Ayckbourn back at seaside theatre (From Gazette & Herald)

Absurd Person Singular, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, June 8 to July 28 and September 14 to October 13

9:30am Wednesday 30th May 2012 in What's on By Natalya Wilson

SIR Alan Ayckbourn returns to the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough this summer to direct his classic comedy Absurd Person Singular, celebrating its 40th anniversary.

The play, which runs from June 8 until July 28 and again from September 14 until October 13, tells the tale of three kitchens, Christmas catastrophes and calculated social climbing, presented in a sparkling new revival.

Last Christmas, the Hopcrofts’ seasonal drinks party for a few select friends and guests turned out a neardisaster.

This Christmas, round at the Jacksons’, it’s been an even worse chapter of accidents. What on earth is going to happen next year when they all meet up at the Brewster-Wrights’?

“It’s the next logical play to revive in the canon,” said Sir Alan.

“A few years ago I did Relatively Speaking and then more recently I did How The Other Half Loves – all also on their 40th anniversaries. So it’s the next big one.

“Like a lot of my writing, it is of its time, but it also has a timeless quality to it. Although the characters are very definitely rooted in the period and mustn’t ever be moved from there, I think, nonetheless, that human nature hasn’t changed that much over time. It is a story about the worm turning; the underdog becoming the overdog. It’s a fable that still exists today with people climbing and falling through the social ladder.”

Absurd Person Singular premiered at the Library Theatre in Scarborough in June 1972 before transferring to the West End, and won the Evening Standard’s Best Comedy Award in 1974.

The cast includes Ayesha Antoine who played Winnie in Sir Alan Ayckbourn’s My Wonderful Day.

Also making a return are Bill Champion, who took on all the male roles in Ayckbourn’s sequence of plays Intimate Exchanges; Laura Doddington and Ben Porter, both of whom recently appeared in Communicating Doors and Life of Riley; and Richard Stacey. Sarah Parks makes her Ayckbourn debut.

The same cast will also star in the world premiere of Sir Alan Ayckbourn’s 76th play, Surprises.

Involving amorous strangers, time travel and the quest for love everlasting, this new comedy runs at the theatre from July 12-28 and from September 11 until October 13.

Absurd Person Singular and Surprises are part of the London 2012 Festival.

Tickets cost £10-£24.50. Phone the box office on 01723 370541 or book online at www.sjt.uk.com