This April, London Classic Theatre present a new production of Alan Ayckbourn’s emotionally charged play, Just Between Ourselves, at the New Vic to coincide with the touring theatre company’s 25th anniversary celebrations.
On stage at the New Vic from Tuesday 29 April to Saturday 3 May, Just Between Ourselves is a masterclass in suburban comedy and heartbreak, drawing on the often taboo ‘hidden tensions’ of marriage and has been chosen by London Classic Theatre’s Founder and Artistic Director Michael Cabot (Faith Healer, Abigail’s Party, Boeing Boeing, Waiting for Godot, Absent Friends and Equus) to form the centrepiece of the company’s silver anniversary year.
In the play, which originally premiered at the Library Theatre, Scarborough in January 1976, Alan Ayckbourn expertly navigates the tightrope between comedy and tragedy as he guides us through the familiar territory of familial frustrations. A tale of two unhappy marriages and an inability amongst the characters to see eye to eye, Just Between Ourselves evokes a world of hidden tension and highlights Ayckbourn’s ability to create thought-provoking and entertaining theatre set against the intimate backdrop of everyday life.
The cast of London Classic Theatre’s special anniversary production includes Joseph Clowser (Hummingbird, Leeds Playhouse, Seven Arts; Private Peaceful, Cambridge Arts Theatre; Living Together, Sidmouth Manor Pavilion) as Neil; Helen Phillips (Equus, The Importance of Being Earnest, London Classic Theatre; The Lottery, Bury Court Opera; Crush! The Musical, Harold Pinter Theatre, West End) as Pam; Tom Richardson (Abigail’s Party, London Classic Theatre; Hamlet, Orange Tree Theatre; The Hound of the Baskervilles, Eastbourne Theatres) as Dennis; Holly Smith (What The Butler Saw, London Classic Theatre; A Christmas Carol, The Great Gatsby, Theatre Royal Windsor; The Mirror Crack’d, Shadowlands, Flare Path, Blithe Spirit, Out of Order, UK tour) as Vera, and Connie Walker (My Mother Said I Never Should, In Basildon and Beauty Queen of Leenane, London Classic Theatre; The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, The Importance of Being Earnest, Watermill Theatre) as Marjorie.
London Classic Theatre’s Artistic Director, Michael Cabot, said:
“I’m delighted to be directing Just Between Ourselves as the centrepiece of LCT’s 25th Anniversary celebrations. Alan Ayckbourn seems to have become a regular feature for us when we hit a big milestone – we produced Absent Friends for our fifteenth anniversary and Absurd Person Singular for our twentieth! Alan’s ambition, as a writer, both in terms of the worlds he creates, and the nuance of his writing is quite unparalleled. His plays are comedies, dealing with marital tensions, aspiration and that very British preoccupation with class. Just Between Ourselves explores this familiar territory with aplomb, but under the surface lies another dimension, sometimes dark and often painful. Ayckbourn treads the tightrope between comedy and tragedy with an expert hand and makes extraordinary discoveries in the tension between them. Now in his 86th year, Alan Ayckbourn is not only our most prolific playwright, but a genuine British institution. It’s a genuine privilege to be bringing Just Between Ourselves, one of his finest and most fascinating plays, to life in 2025.”
Just Between Ourselves takes to the stage at the New Vic from Tuesday 29 April – Saturday 3 May 2025. Tickets are on sale now, priced from £15.00. For more information and to book call the Box Office on 01782 717962 or visit newvictheatre.org.uk.
