Arinzé Kene to Lead World Premiere of Kohlhaas as Brighton Festival Celebrates 60th Edition

Rehearsal images are released today for the world premiere of Kohlhaas, the opening event of the 60th Edition of Brighton Festival and its first ever original theatre production, directed by Omar Elerian (Rhinoceros, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, The Chairs) starring three-time Olivier nominee Arinzé Kene (Get Up Stand Up, Girl From The North Country, Death of A Salesman). This contemporary, urgent adaptation of Heinrich von Kleist’s 1810 novella Michael Kohlhaas, about the consequences of injustice and the psychology of protest and resistance, is especially created for Brighton Dome’s Corn Exchange where it runs from 1 to 5 May with press night on 2 May.

Kohlhaas reunites Kene with Elerian in their first one-man show since the Olivier Award-nominated West End hit Misty. It is adapted by pioneering Italian playwrights, Marco Baliani and Remo Rostagno, translated by Omar Elerian with Lighting and Smoke Effects Design by Jackie Shemesh, Installation and Costume Design by Ana Inés Jabares-Pita, and Composition and Sound Design by Matthew Herbert.

‘If a man can break the circle of the world for just two horses, then it means that that circle can be broken at any moment…’

Kohlhaas tells the story of a 16th century German horse dealer who seeks redress after a local Baron tricks him out of his two most beautiful horses. When met with corruption and indifference, a principled demand for fairness spirals into an uncompromising quest for justice, with violent and far-reaching consequences.

Established in the late 1960s, Brighton Festival is the largest of its kind and a major event in the international arts calendar. This year’s 60th Edition runs from 1-25 May and celebrates the city as a hub for cultural innovation, collaboration and artistic experimentation.

Alongside Kohlhaas, the Corn Exchange programme will also feature a 5-hour durational performance by twelve local children and one adult percussionist in Fevered Sleep’s Time Keeps The Drummer (8 – 10 May); Clod Ensemble and Nu Civilisation Orchestra’s live dance celebration of Charles Mingus’ seminal album The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady (16 – 17 May); and fix+foxy’s brutal, immersive, reimagining of the birth of modern America performed by a phenomenal South African cast, Dark Noon (21 – 24 May).

Live-art company KlangHaus will present two site-responsive, immersive experiences (2 – 23 May, Anita’s Room) which will blend moving images, live music, light, sound-design and staging. Last Haus on Earth dismantles the barriers between performers and audiences in an audio-visual sensorial storm, whilst in Darkroom audiences of six are plunged into darkness in this visceral response to climate change.

The Festival’s performance programme also includes the World Premiere of NoFit State’s carnation: the revolution is coming and I have nothing to wear (2 – 25 May, Black Rock), created and directed by Firenza Guidi (Sabotage) and combining world class circus, live music and bold cinematic imagery to explore rebellion, resistance and hope in turbulent times; the return of the Emma Rice Company with a revival of their hit Malory Towers (19 – 23 May, Theatre Royal Brighton) and the final touring production from The Akram Khan Company, Thikra: Night of Remembering (23 – 24 May, Brighton Dome Concert Hall).

Across the wider programme, highlights include one-off performances from Patti Smith, Laurie Anderson and the first ever collaboration between Sampa the Great and W.I.T.C.H. Beverly-Glenn Copeland, Sir Antonio Pappano, Angelique Kidjo, Iestyn Davies, William Kenridge, Michael Rosen, Aldous Harding, Joelle Taylor, Asian Dub Foundation, Antonio Guzman & Iva Jankovic, Isobel Smith and Abigail Norris and many more.

This year marks a new era for the Festival, the first to be curated by the Festival Programming team led by Lucy Davies with Producing Director Beth Burgess. This new model will enable the Festival to begin producing original work for the very first time whilst deepening its connection to the city and exploring new partnership opportunities and collaborations both in the South East and internationally. From 2026 onwards, world class artists and performance companies will transform Brighton Dome’s beautifully restored Corn Exchange into a hub for unique theatrical events.

Brighton Festival 2026 is indebted to the steadfast support of funders Brighton & Hove City Council and Arts Council England; Principal Supporter The Pebble Trust; Major Sponsor Mayo Wynne Baxter; Higher Educat

Main Image:  KOHLHAAS Rehearsals by Helen Murray

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