When Irene premiered at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane in February 1749 it ran for a respectable but underwhelming nine nights. Johnson regarded it as a failure, as did James Boswell, who claimed his friend ‘had not the faculty of producing the impressions of tragedy’. But the time has come to revisit Johnson’s neglected play – join us in the home he was living in while Irene was originally staged for the first public performance of Johnson’s play in 270 years!

This dramatic reading of Irene will be performed by the students from the English and Drama department of Queen Mary University of London, under the direction of Dr Penelope Woods, Lecturer in Drama, with the advice of Professor Lois Potter, author of The Life of William Shakespeare, A Critical Biography,and Professor Emerita, University of Delaware.

Tickets cost £7 and include a glass of wine. BUY NOW.