Down & Out in Paris and London - New Diorama Theatre
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
FOLLOWING the sell-out opening run at last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Down & Out in Paris and London will receive its London premiere at New Diorama Theatre, where it runs from April 19 to May 14, 2016.
A modern satire inspired by George Orwell’s memoir, this is the first UK adaptation of his semi-autobiography in almost thirty-five years and is presented by New Diorama Theatre, PIT, Greenwich Theatre and Pleasance Theatre.
In 1927, struggling writer Eric Blair plunged himself into the Parisian underworld, trying to find inspiration for his first book. When he emerged he had written one of history’s starkest accounts of life on the extreme breadline and had created the persona of George Orwell, who was to go on to create some of the most influential political writings of the last century.
Almost a hundred years later, journalist and writer Polly Toynbee followed in Orwell’s footsteps and went undercover living on the minimum wage, claiming job seekers allowance and living in social housing to write her expose of life in low-pay Britain: ,i>Hard Work.
This production weaves together both George in 1920’s Paris and Polly in modern London as they try to navigate their way through life in a world of poverty, zero-hours contracts, labour-exchanges, universal credit and crippling inequality. Switching between the two stories, Down & Out in Paris and London is described as a witty, insightful and breathless exploration of the biggest issue facing modern society.
Adapted, written and directed by David Byrne, Down and Out in Paris and London received rave reviews for its premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2015. PIT and New Diorama are previous winners of the Writers’ Guild and List Magazine Awards for Drama and the 2013 Les Enfants Terribles Prize.
Tickets: £15, £13.50 concessions – available from the box office on 0207 3839034 or online at newdiorama.com/whats-on/down-out-in-paris-and-london.
Time: 7.30pm.
Running Time: 60 minutes.
Also at New Diorama Theatre: Run, the startling and profoundly human drama about the banking industry (until April 9, 2016).