Natural Affection Trailer

House on The Hill Productions in association with Jermyn Street Theatre
presents

NATURAL AFFECTION
By William Inge

Jermyn Street Theatre
July 15-August 9

Directed by Grace Wessels
Set Design by Victoria Johnstone
Costume Design by Emily Stuart
Lighting by Steve Lowe

With
Lysette Anthony, Louis Cardona, Timothy Knightley, Adriana Maestranzi, Jessica Preddy, Jeremy Smith, Jonathan Wadey

"The world looks awful ugly at times...
It's hard to remember that sometimes it can look beautiful too."

Christmas 1962, Chicago, a small apartment... Unconventional couple, Sue and Bernie, are awaiting the impending visit of Sue's delinquent son Donnie with excitement and trepidation. When Donnie makes an unexpected announcement, tensions between the already strained family relationships grow and competition between the two men threatens to destroy the life that Sue has worked so hard to create. On Christmas Eve when the next-door neighbours join the party, anxieties escalate resulting in an inescapable and horrific showdown.

Never before seen in the UK, Natural Affection is a complex, dark and anguished study of discordant family life, exploring the themes of sexual dissatisfaction, loneliness, frustrated small-town dreams, alcoholism and tortured identity. This lost treasure by an American icon has, in the playwright's own words, "been contested, praised, disputed, and criticized." Inspired by the violence Inge was witnessing in the media at the time, Natural Affection retains the power to shock and is as resonant today as it was when it was first produced over fifty year's ago.

William Inge (1913-1973) is known as the "Playwright of the American Midwest". He earned the title of most promising playwright of the 1950 Broadway Season for his play, Come Back, Little Sheba. In 1953, he won a Pulitzer Prize, The Drama Critic Circle Award, The Outer Circle Award and The Theatre Club Award for his play, Picnic. His other plays include, The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, and Bus Stop which achieved international recognition when Marilyn Monroe, Don Murray and Eileen Heckart starred in the Academy Award winning 1957 movie.

Acclaimed star of the stage and screen, Lysette Anthony is to lead the cast, playing Sue. Heralded as the 'Face of the Eighties' by David Bailey, her recent theatre credits have included Oscar Wilde's Lady Winderemere's Fan at the Royal Exchange Theatre (for which she was nominated for a Manchester Evening News Theatre Award), Manchester Royal Exchange's production of Noel Coward's Hayfever, (also nominated for a Manchester Evening News Award for Best Actress); and Bath Theatre Royal's tour of Noel Coward's Present Laughter (with Simon Callow). Well-known to television, Lysette has had lead roles in a multitude of dramas including Night & Day, Jonathan Creek, Murder In Suburbia, Dombey & Son and her 4 years starring in Three Up, Two Down. She has appeared in over thirty feature films including Without a Clue with Michael Caine & Ben Kingsley, Woody Allen's award winning Husbands & Wives and Look Who's Talking Now with John Travolta.

Natural Affection will be director Grace Wessels' first production at Jermyn Street Theatre. She has a BA in Drama from Bristol University, and is Artistic Director of House on the Hill. Her recent work includes, King Lear (The Rose, Bankside), Taming (Tobacco Factory Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (The Alma Tavern) and as producer for House on the Hill: The Alchemist (The Rose, Bankside), Dido, Queen of Carthage (The Rose, Bankside). She is currently the Company Manager of Primavera Productions, and is the Literary Associate to the Artistic Director of Jermyn Street Theatre, Anthony Biggs. She was the Artistic Director of the Bristol Shakespeare Festival for 3 years and also was a Guest Judge for the BBC Programme, Off By Heart Shakespeare.

Box office:
020 7287 28
www.jermynstreettheatre.co.uk

Monday-Saturday 7:30 pm. Saturday 3:30 pm.

Tickets
£20, £18 concessions
Earlybird Offer -- all tickets £17 if booked before 27 June

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