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For years, if you wanted to see one of the greatest plays ever written, you had to go to London. But not this Spring.
This May, Durham-based Elysium Theatre Company is taking Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night - a Pulitzer Prize-winning giant of 20th century drama - and putting it where it rarely goes:
Right across the North.
From Queen’s Hall Arts Centre,Hexham, to The Dukes, Lancaster, Lancashire, via a key stop at Empty Space Theatre, Salford, on 22 May, this is a tour that doesn’t orbit London - it ignores it.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t a small play.
It’s widely called the greatest American drama ever written - and it’s usually locked into the biggest institutions in the world.
But for three weeks in May, it lands in places like:
In several venues, this will be the first time the play has ever been staged there.
Set over one long day in 1912, the play follows the Tyrone family as old wounds reopen and nothing stays buried for long. Addiction. Regret. Family damage that doesn’t heal.
It’s raw, it’s relentless - and it’s exactly the kind of theatre that sticks with you.
Elysium isn’t parachuting in.
They’ve spent the last decade building an audience across the North - not chasing London runs, but turning up, repeatedly, in northern venues and growing something properly regional.
This production is the clearest statement yet of what that means.
“This is our most ambitious show - a play of this scale, usually reserved for the biggest stages in the world,” says director Jake Murray.
“But we’ve built this company here. These audiences matter to us. This is where it should be seen.”
The 22 May performance at the Empty Space Theatre isn’t just another date.
It’s a return.
Elysium has built a strong track record in Greater Manchester - The Lowry, HOME, Hope Mill, 53two and now comes back with its biggest production yet.
A proper run:
WEEK 1
Tuesday 12 May 7pm – Queen’s Hall Arts, Hexham – Long Day’s Journey Into Night | Queen's Hall Arts Centre – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Wednesday 13 May 7pm – Southpaw Dance Studios, Sunderland – https://southpaw.org.uk/longdaysjourneyintonight
Thursday 14 May 7pm – Town Hall Theatre, Hartlepool – Long Day’s Journey Into Night – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Friday 15 May 7pm – Northern Stage, Newcastle – Long Day's Journey Into Night | Northern Stage
Saturday 16 May 7pm – Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond – Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond, Yorkshire | Long Day's Journey into Night – NORTHERN PREMIERE
WEEK 2
Monday 18 May 7.30pm – Ushaw House, County Durham – Long Day's Journey Into Night - Ushaw: Historic House, Chapels & Gardens – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Tuesday 19 May 7pm – Gala, Durham – Long Day’s Journey Into Night – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Thursday 21 May 7pm – Alnwick Playhouse – LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT - Alnwick Playhouse – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Friday 22 May 7pm – Empty Space Theatre, Gr Manchester - LONG DAYS JOURNEY INTO NIGHT by Eugene ONeill at The Empty Space, Salford on 22nd May, 2026
WEEK 3
Monday 25 May 7pm – Princess Alexandra Auditorium, Yarm – The Princess Alexandra Auditorium & Friarage Theatre, Yarm Long Day’s Journey into Night - The Princess Alexandra Auditorium & Friarage Theatre, Yarm – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Tuesday 26 May 7pm – The Witham, Barnard Castle - Long Day’s Journey into Night (10+) - The Witham – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Wednesday 27 May 7pm – Washington Arts Centre Sunderland – Long Day's Journey Into Night | Sunderland Culture – NORTHERN PREMIERE
Thursday 28 May 7pm – Theatre 41, York – Theatre@41 Monkgate | Public
Friday 29 May 7.30pm – Dukes, Lancaster – Long Day's Journey Into Night › The Dukes
Saturday 30 May 7.30pm – Dukes, Lancaster – Long Day's Journey Into Night › The Dukes
Danny Solomon, Edmund Dehn, Sarah Dorsett, Daniel Bradford, and introducing Darlington actor Macy Stasiak.
This isn’t about bringing a “London show” north. It’s about proving you don’t need London in the first place.
