it means to be actor and audience, to be performer and observer.”I’m interested in what happens in that space between us all; if we form a bond as we watch and anticipate the next play partner. This is a one-off, 24-hour experience of pure, spontaneous interaction. It will never happen again.”Tickets went on priority sale (to members) on Thursday (March 2), and on general sale this Monday, March 6, at 12 pm.Once seated, you can choose to stay until the performance ends (after 24 hours) or leave whenever you wish.

Kris Nelson, LIFT Artistic Director and CEO, and Stella Kanu, Executive Director, said: “We are fortunate to have some amazing partners and not many come close to the Young Vic who has been working with us tirelessly to bring this show to London since 2019!

“You’ll get to witness an incredible performance – a mesmerising concept by Sydney-based artists Nat Randall and Anna Breckon that’s all about power, gender and the negotiations we make within a couple. Over 24 hours Ruth Wilson will reveal why she’s one of the country’s most mercurial and astounding performers. Audiences are in for a real treat!”

Exclusive: Rotherhithe business owner just days away from being evicted after over 20 years of serving the community

Kwame Kwei-Armah, Young Vic Artistic Director, and Lucy Davies, Executive Director, said: “The Second Woman is live event theatre at its very best, starring Ruth Wilson in a formidable and truly unique performance.”

The Second Woman is a Young Vic Theatre and LIFT co-production, produced in association with Ruth Wilson, created by Nat Randall and Anna Breckon, and presented in proud association with House of Oz.

Tickets will be available for the full 24 hours, for allocated time slots and on-the-door, with full details available here. Tickets are limited to two per booking