Oppenheimer

By Tom Morton-Smith
Directed by James Nickerson
A Manchester School of Theatre Production

1939: fascism spreads across Europe, Franco marches on Barcelona and two German chemists discover the processes of atomic fission. In Berkeley, California, theoretical physicists recognise the horrendous potential of this new science: a weapon that draws its power from the very building blocks of the universe. Struggling to cast off his radical past and thrust into a position of power and authority, the charismatic J Robert Oppenheimer races to win the ‘battle of the laboratories’ and create a weapon so devastating that it would bring about an end not just to the Second World War but to all war.

Tom Morton-Smith’s new play takes us into the heart of the Manhattan Project, revealing the personal cost of making history.

Oppenheimer was premiered at the RSC in 2015.

Performances

• Thursday 24 November (7.15pm)
• Friday 25 November (2pm & 7.15pm)
• Saturday 26 November (7.15pm)

Cast

J Robert Oppenheimer – Tommy Beswick
Bob Serber / Einstein – Harvey Weedon
Robert Wilson / Richard Harrison – Henry Irwin
Edward Teller – Reuben Gotts
Giovanni Rossi Lomanitz – Noah Fox
Frank Oppenheimer / Klaus Fuchs – Harry Bloor
Joe Weinberg / Richard Feynman – Liam Donaldson
Hans Bethe / Kenneth Nichols – Joshua Bird
Leslie Groves – Kai Ross
Haakon Chavalier – Samuel Bates
Peer De Silva / Luis Alvarez – Tadeus Ruiz Harrison
Ruth Tolman / Jackie Oppenheimer – Noor Hadid
Kitty Harrison – Lara Rose Hancox
Jean Tatlock – Kelsey Moebius
Charlotte Serber – Lucie Van Malleghem
Little Girl – Helena Braithwaite

Lighting by Tracey Gibbs