THE HABIT OF ART, a new play by Alan Bennett, opens in the Lyttelton Theatre on 17 November, directed by Nicholas Hytner. The production will be designed by Bob Crowley, with lighting by Mark Henderson, music by Matthew Scott and sound by Paul Groothuis. The full cast is: Danny Burns, Martin Chamberlain, Philip Childs, Frances de la Tour, Richard Griffiths, John Heffernan, Alex Jennings, Barbara Kirby, Elliot Levey, Adrian Scarborough and Stephen Wight.Benjamin Britten, sailing uncomfortably close to the wind with his new opera, Death in Venice, seeks advice from his former collaborator and friend, W H Auden. During this imagined meeting, their first for twenty-five years, they are observed and interrupted by, amongst others, their future biographer and a young man from the local bus station. Alan Bennett’s new play is as much about the theatre as it is about poetry or music. It looks at the unsettling desires of two difficult men, and at the ethics of biography. It reflects on growing old, on creativity and inspiration, and on persisting when all passion’s spent: ultimately, on the habit of art.THE HABIT OF ART is Alan Bennett’s fifth play for the National Theatre. His last play, The History Boys, opened at the Lyttelton in 2004, toured nationally and internationally, and played for two seasons in the West End and on Broadway. Among its many awards were the Laurence Olivier, Tony and Critics Circle Awards for Best Play, and the South Bank Show Award for Theatre. Richard Griffiths created the role of Hector in The History Boys at the NT, on international tour, on Broadway and on film, winning the Evening Standard, Critics’ Circle, Laurence Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Actor.  His film and television work includes the Harry Potter films, Withnail and I, Pie in the Sky, Gormenghast and Bleak House.Alex Jennings is an NT Associate. His recent appearances at the National include: Present Laughter, The Alchemist, Stuff Happens and His Girl Friday. Frances de la Tour last appeared at the National in The History Boys (also on Broadway and on screen).Since he became Director of the National in April 2003, Nicholas Hytner has directed Henry V, His Dark Materials, The History Boys, Stuff Happens, Henry IV, Southwark Fair, The Alchemist, The Man of Mode, The Rose Tattoo (with Stephen Pimlott), Rafta, Rafta… , Much Ado About Nothing, Major Barbara, England People Very Nice and Phèdre.