'People like us are unhappy in this world and in the next: if we made it to heaven, we'd have to help make it thunder.'

The multi-award-winning Jack Thorne, the playwright behind Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, breathes new life into Georg Büchner's existential masterpiece, Woyzeck, one of the most extraordinary plays ever written.

It's 1980s Berlin. The Cold War rages and the world sits at a crossroads between Capitalism and Communism. On the border between East and West, a young soldier and the love of his life are desperately trying to build a better future for their child.

But the cost of escaping poverty is high in this searing tale of the people society leaves behind.

Jack Thorne's version of Woyzeck premiered at the Old Vic Theatre, London, in May 2017, in a production starring John Boyega in the title role.

'This really is one not to miss'

'An exceptionally powerful portrait of a man at the bottom of the heap, helpless and hopeless'

'A brutal interpretation for our times'

'Jack Thorne has sprinkled magic over Georg Büchner's elusive masterpiece… earthy, robust and admirably clear… this isn’t an easy watch, but it certainly rewards audience effort'

'Shattering… makes Woyzeck more accessible while preserving its unsettling spirit'

'A thrillingly powerful triumph… as a picture of working-class men, this Woyzeck is powerful and effective'

'Explosive… an emotionally challenging, deeply unsettling must-see'

'A delirious Freudian dream, a parable of toxic masculinity'

'Thorne introduces shafts of humour amidst the gloom... [this] descent into darkness is completely absorbing'

'A ferocious play that grows exponentially in power as it progresses. It's the play that Woyzeck would have been, needs to be, if written in 2017... Thorne brings his pitch-perfect naturalistic dialogue to bear on a work that becomes about class, masculinity and mental health... though it's almost 200 years old, this feels like a new play, savagely laying bare an unequal world'

Georg Büchner (1813–1837) was a German dramatist and writer of poetry and prose. His plays include Danton's Death, Leonce and Lena and Woyzeck. Jack Thorne is a playwright and BAFTA-winning screenwriter. His plays for the stage include: When Winston Went to War with the Wireless (Donmar Warehouse, 2023); The Motive and the Cue (National Theatre and West End, 2023; Evening Standard Award for Best Play; Critics' Circle Award for Best New Play); After Life, an adaptation of a film by Hirokazu Kore-eda (National Theatre, 2021); the end of history... (Royal Court, London, 2019); an adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Old Vic, London, 2017); an adaptation of Büchner's Woyzeck (Old Vic, London, 2017); Junkyard (Headlong, Bristol Old Vic, Rose Theatre Kingston & Theatr Clwyd, 2017); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre, London, 2016); The Solid Life of Sugar Water (Graeae and Theatre Royal Plymouth, 2015); Hope (Royal Court, London, 2015); adaptations of Let the Right One In (National Theatre of Scotland at Dundee Rep, the Royal Court and the Apollo Theatre, London, 2013/14) and Stuart: A Life Backwards (Underbelly, Edinburgh and tour, 2013); Mydidae (Soho, 2012; Trafalgar Studios, 2013); an adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Physicists (Donmar Warehouse, 2012); Bunny (Underbelly, Edinburgh, 2010; Soho, 2011); 2nd May 1997 (Bush, 2009); When You Cure Me (Bush, 2005; Radio 3's Drama on Three, 2006); Fanny and Faggot (Pleasance, Edinburgh, 2004 and 2007; Finborough, 2007; English Theatre of Bruges, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007); and Stacy (Tron, 2006; Arcola, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007). His television work includes Adolescence (with Stephen Graham), His Dark Materials, Then Barbara Met Alan (with Genevieve Barr), The Eddy, Help, The Accident, Kiri, National Treasure and This is England ’86/’88/’90. His films include The Swimmers (with Sally El Hosaini), Enola Holmes, Radioactive, The Aeronauts and Wonder. He was the recipient of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2022, and was elected the Guild's President in 2025. Author photo by Antonio Olmos