Oscar-nominated actor John Malkovich is to play a Josef Fritzl-style Austrian psychopath on stage in London next year, it has been announced.

The 56-year-old will bring The Infernal Comedy, about real-life serial killer Jack Unterweger, to the Barbican.

Artistic director Graham Sheffield said the play was "curiously similar" to the story of Frizl, who locked his daughter in a basement prison for 24 years.

Barbican bosses also said ticket sales had reached record levels in 2009.

Speaking about Malkovich's one-man play, Mr Sheffield said the Barbican was "not afraid" to tackle issues of the day.

"Part of the reason I picked it was the issue of how people like that, monsters like that, can get away with crimes like that," he said.

"The reason we put on something like that is it has a pretty shocking relevance to some of things going on in society."

Mr Sheffield said the work was "beautiful" despite its "ostensibly shocking" subject matter.

Other shows in the 2010/2011 season include Future Beauty, a "ground-breaking" show of innovative Japanese fashion, a new version of Gyorgy Kurtag's Kafka Fragments, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel.

Barbican managing director Sir Nicholas Kenyon said there was a "tremendous thirst" for the arts at present.

He said: "Over the last year the Barbican had its best year ever with 1.2 million tickets sold. Attendances over that year were 13% up and that success story, which I'm sure is not unique in the arts world, is continuing this year.

"People are buying tickets through the recession. The concerts we're putting on in spring 2011 are already sold out."

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