The Ruffian on the Stair
The Ruffian on the Stair is the first play Joe Orton ever wrote. Rarely performed, this production set in a sordid bedsit has been described as ‘dripping with menace’ and ‘compelling’.
Mike and Joyce are a poor London couple living in a bedsit. Mike is an ex-boxer living on the dole who makes extra cash by running people down for money, and Joyce is an ex-prostitute.
It is an unsympathetic yet comedic one-act portrayal of working class England, as played out by a couple and a mysterious young man who toys with their lives. It was based on The Boy Hairdresser, a novel by Orton and his lover Kenneth Halliwell.
Related upcoming events
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02/12/2024 8:00 pm - 02/12/2024 9:30 pmACT Foundation Closed Show
Closed show for ACT Students and staff only.
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09/12/2024 8:00 pm - 09/12/2024 9:30 pm
ACT Diploma YR1 Closed Show
Closed show for ACT Students and staff only.
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12/12/2024 7:30 pm - 14/12/2024 9:30 pmWolves Are Coming For You
by Joel Horwood
Set over one extraordinary day in an ordinary village, Wolves Are Coming For You explores just how much wild we're comfortable with, as a small community is forced to pull together against an invisible but potentially deadly threat.
Someone has seen a wolf. Where did it come from? How many are there? Someone must be able to do something about them. Otherwise, how will our children get to school?
Someone has seen a wolf! Or did they?
As the story spreads through the town over the following 24 hours, each of the characters is forced to confront their own demons and decide whether to fight or flee. And as the sun rises the following day, each of them is different in some way from the person they were the day before. Whether the wolves actually existed, we’ll never know – but they’ve served their purpose nonetheless.