Speed the Plow, Playhouse Theatre

Lindsay Lohan is to make her West End debut in David Mamet’s Hollywood satire Speed the Plow. Yes, you did read that right: Lindsay Lohan, star of cult teenage comedy Mean Girls and hit family films Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap is headed for the London stage. 

As a wry examination of Hollywood's inner working, the play is an apt stage debut for an actress who has been in the industry since the tender age of three. And Mamet's dark satire will serve to illuminate and amuse on the subject of fame and its many trappings. Lohan will take on the role of Karen, secretary to an imposing movie executive, which was originally played by Madonna in the play’s Broadway premiere. 

Director Lindsay Posner has plenty of experience working with Mamet's scripts, so we can expect a sensitive and subtle treatment of this classic play. However, his statement that he will "cast to the hilt" around Lohan does not show a great deal of faith in his star attraction. Notoriously unreliable and with a chequered history that includes prison and addiction, Lohan has already inspired critical trepidation and buzzing anticipation in equal measure. 

As Posner led us to predict, Lohan's co-stars are strong, solid actors. Richard Schiff (most known for his role of Tony in hit series The West Wing) is an acclaimed actor and incredibly safe pair of hands, whose comedic style is particularly suited to giving the satirical edge that the play needs. Fresh from playing the lead in The National's A Small Family Business, and with stage credits coming out of his ears, Nigel Lindsey is another experienced and consistently impressive performer -- though casting a Brit is a bold choice, as Mamet's script is so deeply American. Also, along with Posner and Lohan, he is the show's third Lindsey. 

We wait with baited breath to see whether Lohan can silence her critics and rise to this role, which could suit her perfectly. And an unprecedented success would allow the infamous ex-child-star to poke fun at the dark side of an industry that she has so long epitomised. Twitter tells of forgotten lines and fluffed monologues on the opening night, but Lohan's still got a while to find her feet before the critics come and give their verdicts...