Written by and starring Matthew Perry, The End of Longing premieres in the W/E
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
INTERNATIONALLY acclaimed actor Matthew Perry (Friends, The Odd Couple) will lead the cast in the world premiere of his playwriting debut, The End of Longing, which runs at the Playhouse Theatre from February 2 to May 14, 2016.
Described as a fast paced and bittersweet comic new play, The End of Longing will be directed by the critically acclaimed and award-winning director, Lindsay Posner.
The End of Longing will reunite Perry and Posner following their first West End collaboration on Sexual Perversity in Chicago at the Comedy Theatre in 2003.
Meet Jack, Stephanie, Joseph and Stevie: four lost souls, entering their forties and searching for meaning. After sharing one raucous night together in a downtown Los Angeles bar, their lives become irreversibly entwined in a rollercoaster journey that forces them to confront the darker sides of their relationships.
The End of Longing will make audiences realise that broken people don’t need to stay broken. Further casting for this four hander will be announced shortly.
Matthew Perry said: “Being on stage makes you feel naked. Being on stage in a play that I have written will make me feel doubly naked. So if you’d like to see me doubly naked, tickets go on sale today.”
Matthew Perry is best known for playing Chandler Bing in the critically acclaimed series, Friends, which ran from 1994 to 2004.
He is currently the star and executive producer on CBS’s The Odd Couple, the classic comedy by Neil Simon. The series debuted as the biggest new comedy of the 2014 season, with over 13 million viewers. The second season will premiere in 2016. Previous to this Perry starred in and co-executive produced NBC’s comedy Go On and has twice guest starred on the award-winning series, The Good Wife. In 2011, he was the executive producer, co-writer and star of the ABC show Mr Sunshine.
He has received Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for his starring role in TNT’s The Ron Clark Story, and in 2006 starred in Aaron Sorkin’s NBC drama Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, in a role that was written for him. He also received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Joe Quincy in The West Wing.
Perry’s other screen credits include the films 17 Again, alongside Zac Efron; The Whole Nine Yards, opposite Bruce Willis, which was followed up by The Whole Ten Yards; Three to Tango, alongside Neve Campbell, Dylan McDermott and Oliver Platt; Fools Rush In with Salma Hayek; and A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, with the late River Phoenix.
Lindsay Posner’s most recent theatre credits include Dinner with Saddam and Communicating Doors (Menier Chocolate Factory), She Stoops to Conquer (Theatre Royal Bath), Hayfever (Theatre Royal Bath/Duke of York’s Theatre), Speed the Plow (Playhouse Theatre), Other Desert Cities and The Provok’d Wife (Old Vic), The Winslow Boy (Old Vic/Roundabout Theater, New York), Noises Off (Old Vic/Novello Theatre/UK Tour) and Abigail’s Party (Menier Chocolate Factory/Wyndham’s Theatre/UK Tour)
His recent work also includes Butley and The Birthday Party (Duchess Theatre), Uncle Vanya and An Ideal Husband (Vaudeville Theatre), The Turn of The Screw, Tom and Viv, House of Games, Romance and The Hypochondriac (Almeida Theatre), A View From The Bridge (Duke of York’s Theatre) which was nominated for four Olivier Awards, Carousel (Churchill Theatre/UK tour/Savoy Theatre) and Fiddler On The Roof (Sheffield Crucible/Savoy Theatre).
Posner was associate director at the Royal Court Theatre from 1987 to 1992 where his production of Death and the Maiden won two Olivier Awards. Other Royal Court productions in that period include Colquhoun and McBryde, The Treatment, American Bagpipe, Ficky Stingers, No One Sees The Video, Built on Sand, Blood; Downfall and Ambulance.
Tickets: £19.50 – £85 (£10 off for all preview performances, except the £19.50 ticket). Day seats are available at 10am, on the day of performances, for £15 per ticket. To book, call 0844 871 7631 or visit www.endoflonging.co.uk/.
Times: Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm; Thursday and Saturday at 2.30pm.
Gala night performance: Thursday, February 11.
Michael Flatley’s Lord Of The Dance: Dangerous Games continues at the Playhouse Theatre until January 3, 2016.