It’s The Real Thing

THE Real Thing, one of Tom Stoppard’s most enduring works, has been revived 30 years after its 1982 London premiere that starred Roger Rees and Felicity Kendal.

In an electrifying new production from English Touring Theatre (ETT) and West Yorkshire Playhouse this cunning exposé of love and betrayal opens at The Watford Palace Theatre on Tuesday for five nights.

The story follows Henry, a brilliant and celebrated playwright. With his wife Charlotte in the starring role, his new play examines the complexity of love and infidelity. Henry’s reality and fiction blur when passions ignite and his own marriage becomes entwined with that of Charlotte’s co-star, Max and wife Annie. As Henry struggles to write a new work, the players in this game of deceit and lust are all searching. But can any of them find The Real Thing?

Tom Stoppard is one of the most important writers today, with a theatre and film career spanning five decades (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Arcadia, Empire of the Sun, Shakespeare in Love).

The Real Thing is sparklingly witty, genuinely moving and thought-provoking, and sees Stoppard at the height of his powers and this play is one of his most acclaimed works.

Directed by Kate Saxon with a cast including Sarah Ball, Sandy Batchelor, Gerald Kyd, Georgina Leonidas, Adam O’Brian, Marianne Oldham and Simon Scardifield.

Tickets from the box office 01923 225671 or go online www.watfordpalacetheatre.co.uk

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