About

By arrangement with Samuel French Limited

Following critically acclaimed successes with landmark plays by Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams, the Octagon turns to another masterpiece of contemporary American drama, directed by David Thacker.

"Party! Party!" cries the drink-sodden Martha [Margot Leicester] as the doorbell rings and two unsuspecting guests arrive for late-night drinks. Nick [Kieran Hill] is a high-flying young professor, just arrived at a North East American University with his wife Honey [Tammy Joelle]. Their hosts are George [George Irving], a tenured professor embittered by his stagnating career, and his dominating and flirtatious wife Martha.

The bourbon flows, and it becomes clear that this argumentative marriage conceals deep wounds. And as the young guests are lured into their hosts’ manipulative, savage mind games, they too must bare their fragile souls.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has received almost every major theatre award, including the Tony Award for Best Play, and was adapted into a film starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. It is a ferocious and hilarious rollercoaster of a drama – lyrical, moving and ultimately unforgettable.

An interview with Edward Albee

See the turnaround and set up from Bang Bang Bang to Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?