THREE acclaimed actors – Toby Stephens, Amanda Abbington and Noah Valentine – play the leading roles in Peter Shaffer’s dark, probing masterpiece, Equus, which comes to Bath Theatre Royal from Tuesday 14th to Saturday 25th July, in a production directed by Lindsay Posner, which received rave reviews when it premiered at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

What prompts a 17-year-old boy to blind six horses? This is the challenge presented to psychiatrist Martin Dysart (Stephens) as he delves into the psyche of his young patient Alan Strang (Valentine) to search for the answers and at the same time questioning whether the cure is more dangerous than the crime.

In his 1973 masterpiece, Shaffer brings together two powerhouse roles, psychiatrist Martin Dysart and his teenage patient Alan Strang. Inspired by a true story, the play sees a bond developing between the boy and the doctor as Dysart searches for answers to the teenager’s obsessive interest in the horses he cares for. The award-winning play searches the farthest limits of the human psyche as it explores the complex relationships between passion, sex, religion and sanity.

Toby Stephens, the son of Dame Maggie Smith and Robert Stephens, is one of the finest and most versatile actors of his generation. From Coriolanus, winning the 1994 Ian Charleson Award for his title performance, to Hamlet in Michael Boyd’s 2004 Stratford-on-Avon production and Captain Hook in 2025, he has played countless iconic Shakespeare characters for the RSC as well as opposite Pierce Brosnan in the Bond film Die Another Day.

Amanda Abbington, playing the magistrate Hesther Salomon, has been a favourite in some of the most popular recent TV series, including Sherlock, Mr Selfridge and After You’ve Gone. On stage, she recently starred as Beverly in Abigail’s Party.

One of Britain’s leading young actors, Noah Valentine starred in the acclaimed 2025 production of Malorie Blackman’s Noughts and Crosses at the Regents Park Open Air Theatre and played series regular Preston Walters in the BBC’s Waterloo Road.

The cast also includes Bella Aubin, Emma Cunniffe, Paula James, Colin Mace, Ed Mitchell and David Rubin with Luke Hodkinson, Aristide Lyons, Zach Parkin, Tommi Sutton and Moses Ward.

Director Lindsay Posner returns to the Theatre Royal Bath following the West End transfers of A View from the Bridge starring Dominic West and The Deep Blue Sea starring Tamsin Greig, both plays staged in the Ustinov Studio. Lindsay leads a stellar creative team which is completed by Paul Farnsworth (set and costume design), Paul Pyant (lighting design), Adam Cork (sound design), and movement from Olivier Award winning choreographer James Cousins.

Photographs by Manuel Harlan