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This is recommended for ages 12+
Performance Dates
21 September - 12 December 2026
Run time: TBC
No interval
Rory Kinnear stars as John Maynard Keynes in the world premiere of The Standard of Living, a new play by three-time Olivier Award winner James Graham. Royal Ballet Principal Natalia Osipova makes her West End debut as Lydia Lopokova, the celebrated Russian ballerina who fell in love with and married Keynes. Directed by Nicholas Hytner, this strictly limited 12-week West End season plays at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.
Set during a period of economic collapse and cultural upheaval, the production follows one of the twentieth century’s most influential thinkers as he attempts to imagine a new kind of future. Blending politics, art, music and movement, the play is a bold, theatrical exploration of love, power and the meaning of a good life.
Secure your The Standard of Living tickets early for this strictly limited engagement, running from 21 September to 12 December 2026.
The Standard of Living tells the story of John Maynard Keynes (Rory Kinnear), the radical economist whose ideas helped reshape Britain’s financial system and influence global economic thinking after the First World War. A key figure in the Bloomsbury Group, Keynes moves between the corridors of power in Whitehall and a radical circle of artists, writers and thinkers determined to live differently.
At the centre of his life is Lydia Lopokova (Natalia Osipova), the acclaimed Russian ballerina of Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, who becomes both his partner and a defining emotional force. As markets crash and old systems begin to collapse, Keynes is forced to confront a personal and political question: what is a good life, and what should society value above all else?
The play asks whether art, love and human connection can reshape the future before it is too late—or whether the world is too bound to wealth and power to change.
The Standard of Living is a new play by James Graham set during a period of economic crisis and cultural change in early 20th-century Britain. It follows John Maynard Keynes’s attempt to understand what makes a meaningful life, as old systems begin to collapse and society questions what it truly values.
At its heart, the play asks whether art, love and human connection can reshape the world—or whether humanity is too bound to wealth and power to change course.
Rory Kinnear plays John Maynard Keynes, the influential British economist whose ideas helped reshape modern financial systems in the aftermath of the First World War.
A member of the Bloomsbury Group, Keynes moved between the political establishment in Whitehall and a radical artistic circle that included writers, artists and dancers. His personal and intellectual life was closely entwined with Lydia Lopokova, a celebrated Russian ballerina who becomes a central figure in the story.
Royal Ballet Principal Natalia Osipova makes her West End debut as Lydia Lopokova. The production is directed by Nicholas Hytner, with set design by Bob Crowley, bringing together a leading creative team for the world premiere.
15 Jun, 2026 | By Hay Brunsdon