Alan Ayckbourn

Five interrelated one-act plays, written to be performed in any order determined randomly prior to performance, looking at the lives of a judge, agent, politician, budding star and novelist.

Chlo With Love - Teddy's marriage to Lottie is going through a difficult period. Does he still love Lottie? Does Lottie still love him? Cue next door neighbours Penny and Reggie to the rescue. Penny weighing in to help Lottie and Reggie resolving to help his best friend to resist temptation. But with the arrival of the voluptuous Chlo all their best laid schemes are put to the test. The Kidderminster Affair - Sexual intrigue at Teddy's garden barbecue. Is his secret liaison with his neighbour, Penny, about to leak out? Will his wife Lottie discover the awful truth about Kidderminster? Will Penny's husband and best friend Reggie ever get hold of the right end of the stick? Will he burn the barbecue? Or indeed resolve the mystery of the slow puncture?

A terrorist code-named Cerastes is on the loose, and an undercover anti-terrorist squad have planned a sting to capture him as he steps off a train at a London station. The operation, led by the buffoonish Acting Major Quentin Sexton, has drawn in two outsiders - Ez and Barry. Perfect strangers as the play begins, their time waiting for the trap to be sprung gives them the chance to get to know each other, and try to make sense of the chaos unfolding around them.

Though he's lauded in the media as a military hero, Murray is remembered less fondly by many in his old village. He left amidst rumours of arson, unplanned pregnancy and stealing his best friend's girlfriend. So when he returns, seventeen years later, with a new wife in tow, he creates trouble from the beginning - not least with his ex-fiancee. As more secrets emerge and old scores are settled, the village is drawn into the crossfire.

Julia Lukin, a musical prodigy, committed suicide twelve years ago and now memories of her haunt the three men closest to her. Her father, Joe, has never come to terms with her death, and in the Julia Lukin Music Centre, he meets with a psychic, Ken, and Julia's boyfriend, Andy - the last person to see her alive, in hope of finding some answers. The men meet in Julia's old bedroom and Joe reveals that he believes Julia is trying to contact him in order to explain what happened. Between the three men, the story of Julia's life and death is gradually revealed - often at odds with what each man believes he knew.

George Riley is given six weeks to live and Life of Riley charts the reactions of his closest friends as they struggle to come to terms with the news." As perceptive as ever ... Ayckbourn has once again achieved a satisfyingly rich, tragi-comic complexity" Daily Telegraph

Confusions, a series of plays for four-to-five actors, typifies Alan Ayckbourn's particular brand of black comedy on human behaviour. The plays are alternately naturalistic, stylised and farcical, but underlying each is the echoing problem of profound loneliness. From a devoted and isolated mother, to her unfaithful travelling salesman husband, through a solicitous waiter to well-heeled diners and an utterly shambolic garden fete, human frailty is laid bare as one hilarious situation after another unfolds. Each of the plays connects to the next through one of its characters until the final one is reached when four people sit alone on park benches. From high farce to poignant observation; the laughs, however dark, keep coming. This new edition was published to coincide with the first ever revival of the play, staged at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, on 9 July 2015.

The suburban house of the Bakers' adjoins a recreation field, which is useful since football and cricket play a large part in the story. Peter, who works for Graham, brings his fiancee to the house and Graham, as usual, makes a bee-line for her. However, it is Mrs. Baker's brother, Leonard, to whom Joan strays. Leonard, poetic, a fumbler, who moons around holding conversations with the garden gnome, has always roused the bullying Graham's malice and scorn, who is horrified when he catches the younger man very much with Joan.-2 women, 3 men

Well, that's one down, isn't it? Nine to go. Next! Thou shalt not kill. What about that then? Let's have a crack at that one next, shall we? Jack McCracken is a man of principle until, moments after taking over his father-in-law's business, he discovers his extended family to be thieves and adulterers, operating a network of racketeering from their suburban homes. Rampant self-interest and comic hysteria take over as Jack succumbs. A Small Family Business premiered at the National Theatre, London, 1987, and won the Evening Standard Award for Best Play.'This play offers a devastating assault on the way the entrepreneurial values we were taught to admire in the eighties lead ultimately to fraud, theft, self-deceit, even homicide. It is the modern equivalent of An Inspector Calls - only, being Ayckbourn, far funnier. It argues just as passionately as the work of more overtly political writers that there is such a thing as society.' Guardian

