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Sir Ian McKellen has been hospitalized after falling off the stage during a show in London on Monday. Page Six confirmed that the 85-year-old actor was midway through his performance in “Player Kings” at the Noël Coward theatre when he lost his footing doing a fight scene and fell off the front of the stage, crying out in pain
According to the BBC, who was first to report the news, the audience was evacuated from the theater and the evening show was canceled. A representative for the theater shared a statement that he British actor, who plays John Falstaff in the show, will “make a speedy and full recovery” and was in “in good spirits.”
The statement read: “Thank you to our audience and the general public for their well wishes following Ian’s fall during this evening’s performance of ‘Player Kings.’ Following a scan, the brilliant NHS team have assured us that he will make a speedy and full recovery and Ian is in good spirits. The production has made the decision to cancel the performance on Tuesday 18 June so Ian can rest. Those affected will be contacted by their point of purchase as soon as possible tomorrow. Thank you to doctors Rachel and Lee who were on hand in the audience and to all the venue staff for their support.”
“Player Kings” is a production of William Shakespeare’s “Henry IV, Parts One and Two” which started its 12-week run on the West End in April; the play is expected to run through Saturday before going on tour throughout the United Kingdom until the end of July. Per Variety, McKellen is a frequent Shakespeare actor with stage roles including Macbeth, King Lear, Richard II, Coriolanus, Iago and Richard III. Just this year, he portrayed Hamlet in a film adaptation from director Sean Mathias. McKellen also famously played Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, as well as Magneto in the “X-Men” film franchise.
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