The Visit
By Friedrich Duerrenmatt, adapted by Maurice Valency
Synopsis:
Next Stage Theatre Company invites you to The Visit, in which Duerrenmatt draws us into Guellen, a small town somewhere in Europe.
Few trains stop in Guellen anymore. The Foundry and The Golden Eagle Pencil Factory have gone bust. Times are hard. But enter Claire Zachanassian, a multi-millionairess complete with butler, seventh husband, bodyguards and black panther.
Never one to miss an opportunity, the Burgomaster is heading up a campaign to appeal to this once-local-girl-made-good. Can the citizens of Guellen persuade her to save the town she left behind her all those years ago?
Claire’s former sweetheart, Anton Schill, the town grocer, is given pride of place in the Welcoming Committee. However he is destined to become the centre of attention for all the wrong reasons when events take a sinister turn...
Come along and be entertained, challenged and enthralled with this virtuoso production as Next Stage starts the New Year with style at The Mission Theatre.
Produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc
Pre-show supper available Thursday-Saturday 6pm - please see menu below.
£15, bookable in advance on 01225 428600
With grateful thanks to this show's Angels
Supper menu:
Elizabethan Pork Ragout
- or
Mushroom, Herb and Leek Pancakes with cheesy topping
- or
Fruit crumble cheesecake
- or
Honey brulee with poached plums
- or
Teas and coffees to finish.
Director/s | Cast:
Claire Rumball
Director
Joanna Bowman
Claire Zachanassian
Dave Dunn
Bobby
Luke Nicholson
Pedro
Marion Wood
First Blind Man
Caroline Groom
Second Blind Man
Simon Lawson
Anton Schill
Val Caren
Frau Schill
Tom Maryniak
Karl/ Mike
Camilla Watson
Ottilie
Brian Howe
The Burgomaster
Adrian Hamilton
The Pastor
Jane Lawson
The Teacher
Tim Evans
The Doctor
Tim West
The Policeman
Yvonne Paulley
The Painter
Liz Wilson
First Man
Tom Ash-Miles
Second man/ Max/ Athlete
Gary Egan
Third Man/ Truck Driver
Sam Curtis
Fourth Man/ First Woman
Rosie Magee
Station mistress/ Frau Burgomaster/ Second Woman
Alan Casse
Conductor/ Cameraman
Review/s of The Visit:
Review 1: Venue Preview
Bath non-pro company (and Mission tenants) Next Stage can almost always be relied upon to give their emotive modern classics a good run for their money: and Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s 1956 tragicomedy, in which a small central European town is thrown into disarray, hypocrisy and eventually a horrible crime by the return of a wealthy former resident, looks a perfect DNA match for the company. This version…click here to read the whole review.
By Venue Magazine
Review 2: Venue Review
It’s a perfectly timed riposte to the Big Society myth – in a time of depression, a small town tackles grinding hardship not with voluntary shifts at the library but with evil. In his 1956 black comedy, Swiss playwright Friedrich Dürrenmatt engages the audience in an examination of their own consciences using various post-Brechtian techniques (e.g. actors carrying signs saying ‘forest’ and…click here to read the whole review.
By Anna Britten, Venue Magazine
Review 3: Chronicle Review
It's a strange play, this one, and I didn't think that I had enjoyed it very much. But it provoked such a heated debate in the car on the way home, followed by another on the telephone, that I began to think that it must have something. As my companion pointed out, you don't interact with the telly – even if you shout at it occasionally – but this led to a whole lot of discussion about the meaning,…click here to read the whole review.