Love stories yet to happen, in a future filled with surprises. Who is the amorous stranger, Titus, who materialises in young Grace's bedroom? Can she believe he is who he says he is? For her parents, Franklin and Martha, does love everlasting still hold true if death is postponed indefinitely? Can lawyer Lorraine, who prides herself on her infallibility, have finally discovered the ideal partner, one who is also never wrong? Will lonely secretary Sylvia, after unhappy affairs with everyone from deep sea divers to space shuttle pilots, ever find her Mr Right? A comedy with its head in the future and its heart in the past, Alan Ayckbourn's Surprises premiered in July 2012 at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, in a co-production with Chichester Festival Theatre.

This title features 3 Males, 3 Females and 2 voices (1 Male, 1Female). A living room. It's Christmas, and Beth Timms is mourning the recent death of her health and safety officer husband, Gordon. Beth's sister-in-law Connie and son Martin have come to stay, determined to ensure that she should have a stress-free Christmas, but between Connie's drinking problem and Martin's unspeaking and emotionally volatile girlfriend Ella, their intentions prove to be short-lived. Only David, the local vicar, provides Beth with any comfort, but when he says a prayer for her bereavement he unwittingly summons Gordon's ghost to return to the family home. Gordon has been busy implementing health and safety measures in the afterlife and is now determined to stick around to help Beth manage her affairs. It soon becomes apparent, however, that his return is not altogether welcome.

This plays needs M3 and F2 as well as composite set: part of a bedroom, sitting-room, eating-area in kitchen. The Rodales seem like an ordinary family, but beneath the surface things are beginning to crack. Jill and Mal have lost the spark in their marriage, their son Sam resents his father and their daughter Chrissie has recently become a mum and is dealing with marriage issues of her own. And while they all share advice on how others should live their lives, nobody is really taking it on board - until Mal and Jill see things from a dramatically different perspective, that is. Waking up one morning and finding they have switched personas, Mal in Jill's body and Jill in Mal's, they must continue life "as normal" as their other half. Jill faces the challenges of working with their son-in-law, Dean, as the Store Manager of a homewares shop, while Mal has suddenly becomes a housewife, learning more about his children - and finding out the secrets they already know about him! Will seeing things from the other side make matters even worse, or is this just what they need in order to save their family?

Characters: 2 male, 4 female Comedy Winnie is nearly nine. Her mum, Laverne, is second-generation Afro-Caribbean and heavily pregnant but continues with her cleaning job since her husband left while she dreams of moving the family back to Martinique. Tuesdays are special: Laverne insists that Winnie speaks only French (in preparation for Martinique) and today is Tuesday - not her usual day to clean at the north London house of Kevin Tate, an affluent, bad-tempered, philandering, minor television personality. Not well enough to go to school, Winnie accompanies her mum and settles down to her homework: an essay entitled "My Wonderful Day." Throughout the course of the next few hours, the shy, astute and ever-watchful Winnie will amass plenty of material for her essay as a variety of adults parades before her: Kevin's baby-talking and patronizing mistress, his vengeful wife, and the hungover family friend who pours out his heart believing that Winnie doesn't speak English. But as events reach a frenzied climax, Winnie's essay will speak volumes. This hilarious and bitter-sweet classic from Alan Ayckbourn premiered at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough before transferring to New York and a UK tour. The play is told through the child's eyes, without an interval, and there is much scope for imaginative lighting and staging. "Alan Ayckbourn back on blistering form... My Wonderful Day finds him in top form - and breaking new ground. The play is often blissfully and farcically funny. But there is an ache of sorrow here for children who have to grow up too quickly." - Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph "...a startling play full of Ayckbourn's rueful, comic wisdom." - Michael Billington, Guardian "A compellingly still center lurks within the farcical storm of My Wonderful Day, the charming, rueful new comedy." -The New York Times "Ayckbourn is on top form here in his devilishly witty writing... His social commentary has renewed bite too, Ayckbourn taking a swipe at soulless city developments in an advert for Fantacity, and issuing a cry from the heart about the loneliness of boarding schools... Ayckbourn triumphs again with his wonderful new play." -The Press "One of Ayckbourn's terrific qualities lies in making what must be awful for his characters funny for us. Why this never seems cruel is part of the miracle, and must relate to their inability ever to consider they are being ridiculous... Ayckbourn can bring the house down with a single word!" -The Times "Ayckbourn's 73rd play is a feat of extraordinary imagination. Sorry, another extraordinary feat of imagination. At 70 years old, the playwright is still tinkering with the mechanics of the stage and what can be done within its realms... By the end of the interval-less hour and 50 minutes I was willing the show to go on. I could have spent several more hours watching the world through Winnie's eyes." -Yorkshire Post

