Actor and singer Jonathan Groff is set to star in a bold new all-male revival of one of William Shakespeare’s most iconic comedies.
“As You Like It” is believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in Shakespeare’s collection of plays “Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies” — referred to by modern scholars as “the First Folio” — in 1623.
IMDb’s synopsis of one of the first movie adaptations of the play (from 1936, starring Laurence Olivier), reads, “A Duke usurps his brother’s land and power, banishing him and his entourage into the forest of Arden. The banished Duke’s daughter, Rosalind, remains with her cousin Celia. She has fallen in love with Orlando.”
The stage and screen star, 40, will play Rosalind in the all-male revival, which will be directed by Daniel Evans. Rosalind was played by Austrian-British actress Elisabeth Bergner in the aforementioned movie adaptation.
Evans and Groff, who won a Tony Award for his performance in Maria Friedman’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Merrily We Roll Along,” chatted with Deadline about the latter’s upcoming role.
Jonathan Groff Feels ‘Shock’ at His ‘As You Like It’ Casting
GettySpeaking to Deadline, Jonathan Groff told the publication, “It’s still a little bit of shock.”
However, director Daniel Evans undoubtedly believes Groff is the right man for the job. Evans was blown away by Groff’s “magnetic” performance on Broadway as Bobby Darin in the jukebox musical “Just In Time” and spoke very highly of him.
Evans said, “There’s a certain kind of actor who, when they’ve done musical theater and particularly, perhaps, Sondheim, which Jonathan has, Shakespeare comes naturally. I recognize it in him, because he’s so used to what rhythm can do, what rhyme can do. He gets it.”
The director enthusiastically continued, “He is magnetic. And in fact, I said this to him: There’s only one other person that I’ve seen do what he does in this show, and that is Liza Minnelli at the Royal Albert Hall.”
He concluded, “Such utter generosity towards the audience, he loves the live interactions… You see what he gets, how he feeds the audience, how he himself is fed, and he’s quick and bright. And of course, those are qualities that Rosalind needs.”
It was high praise indeed. It bodes very well for Groff’s performance as a character who’s also been played on stage by the likes of Vanessa Redgrave, Patti LuPone, and Adrian Lester. Rosalind has also been played on television by Helen Mirren, and in a movie by Bryce Dallas Howard. Groff has big shoes to fill, but Evans clearly thinks he’s up to the task.
Theater Fans ‘Cannot Wait’ to See Groff In ‘As You Like It’
Per the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Instagram post about the upcoming all-male production of “As You Like It,” it will also star Fisayo Akinade as Celia.
Instagram users flocked to the post’s comments to have their say about it. Suffice it to say, people are generally excited for it to begin.
One user wrote, “JONATHAN AND FISAYO TOGETHER OH MY LORD ❤️.”
Another RSC account follower said, “I am so jealous of the entire country of England 😭😭😭 superb casting.”
Someone else simply commented, “Amazing – cannot wait 🔥 ❤️.”
Finally, one eagle-eyed user noted, “announcement is major but also i cannot get over the quality of that photo like ??? if you zoom in you can actually count individual eyelashes that’s insane work by the photographer.”
Groff will join Daniel Evans for “As You Like It” rehearsals in August. Performances will begin at the RSC’s flagship Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon on September 26. The final show will be on November 7.
Per IMDb, Groff’s past movie credits include 2013’s “Frozen” and 2023’s “Knock at the Cabin.” His television credits include “Invincible” and “Doctor Who.” In 2025, he appeared in the Prime Video comedy-drama series “Étoile.” Things are undoubtedly only going to get bigger and better for him going forward.
We wish Jonathan Groff all the luck in the world for his role in “As You Like It.”
