Full of secret seductions, misjudged meetings and wicked revelations, Sydney Theatre Company presents Noël Coward’s irresistibly heartless comedy of bad manners, Hay Fever at the Drama Theatre – Sydney Opera House from 15 April 2016.
The Bliss family love intrigue, love arguing and really love a spotlight. A bohemian bunch comprising of a once celebrated stage diva, her novelist husband, their painter son and a soulful daughter. They are everything a respectable family ought not to be – unconventional, uncensored and unapologetic.
When each of the four outrageously eccentric Bliss family members invites a guest to their rural retreat, the unassuming visitors face a hectic living melodrama from which there seems to be no escape.
An exceptional cast led by Heather Mitchell as Judith Bliss, the prima donna to end all prima donnas, includes Harriet Dyer (Travelling North), Tony Llewellyn-Jones (Amigos), Josh McConville (After Dinner) and Helen Thomson (King Lear).
Having had the audience in stitches with the rollicking hijinks of 1980s suburbia in STC’s After Dinner in 2015, director Imara Savage and designer Alicia Clements now adjust their gaze to the sophisticated altitude of Coward’s glamorous world. Hay Fever promises to be a thoroughly enjoyable and seductively comic affair.
Deliciously funny comedies were Noël Coward’s forte, who had a polished witticism for every occasion. To many he is known as a playwright, creating such classics as Private Lives, Present Laughter, and Blithe Spirit, and to others as the composer of timeless songs such as Mad About the Boy, I’ll See You Again, and Mad Dogs and Englishmen.
“Mr Noel Coward’s best play… one of the most perfectly engineered comedies of the 20th century.” – The Times
Director: Imara Savage Featuring: Briallen Clarke, Tom Conroy, Alan Dukes, Harriet Dyer, Genevieve Lemon, Tony Llewellyn-Jones, Josh McConville, Heather Mitchell, Helen Thomson Designer: Alicia Clements Lighting Designer: Trent Suidgeest Composer & Sound Designer: Max Lyandvert
Hay Fever
Drama Theatre – Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, Sydney
Season: 16 April – 21 May 2016 (previews: 11 – 14 April)
Bookings: (02) 9250 1777 or online at: www.sydneytheatre.com.au
For more information, visit: www.sydneytheatre.com.au for details.
Image: Heather Mitchell and Tony Llewellyn-Jones feature in Hay Fever – photo by James Green