‘Stranger Things’ Stage Play Sets Cast, Opening Date

The London stage production based on Stranger Things has announced its cast and set dates for the beginning of previews and its formal opening.

Stranger Things: The First Shadow, a prequel to the Netflix hit that’s set in 1959, will begin previews Nov. 17 at the Phoenix Theatre in London’s West End, with an opening date set for Dec. 14. Rehearsals for the play, written by Kate Trefry and directed by Stephen Daldry with co-director Justin Martin, are underway.

“It’s a joy to discover the world of Stranger Things: The First Shadow with our ferociously talented cast and watch the alchemy amongst our entire company grow as we together explore this new play,” Daldry and Martin said in a statement. “They’re an extraordinarily gifted group of actors, and we can’t wait to share this origin story with audiences.”

The First Shadow stars Shane Attwooll, Christopher Buckley, Michael Jibson, Oscar Lloyd, Louis McCartney, Isabella Pappas, Patrick Vaill, Lauren Ward and Ella Karuna Williams. The ensemble also includes Kemi Awoderu, Chase Brown, Ammar Duffus, Gilles Geary, Florence Guy, Max Harwood, Matthew Pidgeon, Calum Ross, Maisie Norma Seaton, Tricia Adele-Turner, Lauren Arney, Reya-Nyomi Brown, Patricia Castro, Lydia Fraser, Isaac Gryn, Mark Hammersley, Tom Peters, Kingdom Sibanda, Tiana Simone, Danny Sykes and Meesha Turner. 

“The cast of Stranger Things: The First Shadow is nothing short of phenomenal,” said Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer. “These actors brilliantly explore the early days of many fan favorites — including Hopper, Joyce, Bob, Henry and Dr. Brenner — while also bringing new characters to vivid life. We couldn’t be more thrilled and can’t wait for you to meet them all live on stage. See you in London, nerds!”

The play’s logline: “Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular worries. Young Jim Hopper’s (Lloyd) car won’t start, Bob Newby’s (Buckley) sister (Williams) won’t take his radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado (Pappas) just wants to graduate and get the hell out of town. When new student Henry Creel (McCartney) arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn’t so easy … and the shadows of the past have a very long reach.” 

Netflix announced the stage production, its first stab at live theater, in July 2022 and is presenting the play alongside Sonia Friedman Productions. Trefry, a writer and executive producer on the TV series, wrote the play, from a story by the Duffer brothers, Jack Thorne and Trefry. The Duffers are creative producers and Stranger Things EP Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps Entertainment is associate producer.