A series of curated, live events that celebrate the enduring power of literary correspondence. Benedict Cumberbatch, Louise Brealey and an array of world class performers take to the stage.

Letters Live returns to London for its most ambitious season yet.

Following its great successes in 2013 and 2014, Letters Live present its first season of shows in 2015 at the iconic Freemasons’ Hall, one of the finest Art Deco buildings in Britain. Inspired by Letters of Note, the bestselling anthology compiled by Shaun Usher, and To the Letter by Simon Garfield, Letters Live is a series of curated, live events that celebrate the enduring power of literary correspondence.

From Patti Smith’s unread letter to a dying Robert Mapplethorpe; to Richard Burton’s parting words to Elizabeth Taylor as they separated after years of tempestuous marriage. David Bowie’s enthusiastic letter to his first American Fan and Che Guevara’s revolutionary words to his children. Letters Live captures the humour, sadness, inspiration, and brilliance that illuminate all of our lives.

Letters Live  doesn’t just programme a series of readings; they curate performances taking into consideration the content of the letter, its style, the person who reads it and where, ensuring each event is unique and intimate.

31 March - 4 April

From Julien Planté: This is a celebration of letter writing and the lost art of correspondence, where we invite great artists to read out loud memorable letters to an audience of 1,500 every night. It’s a unique performance, something really well curated where we invite high-profile, inspiring talents from the worlds of film, music, art, theatre and fashion. Benedict Cumberbatch and Louise Brealey will read letters every night, Tom Odell will play the piano every night and Matt Berry will be our voice of God. Many other names, but we want to keep that element of surprise.

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COMPETITION: Win 1x pair of tickets to attend Letters Live Easter 2015 at Freemasons’ Hall on Friday 3rd April at 19:30. To enter the competition, send an email to bojana@run-riot.com with the correct answer in the ‘subject’ box. The winner will be randomly selected.

Q: Benedict Cumberbatch studied at:

A: 1) East 15 2) RADA 3) LAMDA