Rebecca Frecknall, one of Britain's leading theatre directors of the past decade, is ending her tenure at the Almeida Theatre with a rare revival of Sarah Kane's 1998 play Cleansed, known for its extreme violence and unsettling themes. The production runs from July 21 to August 29, 2026.
A Play About Love Surviving Hell
Frecknall describes Cleansed as 'an exploration of human love and connection, and can that survive in hell?' She notes that while some question her choice, the play is 'the purest distillation of the themes I’ve looked at in all the pieces I’ve done because really it's about love and brutality and how those two things exist together.'
She first encountered Sarah Kane's work at university, initially hating Blasted during her first year. However, by the end of her degree, she read Kane's complete works like a novel and 'my understanding of theatre was so expanded and changed.'
Return for One Final Show
Frecknall had already left the Almeida when artistic director Rupert Goold called her in New York to ask if she would return for one final show. When he suggested Cleansed, she felt compelled to accept. 'I was sort of like: oh I don’t know if I want to, I’ve sort of psychologically gone. And then he said: you could do Cleansed if you want. So I was like: well now I’m gonna have to, aren’t I?'
Empathy for a Torturer
Frecknall's work often finds sympathy for problematic characters, and she applies this approach to Tinker, the sadistic torturer in Cleansed. 'You can have empathy for anyone, can’t you?' she says. 'The more we work on the play, the more I feel like it's not clear cut. He’s not playing a game of “how much can I torture these people”, there’s a logic behind what he's doing, even if we never actually know what it is. He clearly doesn't always want to do the things he’s doing, but he's doing them anyway.'
Record-Breaking 'Cabaret'
Frecknall's production of Cabaret has been running in the West End since 2021, becoming the longest-running production of the musical ever in the West End. She recalls initial fears it wouldn't open due to COVID. Despite its success, she remains closely involved, rehearsing with every new cast and watching previews and final shows. Regarding celebrity casting, she says, 'the universe dictates who’s doing it and when,' as schedules and availability often determine pairings.
The Broadway transfer received harsher reviews and a shorter run, but Frecknall defends it: 'I thought the show in New York was brilliant. I don’t always think that about my work. But I think sometimes we think because we share a language that London and New York share a theatre culture, and they don’t.'
Moving to the Old Vic
Frecknall is now moving to the Old Vic with Rupert Goold. She doesn't yet know her first show there, as the season is still being planned. She describes her final day at the Almeida on March 30 as emotional, and her first day at the Old Vic felt like 'going to secondary school where I didn’t know anyone.'
Reuniting with Paul Mescal
Frecknall will also direct Paul Mescal again in Death of a Salesman at the National Theatre next year. She recalls that Mescal had two bucket-list characters: Stanley in A Streetcar Named Desire and Biff in Salesman. During rehearsals for Streetcar, he urged her to read Salesman, and after years of persistence, she agreed. 'He kept over the years going, Have you read Salesman, do you want to do Salesman? And it sort of got to a point where I was like: look Paul, if you want to do Salesman, I will do it.'
