Category: Alan Ayckbourn

The Ensemble Theatre presents, THE NORMAN CONQUESTS, Three Plays by Alan Ayckbourn, at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli. 19th October – 12 January. THE NORMAN CONQUESTS, are three plays: TABLE MANNERS, LIVING TOGETHER and ROUND AND ROUND THE GARDEN, by Alan Ayckbourn, written in 1973. They are famously recognised as one of many masterpieces from this author who has written some 82 plays and is still writing. These three plays have the conceit of happening all at the same time, just in three different spaces. The first in the Dining Room. the second in the Living room, and the third in…

Photo by Prudence Upton Ensemble Theatre presents, TAKING STEPS, by Alan Ayckbourn, at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli. 23 November – 13 January. The Alan Ayckbourn play TAKING STEPS, written in 1979, the twenty-fourth opus from his ‘genius’ (now having completed some 79 plays, the last one – so far – called ROUNDELAY, in 2014), is part of a faithful commitment of The Ensemble Theatre to his work and underlines the entertainment value that he inevitably delivers for audiences. There is usually some ‘challenge’ that the writer has given himself, for the audience’s delectation, in all of his plays, and in…

Photo by Clare Hawley The Ensemble theatre presents, RELATIVELY SPEAKING, by Alan Ayckbourn, at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli, 18 November – 14 January, 2017. RELATIVELY SPEAKING, by Alan Ayckbourn, was his first big commercial hit, in1967. It had a cast that included Michael Hordern, Celia Johnson and introduced Richard Briers to the London West End. The play, originally called MEETING MY FATHER, came out of the ‘revolutionary’ era of the English Swinging Sixties with all its entertainment taboo explorations into drugs, sex and rock ‘n roll, – think of films such as TOM JONES (1963), THE KNACK, AND HOW TO…

Photo by Katy Green Loughrey Ensemble Theatre presents, ABSENT FRIENDS, by Alan Ayckbourn, at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli. Dec 4 – Jan 24. An evening with Alan Ayckbourn is one that one can look forward too, generally, with anticipatory pleasure, and the Ensemble Theatre has taken a very sensible shine to presenting his challenging and comic work for us at least once a year – last year, NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH – this season, it is ABSENT FRIENDS. ABSENT FRIENDS written in 1974, is one of those comedies of his that shares the laser-like observational skill of Anton Chekhov, whilst wielding the doctorly scalpel…

Photo by Natalie Boog Ensemble Theatre presents NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH by Alan Ayckbourn at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirrribilli. Reading about Alan Ayckbourn there are some ‘claims’ that after Shakespeare, Mr Ayckbourn is the then next most performed playwright in the English speaking world. Mr Ayckbourn was born in 1939 and is still writing for the theatre and has now a list of 77 plays, the last being ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES performed in August, 2013. It premiered in the theatre that has been the incubator of most of his work, the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. Looking at some of his play titles,…

    Stella Green productions in partnership with Darlinghurst Theatre Company presents BEDROOM FARCE by Alan Ayckbourn. BEDROOM FARCE by Alan Ayckbourn give us four couples and three bedrooms. The three bedrooms are presented simultaneously on stage (Set Designer, Tom Bannerman) and the action flows in and out from one to the other. On the left is Ernest (John Turnbull) and Delia’s (Jeanie Drynan) comfortable bedroom in their large Victorian house. In the middle bedroom, Malcolm (Adam Cleland) and Kate (Lizzie Mitchell) are happily nest building in their newly acquired brick terrace house. And in the right bedroom are Jan…