Actress and singer Samantha Womack is to join her actor husband Mark Womack for the world premiere of Hope, which opens at Liverpool’s Royal Court Theatre in March.

It will be the first time ever the couple have acted together on stage, although they have previously appeared together on television, in the hit I.T.V. police drama, Liverpool 1. It will also be the first time that Ms. Womack has appeared on stage in Liverpool since her spellbinding performance in South Pacific.

Samantha Womack joins the previously announced cast members of Hope, which as well as husband Mark, also stars television and film actor René Zagger and the play’s writer and director, Scot Williams.

Samantha Womack said, “Hope is a beautifully written play with four powerful characters that are as funny as they are disturbing, who come together in a story that will grip the audience from start to finish.”  She added, “It’s wonderful to be acting opposite Mark on stage for the first time, not just because he is my husband, which adds an extra edge, but also because it’s his and Scot’s birth city and Liverpool always feels like home to me.”

A special benefit performance of Hope will take place on 11 March, 2013, with all proceeds being donated to five deserving causes in Liverpool. The beneficiaries will be: The Hillsborough families ongoing fight for justice and their ongoing legal costs;  Claire House; The Meningitis Trust; Alder Hey Children’s Hospital and C.A.L.M. (Campaign Against Living Miserably).

Tickets are expected to sell quickly for the strictly limited Liverpool run from 6 to 30 March, 2013. Contact the Royal Court Box Office on 0870 787 1866 or check online at www.royalcourtliverpool.co.uk

Ian D. Hall