The Doctor

Olivier Award winner Juliet Stevenson “delivers one of the peak performances of the theatrical year” (The Guardian) in The Doctor: the West End transfer of Robert Icke’s sold-out, five-star Almeida Theatre production from 29th September 2022 at the Duke of York’s Theatre.

In a divisive time, in a divided nation, a society takes sides. The latest smash-hit by “Britain’s best director” (Telegraph) is a "provocative, wonderfully upsetting" (Independent) whirlwind of gender, race and questions about identity, a "devastating play for today" (Financial Times).

Production photography of original Almeida production.

Juliet Stevenson reprises her Olivier-nominated performance as Professor Ruth Woolf in The Doctor. Book The Doctor tickets in the West End on TodayTix.

The Doctor play follows Ruth Woolf, a senior physician who is called in to work on a complicated case. While looking after a young woman with sepsis, the patient's family send a priest to visit and deliver the last rites. It’s a decision which Ruth questions. As a result, a decision made for one family is blown up in epic proportions and becomes the subject of national debate. Society takes side and Ruth Woolf finds herself at the centre of a media storm. Can the doctor remedy her life, and her patient's life, once and for all?

Robert Icke’s The Doctor play raises questions of identity, religion and perception in a modern-day society. Enter the West End’s newest waiting room — the Duke of York’s Theatre — this autumn. The doctor will see you now.

Book The Doctor tickets in London on TodayTix.

What to Watch For:

• Juliet Stevenson will play Professor Ruth Woolf in The Doctor. She previously took on the role for The Doctor at the Almeida Theatre and received an Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress.
• Stevenson and director Robert Icke reunite for The Doctor London performances. Together, they’ve worked on London plays such as Hamlet and Mary Stuart.
• The Doctor is based on the 1912 play, Professor Bernhardi. Arthur Schnitzler’s original work followed a doctor treating an ill patient pre-World War One.
• The Doctor was nominated for Best New Play at the 2020 Olivier Awards. The category included Leopoldstadt, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, and A Very Expensive Poison.