Following on from the successful run of Ordinary Days (which has been nominated for an Off West End Theatre Award for Best Musical Production), London Theatre Workshop is delighted to announce its next show will be a revival of Eugene O\u2019Neill\u2019s classic play, Ah, Wilderness!.<\/p>\n
Eugene O\u2019Neill described Ah, Wilderness! as a wistful re-imagining of his youth. Written during the Great Depression, this comedy takes a nostalgic look back to a fondly-remembered time-gone-by, the 4th of July, 1906; when both O\u2019Neill and America were full of promise. Richard, a variation on a young O\u2019Neill, is on the cusp of adulthood, and brimming with ideas and desires of his own, in spite of all the adults in his life who try to control the way he thinks and behaves. In an attempt to defy the rules and conventions of the time, Richard finds that he has compromised his own future, and perhaps has even lost his one true love.<\/p>\n
London Theatre Workshop\u2019s production will explore the nature of nostalgia and memory as a way of forming a narrative around one\u2019s life. Bursting at the seams with youthful vigour, wit, and humour, the play stands in a marked contrast to O\u2019Neill\u2019s other semi-autobiographical pieces; further illuminating the classic Long Day\u2019s Journey Into Night. Perfect for O\u2019Neill aficionados and those wishing to find out more about America\u2019s first great playwright, Ah, Wilderness! is certain to delight and amuse and will no doubt remind us of our own youthful follies and first loves.<\/p>\n
Ah, Wilderness! features an eleven strong, ensemble cast, and is directed by Brandon Force, who recently directed the Tennessee Williams play Interior:Panic as part of London Theatre Workshop\u2019s Four By Tenn repertory celebration, at the Drayton Arms Theatre, and previously has directed \u201cThe Laramie Project\u201d in the pre-renovated space at the Eel Brook pub.<\/p>\n