DUBAI: Egyptian-Palestinian actress May Calamawy is set to make her UK stage debut in “Samira,” a new play set during the Arab Spring that will premiere at London’s National Theatre next year.

The production, written by British-Lebanese playwright Carmen Nasr and directed by Emily Burns, will run at the theater’s Dorfman venue from Feb. 4 to March 13, 2027, with Calamawy in the title role.

“I’m so excited to be a part of the world premiere of ‘Samira’ at the National Theatre,” Calamawy wrote on Instagram recently. “As my UK theater debut, I’m proud and grateful to be doing it alongside this talented group.”

Set in Damascus in 2011, the play follows Samira, a charismatic activist who shares unfiltered accounts of street protests demanding change, while academics in London follow her story as the revolution unfolds. Her disappearance drives the narrative.

The National Theatre described the play, announced this week, as part of its 2027 season, as inspired by real events and exploring authenticity, political upheaval and the pursuit of truth.

Calamawy will star alongside Joshua McGuire as Dan, Lily Olufemi-Bywaters as Maya, Sirine Saba as Rana, Karim Saleh as Kamil and Antonia Salib as Amira. The creative team includes set and costume designer Frankie Bradshaw, lighting designer Joshua Pharo and video designer Akhila Krishnan. 

The play marks Nasr’s National Theatre debut. She won the Channel 4 Playwrights’ Scheme award in 2017 and is adapting author Avni Doshi’s Booker Prize-shortlisted novel “Burnt Sugar” for television. 

Her previous work includes “Dubailand,” which premiered at London’s Finborough Theatre in 2018, and a stage adaptation of filmmaker Babak Anvari’s horror film “Under the Shadow,” which ran at the Almeida Theatre in June and July. Burns’ directing credits include “Dear Octopus” and “Jack Absolute Flies Again.”

Calamawy is best known for playing Dena Hassan in the comedy series “Ramy,” created by and starring Egyptian-American comedian Ramy Youssef, and Layla El-Faouly in Marvel’s 2022 series “Moon Knight.”

This year, she starred in the horror film “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” alongside Jack Reynor and Laia Costa, and is set to appear in Netflix’s upcoming “Extraction” series as Priscilla Ragab.