In the year of its 60th anniversary, Nobel Prize Laureate Harold Pinter’s classic one-act play The Dumb Waiter is being performed at the Lyric Theatre’s Naughton Studio from the 16th – 18th November.
In the perfectly formed two-hander, mismatched colleagues Ben and Gus have been sent to a squalid basement room in Birmingham by their mysterious boss Wilson. As they await instruction, tensions mount and when increasingly bizarre and impossible demands are placed upon them from an unseen force upstairs they begin to question their doubts about their professions, themselves and each other.
The production brings together local actors Thomas Finnegan, previously featured in the Lyric and Prime Cut’s critical smash Red and Chris McCurry, last seen on the Danske Bank stage in Observe the Sons of Ulster.
The rest of the creative team comprises of recent Queen’s Graduates and up and coming talents, director Seon Simpson and designer Moya Doogan.
“Although it was written 60 years ago, the play remains just as relevant today as ever,” says Chris. “It’s about how we respond to the demands placed upon us by people in power and whether we decide to question them or be led blindly. I think people here especially will identify with this.” “It’s also incredibly sharp and funny,” adds Thomas, “Anyone unfamiliar with Pinter’s work will see that the humour in Tarantino and Martin McDonagh, especially in Bruges owes a huge debt to him and particularly this play.”
Playing at the Lyric Theatre 16-18 November. To book, go to lyrictheatre.co.uk or contact the box office on 02890 381081. All tickets £10.
