Sir Mark Rylance to play Iago in new Globe production of Othello

Sir Mark Rylance will return to Shakespeare’s Globe to star in a new production of Othello.

The Oscar-winning actor, who was the theatre’s first artistic director, will play antagonist Iago opposite Moonlight and Selma star Andre Holland as the tragedy’s title character.

It is part of the first season for the Globe’s new artistic director Michelle Terry, which will also include a premiere of two new plays, a new production of Hamlet among other classics, and a series of events focused on race, refuge and refugees in relation to Shakespeare.

Bridge Of Spies and Dunkirk actor Sir Mark, who is currently starring in the Globe’s production of Farinelli And The King on Broadway, will take to the stage as the villainous Iago from July 20 until October 13.

Sir Mark was the Globe’s founding artistic director from 1996 until 2005, during which time he played several roles including Olivia in Twelfth Night and Richard in Richard III.

The production will be directed by the Old Vic’s creative associate Claire van Kampen, who wrote Farinelli And The King and who is married to Sir Mark.

He will also join 23 other actors in a special event at Westminster Abbey over Shakespeare’s birthday weekend in April, during which a series of plays, sonnets and songs will be brought to life.

Olivier Award-winning actor and writer Terry, who has previously acted on the Globe’s stage, was confirmed to be taking over from Emma Rice as creative lead at the London theatre last summer.

Her first season will kick off with a production of Hamlet on April 25, which will play alongside As You Like It from May 2.

There will also be a tour of plays The Merchant Of Venice, The Taming Of The Shrew and Twelfth Night consisting of eight actors.

The three plays will open at the Globe before hitting the road on a national and international tour, and at each show the audience will be able to pick which of the plays they wish to watch in tribute to a tradition from Shakespeare’s day.

During Refugee Week, from June 18 to 24, the theatre will host a festival of events exploring the famous playwright’s response to the issue.

One of the highlights is set to be a premiere of Nanjing, a production based on the Nanjing Massacre of 1937 which focuses on identity, dispossession and the consequences of war.

It has also been announced that, from February to September, the Globe will have a series of events based on Shakespeare and the censorship of British theatre, which started in 1737 and ended in 1968.

In August, new play Emilia – about the life of poet Emilia Bassano – will premiere, followed in September by Eyam, about the plague that hit the Derbyshire village in the 1660s.