An Evening with Lucian Freud

The play is based on a real life encounter the playwright Laura-Jane Foley had with the artist Lucian Freud.[3] In the 65-minute one-act play with video cameos, the character Laura recounts the evening she spent with the 82-year-old artist. The narrative is broken up with five video cameos from characters including Dora Maar and Leigh Bowery.[4]

Casting for the play took place in April 2015,[5] and was formally announced on Twitter on 22 April.[6][7] Cressida Bonas was cast as Laura. The play also featured video cameo appearances from Maureen Lipman,[8] Alastair Stewart, Laura-Jane Foley, Russell Grant, Shana Swash and Benjamin Ramm.[9] The play was produced by Wonderful Artful Theatre and was directed by Ella Marchment and designed by Lily German.[10] The Evening Standard announced that filming for the video cameos took place on 11 May.[11] The play ran at the Leicester Square Theatre. The opening night was 19 May and the play ended on 6 June.[12]

Prior to Press Night there had been a lot of press interest due to the casting of Cressida Bonas in her first major theatrical role.[13] Details of the play were not released prior to the opening and due to the libidinous reputation of the eponymous Lucian Freud, there was much speculation in the press about the nature of the production.[14] The Evening Standard wrongly stated that the play "features explicit sex scenes".[15] The play and Bonas's portrayal of the playwright were widely termed 'fascinating' and 'charming'.[16][17][18][19] Jane Shilling in The Daily Telegraph praised the "charm and energy of Bonas’s performance'.[20]