www.maddermarket.co.uk
MADDERMARKET THEATRE
Menacing strangers gatecrash
‘The Birthday Party’
Two mysterious strangers terrorise the resident of a seaside boarding house as Harold Pinter’s classic play ‘The Birthday Party’ is performed at the Maddermarket Theatre, in Norwich, this month.
The play centres on Stanley, a former piano player who lodges with a couple in an English seaside down. But one day two strangers arrive on a mission – and turn Stanley’s birthday party into a nightmare.
‘The Birthday Party’ was the first full-length play written by Pinter, who died at the age of 78 in 2008 after a distinguished career spanning more than half a century.
Yet his career was almost strangled at birth thanks to the critical hammering given to ‘The Birthday Party’ on its London debut in 1958. The show was pulled after just eight performances, and Pinter seriously contemplated giving up writing.
The hostile reception given to the play was in part due to the author’s reluctance to provide convenient and clear-cut answers to all the questions it raised. Happily, Pinter’s ‘comedy of menace’ survived these early traumas to be hailed as one of the great works of 20th century drama.
Michael Stanislaw’s production of ‘The Birthday Party’ runs from Thursday, March 18th to Saturday, March 27th, with performances nightly at 7.30pm, plus a matinee at 2.30pm on March 27. There is no performance on Sunday, March 21.
Tickets cost £12, £10 and £8, and can be bought in person from the box office at the Maddermarket Theatre, in St John’s Alley, Norwich, or by calling 01603 620917.
Contact us…The Maddermarket Theatre
St. John’s Alley
NORWICH
NR2 1DR
Useful numbers and email addresses:
– Email: [email protected]
– Administration Number: 01603 626560
– Box Office: 01603 620917
– Education Dept: 01603 628600
– Education Dept Email: [email protected]
– Costume Hire: 01603 626292
NCN-CTS
