Following the postponement of their 20th anniversary season, London Classic Theatre announce the return of Alan Ayckbourn’s Absurd Person Singular at Theatre Royal Bath which was postponed in March.
Directed by Michael Cabot, returning to their roles are John Dorney (Geoffrey Jackson), Felicity Houlbrooke (Jane Hopcroft), Helen Keeley (Eva Jackson), Rosanna Miles (Marion Brewster-Wright), Graham O’Mara (Ronald Brewster-Wright) and Paul Sandys (Sidney Hopcroft). The production opens on 10 February, with preview from 9 February, and runs until 20 February ahead of a rescheduled Spring/Summer tour, with full details to be announced.
Artistic Director Michael Cabot said today “After a difficult year, we are delighted that Theatre Royal Bath have invited us to be part of their new season. We had to postpone our 2020 tour of Absurd Person Singular after only three weeks on the road, which left us in a perilous position. Since then, we haven’t received any support from either the Covid-19 Emergency Response Fund or the Culture Recovery Fund, so it has been an extremely challenging few months. This two-week run at Bath feels like a genuine lifeline and the first step on the road to recovery for us. Our cast and stage management team have been incredibly loyal and are all looking forward to getting the show back on stage.”
Three married couples. Three kitchens. Three Christmas parties.
Sidney Hopcroft, a small-time tradesman, persuades wife Jane to throw a party hoping to find favour with a bank manager and local architect. As celebrations begin, class differences and naked ambition combine to hilarious effect as, one by one, the characters seek refuge in Jane’s kitchen.
Over the next two years, the Jacksons and Brewster-Wrights take turns to host festivities. But Sidney’s star has begun to rise and roles are increasingly reversed as the cracks in the other couples’ marriages begin to show.
Absurd Person Singular first premièred in 1972 and was awarded the Evening Standard Best Comedy Award.
