The 250th anniversary of the birth of German poet Friedrich von Schiller is being marked by a new production of his historical tragedy Don Carlos at the Oxford Playhouse from Wednesday to Saturday, February 21. The production, in a new adaptation by Mike Poulton, is forecast to be one of the most outstanding Oxford University student shows of recent years.

Don Carlos was premiered in 1787 and has since become a cultural landmark, defining artistic protest during the 1848 era, as well as during the Third Reich, when an audience in Hamburg famously burst into applause at Rodrigo’s ‘freedom’ speech.

The Observer said: “Poulton’s version of Schiller’s iconic masterpiece is brimming with 21st-century arguments about terror, despotism and individual liberty and makes a seminal Enlightenment work accessible to modern audiences.”

Inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet (and well-known in the operatic version by Verdi), Schiller’s classic tale sees a crisis rip through the royal household at the height of the Spanish Inquisition, when a passionate love triangle sets the tyrannical King Phillip II on collision course with his mercurial son, Don Carlos. Carlos is passionately in love with Elizabeth of Valois – but his father, King Philip, wants her for himself.

Director William Maynard, a PPE undergraduate at Oriel College, said: “It really is a privilege to be performing the work in such a significant year for Schiller. We’re extremely fortunate to have assembled such a great cast and we are looking forward to putting on a fantastic performance to mark the anniversary.”

Produced by Krishna Omkar for Oxford University Student Company Sovereign Arts, Don Carlos features Matthew Maltby, Edward Chalk and Lindsay Dukes in the lead roles.

For tickets call the box office on 01865 305305 or online at (www.oxfordplayhouse.com).