A Complex Portrait Of A Woman On The Edge

First premiering on the West End in 1949 and running for 400 performances, Scottish playwright Lesley Storm's intriguing family drama has fascinated audiences in different revivals all over the world ever since. It now returns to its roots during the Park Theatre's latest 2019/20 season, under the direction of BBC TV and radio legend Clive Brill. 

A thoroughly modern and feminist examination of patriarchal society that was years ahead of its time, the production centres on heroine Alicia, a prime example of a comfortable middle class housewife. Yet cracks in her perfectly powdered veneer start to appear when, on the eve of her son's high society wedding, she steals a black chiffon nightdress from a well to do apartment store. This keen psychological study of a woman driven to the edge by the pressures of the male dominated 1940s is sure to provoke thoughts long after the curtain falls.