World Première Of Eric Schlosser's We The People

Under Dominic Dromgoole's Artistic Directorship, the Globe's commitment to new writing continues with the second of this season's new works - We The People by Eric Schlosser. Following his 2003 play, Americans, Schlosser's We The People recreates an extraordinary moment in American history, the Philadelphia Convention of 1787.

It is 1787 and the frail government of the recently independent United States of America, menaced by the powers of old Europe and reeling from internal rebellion, is suffering a crisis of identity. What sort of country should America be? Who should govern it? Who belongs in it?

Throughout a long, humid, Philadelphia summer, a group of able and passionate men force themselves into one room to argue out the guiding principles of the new nation. What they came up with proves to be one of the most important - and radical - democratic experiments of the last 250 years.

We The People forges a vivid drama out of the surviving speeches, letters and official documents from that historic moment. Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, George Washington and many of the other founding fathers, came together at a moment of crisis and created the constitution which the United States still lives within today. We The People is a recreation of what they did.

Eric Schlosser is a renowned contemporary historian whose books have been international bestsellers - they include Reefer Madness and Fast Food Nation, which has recently been directed for film by Richard Linklater.

Robert Bowman joins the company playing Madison. Bowman's recent theatre credits include the title role in Cyrano de Bergerac (Bristol Old Vic), The Crucible (RSC and West End), Ivanov (National Theatre) and The Prisoner's Dilemma and Love in the Woods (RSC). His television work includes Kingdom, The Trial of Tony Blair, Charles II, The Whistle Blower and The Falklands Play.

We The People is directed by Charlotte Westenra, with designs by Paul Wills and music by Adrian Lee.

Making her Globe debut as Director is Charlotte Westenra. Westenra's directing credits include Kiss of the Spider Woman (Donmar and national tour), Darfur - How Long is Never? (co-director, Tricycle Theatre), When Five Years Pass (Arcola), Gladiator Games (Sheffield Theatres and Theatre Royal Stratford East), Bloody Sunday - Scenes from the Saville Inquiry (co-director, Millennium Theatre, Derry; Opera House, Belfast; Tricycle Theatre - Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre) and Justifying War (co-director, Tricycle Theatre). Westenra was Resident Assistant Director at the Donmar Warehouse.

Paul Wills continues his collaboration with director Charlotte Westenra. They have previously worked together on Gladiator Games (Sheffield Theatres and Theatre Royal Stratford East). Wills other work includes The Cut (Donmar Warehouse) and A Kind of Alaska/A Slight Ache/Precisely (The Gate). The music is composed by Adrian Lee, who also composed the music for this season's The Merchant of Venice. Lee has also worked extensively with the RSC, including for The Canterbury Tales and Antony and Cleopatra.

We The People is part of the Renaissance + Revolution theatre season this year at Shakespeare's Globe which includes Shakespeare's Othello, The Merchant of Venice and Love's Labour's Lost, the return of last year's smash hit, In Extremis, and the world première of Holding Fire! (by Jack Shepherd).

The production which opens on 6 September, with previews from 2 September, and runs until 6 October plays for 14 performances only.

For more information and tickets, visit Shakespeares-globe.org.

Tickets: £5.00 - £32.00