"Richard Eyre asked me back to the National Theatre for his final production as artistic director - a new play that was scheduled to transfer to a West End Theatre. That offer conflicted with another more attractive one from his successor.
"I was particularly excited by Trevor Nunn's plans for a NT company of actors, playing for extended periods with its own repertoire. Initially I was to be in three productions, one of them a long-awaited new play by a major British dramatist. This did not materialise. Nor did the permanent company. Meanwhile I became the only actor to have worked at the National Theatre for all four of its artistic directors."
— Ian McKellen, October 1999
| Year | Place | Title/Writer | Director/Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 |
Royal National Theatre Olivier Theatre London |
AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE (London)
Henrik Ibsen, version by Christopher Hampton |
DIRECTOR: Trevor Nunn ROLE: Dr. Tomas Stockmann |
| 1997 |
Royal National Theatre Olivier Theatre London |
PETER PAN
J. M. Barrie |
DIRECTOR: John Caird ROLE: Mr. Darling/Captain Hook |
| 1998 |
Royal National Theatre Ahmanson Theater Los Angeles |
AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE (Los Angeles)
Henrik Ibsen, version by Christopher Hampton |
DIRECTOR: Trevor Nunn ROLE: Dr. Tomas Stockmann |