National Theatre to stage Romeo & Juliet for television film, starring Jessie Buckley and Josh O'Connor

The National Theatre will be transformed into a film studio when the cameras start rolling on a new version of Romeo and Juliet with Josh O’Connor and Jessie Buckley playing the doomed lovers.

The stage at the Lyttelton Theatre will be used as the set for the show which was originally scheduled to have been staged at the venue this summer .

The 90-minute drama set in modern-day Italy, which also features Tamsin Greig as Lady Capulet, will be filmed over three weeks and shown on Sky Arts next year and on PBS in the United States.

National Theatre director Rufus Norris said: “Realising the Lyttelton theatre would need to remain shut to audiences during this time has been really difficult and meant we found ourselves in a unique set of circumstances.

“I wanted to find a way to use that space to create something exciting and special for audiences, that utilised the exceptional skill and craft of the National Theatre’s teams, freelancers and creative associates, and that could reach as many people as we can.

“That’s all going to be possible with this brilliant film of Romeo & Juliet and, in collaboration with Sky Arts, PBS and No Guarantees, it will be seen across the UK and US. I’m delighted that Simon, Jessie, Josh and the team have joined us for a National Theatre first and are going to create a truly fresh film of Shakespeare’s enduring love story.”

The Southbank venue has broadcast stage productions to cinemas for more than a decade as part of its National Theatre Live programme but this is the first time an original production for the screen has been created there.