Fifty years after Yuri Gagarin's first orbit around the earth, Rona Munro's gripping new play tells the extraordinary story of Sergei Korolyov, chief designer and unsung hero of the Soviet space programme.
Under the leadership of this remarkable man, the USSR trounced the Americans in the space race achieving a series of firsts, including the first human in space.
This fascinating and little-known story illuminates the life and work of a brilliant engineer, who struggled to meet the military demands of his ruthless political masters, Khrushchev and Brezhnev, whilst devoting as much time as possible to his real passion, flying to the moon. He battles to achieve his nation's dream of dominating space while forced to risk the lives of the pilots, his beloved 'little eagles', including the first cosmonaut Gagarin, whose achievement amazed and delighted the world.
Award winning playwright Rona Munro has written extensively for stage, film, radio and television including Iron (Traverse Theatre Edinburgh and Royal Court), The Last Witch (Lyceum, Edinburgh) and Ladybird Ladybird directed by Ken Loach. RSC Associate Director Roxana Silbert directs following her hugely successful production of Dunsinane at Hampstead Theatre.
Developed in association with Davidson College, USA
posted 02-20-2011 05:14 AM
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