Sir Mark Rylance cancels West End shows after his brother's death

Virgin Radio

11 Jun 2022, 19:24

RIP Jonathan Waters.

Three upcoming West End performances by Oscar-winning actor Sir Mark Rylance have been cancelled following the sudden death of his brother in a bicycle crash.

The Daily Mail reports that Mr Waters, who was 60, was cycling in Oakland when he was hit by an oncoming vehicle. Despite being rushed to hospital, he died of his injuries on May 28th.

Three performances of Jerusalem - in which Mr Rylance plays the starring role of Johnny 'Rooster' Byron - have been cancelled so he can attend his brother’s funeral in the US.

The affected performances were scheduled between June 11th and 12th. Sir Mark asked ticket holders to understand his need to grieve his "beloved” brother.

The recent star of The Phantom of the Open said in a statement; “In order to attend his funeral in California, I unfortunately have to miss three performances of Jerusalem. As I have no understudy to play the role of Rooster Johnny Byron, sadly these performances have been cancelled.

“Sonia Friedman Productions, together with Nimax, are arranging additional performances at the end of the scheduled run to try and accommodate everyone who will be affected.

“I hope you understand my need to grieve my beloved brother and thank you for your support at this time. I hope you will be able to attend another performance of Jerusalem.”

The current run of Jerusalem is director Jez Butterworth’s three-hour modern twist on his classic 2009 play. The cast includes Mackezie Crook as Ginger and Alan David as The Professor.

Jerusalem is showing at The Apollo Theatre until August 7th.

On behalf of us all, Sir Mark, our condolences to you for you loss.