AN old play with a theme of interest today is opening at the RSC next Wednesday.

Believe What You Will is about a Middle Eastern leader who comes out of hiding to reclaim his identity.

He has been denied his crown and denounced by the all-powerful Roman Empire and when he finds a state to grant him refuge, Rome threatens war.

The discovery play was written by Philip Massinger in 1631 and is being tackled by director Josie Rourke, making her RSC debut. The exiled King Antiochus is played by Peter de Jersey, from The Bill and Holby City, who returns to the RSC after 12 years.

Contact the RSC ticket hotline to book or visit www.rsc.org.uk for more information.

l THE RSC has announced the productions lined up for its Winter Season - and it is Shakespeare-free.

It includes two exciting new adaptations of classic tales - Charles Dickens' Great Expectations and a two-part retelling of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.

There will also be a return after 30 years of Thomas Middleton's Women Beware Women, starring stage and screen favourite Penelope Wilton, and a tribute to Arthur Miller, who died this year, in the form of the first RST production of The Crucible.

Artistic director Michael Boyd said: "Just before we present the first ever Complete Works of Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, it makes sense even for the RSC that our winter season this year contains no Shakespeare."

The shows open from the end of November and public booking opens on May 31. Visit www.rsc.org.uk for details of tickets, dates and membership or call the ticket hotline on 0870 6091110.