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Dateline:
12th May, 2011
Double Feature at the National
A new ensemble takes over the Cottesloe Theatre this summer to present
four short plays by writers new to the National Theatre: Tom Basden,
Sam Holcroft, DC Moore and Prasanna Puwanarajah. A live band and a single
group of performers and theatre-makers will premiere the two double-bills,
directed by Polly Findlay and Lyndsey Turner, designed by Soutra Gilmour,
with lighting by James Farncombe, sound by Carolyn Downing and fight
direction by Bret Yount. The cast includes Pippa Bennett-Warner, Karina
Fernandez, Trystan Gravelle, Nitin Kundra and Stephanie Street.
The season opens on 27th July (previews from 8th) and plays until 30th
August.
The plays are:
Edgar and Annabel
By Sam Holcroft, directed by Lyndsey Turner
A young married couple prepare dinner in a smartly furnished kitchen.
Annabel is composed, intelligent, in love. Edgar is professional,
successful, assured. She's chopping vegetables, he's brought the wine.
But something isn't right. In a city not so different from our own
capital, a group of freedom fighters attempt to stand up to an Orwellian
establishment in increasingly perilous circumstances. Sam Holcroft's
new play paints a picture of a police state in crisis. The story that
unfolds brings into question relationships, identities and the very
nature of reality itself.
The Swan
By DC Moore, directed by Polly Findlay
In a decaying pub in South London, preparations are being made for
a wake. The beer is warm, the rain is falling, and tempers are running
close to breaking point. Denise has lost a father - and Jim has missed
his own son's funeral. With only an hour before their guests arrive,
a fractured family begin to settle their accounts. The ghosts of lives
lived and opportunities missed are laid to rest as new and ancient
betrayals are confronted and forgiven. DC Moore's touching and very
funny new play examines the ties that hold us together in a multi-cultural
society.
Nightwatchman
By Prasanna Puwanarajah, directed by Polly Findlay
Abirami is English. And Sri Lankan. And a professional cricketer.
Tomorrow she makes her debut for England against Sri Lanka, but tonight
she faces a relentless bowling machine in a one-on-one session to
prepare her for the innings of her life. As the night draws on, she
challenges our preconceptions of politics, sport and national pride
as harshly as she challenges her own. Prasanna Puwanarajah's new play,
coarse, funny and provocative, is a vivid exploration of the search
for the meaning of home.
There Is a War
By Tom Basden, directed by Lyndsey Turner
In another country, in another time, civil war rages. The Blues and
the Greys have been fighting each other for as long as they can remember.
Soldiers, priests and scavengers roam a landscape scorched by years
of battle and decay. Anne, a young medical officer, finds herself
abandoned and useless, unable to locate the hospital or even the war
she was promised. A journey into the dark heart of a strange and surreal
conflict, Tom Basden's miniature epic explores the mad savagery of
war with biting black comedy.
The double bills are Edgar and Annabel / The Swan and Nightwatchman
/ There Is a War.
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