This title features M2 F3, and 1 girl (aged 9). It's Downstairs areas in a modern town house. Winnie is nearly nine. Her mum, Laverne, is second-generation Afro-Caribbean and heavily pregnant but continues with her cleaning job since her husband left while she dreams of moving the family back to Martinique. Tuesdays are special: Laverne insists that Winnie speaks only French (in preparation for Martinique) and today is Tuesday - not her usual day to clean at the north London house of Kevin Tate, an affluent, bad-tempered, philandering, minor television personality. Not well enough to go to school, Winnie accompanies her mum and settles down to her homework: an essay entitled "My Wonderful Day". Throughout the course of the next few hours, the shy, astute and ever-watchful Winnie will amass plenty of material for her essay as a variety of adults parades before her: Kevin's baby-talking and patronizing mistress, his vengeful wife, and the hungover family friend who pours out his heart believing that Winnie doesn't speak English. But as events reach a frenzied climax, Winnie's essay will speak volumes. This hilarious and bitter-sweet classic from Alan Ayckbourn premiered a the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough before transferring to New York and a UK tour. The play is told through the child's eyes, without an interval, and there is much scope for imaginative lighting and staging. "...a startling play full of Ayckbourn's rueful, comic wisdom". (Michael Billington, "Guardian").

Alan Ayckbourn ComedyCharacters: 7 male, 5 female Multiple Interior Scenes England's master of satire is in top form in this comic morality play which was triumphantly presented by the National Theatre of Great Britain. Jack McCraken has the opportunity of a lifetime: he is the new head of a family furniture business and believes he will initiate a new age of honesty and integrity. He quickly learns that everyone else involved in the enterprise has a vested intere

MusicalCharacters: 1 male, 3 female Interior Set Book and Lyrics by Alan Ayckbourn. Music by Paul Todd. Mrs. Mary Yately is no run of the mill housewife-- she has been chosen by the Evening Echo as Mum of the Year. And, Mrs. Yately is no ordinary character in this brilliantly inventive new musical by Britain's comic master-- she is three separate personalities, played by three actresses. One actor plays all the men in Mary's life, all of whom are, shall we say, not on this world to make her life easier. "We know that Alan Ayckbourn writes more ingenious comedies than anyone else. Now, he is starting to write more ingenious musicals as well. Me, Myself and I offers more civilized pleasure than any other British musical I've seen this year."-- London Guardian. "Splendid, galloping music and rapid fire lyrics."-- London Standard.

Ever wondered what else happened to Sleeping Beauty when she finally woke up in the 21st century? Alan Ayckbourn provides the answer with this alternative seasonal fare in the musical "Awaking Beauty". The Prince awakens Princess Aurora and the eager, happy young couple are about to embark on their first night of passionate love when ugly, unloved Carabosse, the wicked witch, butts in having taken a fancy to the Prince. But which one will be the Awaking Beauty? Love, lust, triplets and the ultimate in makeovers are just some of the milestones our heroes and heroines must pass before they can all live happily ever after. The four major roles are for two men and two women with six narrators playing a variety of other characters as well as providing the vocal harmonies and an astonishing range of sound effects!

'What is remarkable about Alan Ayckbourn's comedy is that it contrives to be simultaneously hilarious and harrowing. The settings are simple - a kitchen, a bedroom, a party - but the relationships between the husbands and wives are more complicated.