Pitlochry Festival Theatre to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Michael Frayn’s Noises Off

The 40th anniversary Michael Frayn’s Noises Off will be celebrated by Pitlochry Festival Theatre.

The iconic farce will run at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre as part of Pitlochry Festival from 27 May to 1 October 2022.

First debuting in 1982 in London, the piece has enjoyed countless productions across the world including previously at Pitlochry Festival Theatre in 1987 and 2010.

Hailed as a celebrated modern classic, Noises Off chronicles the hilarious slapstick capers of a touring theatre company as they stumble their way, from rehearsals to opening night, through a farcical fictitious play called…Nothing On.

With technical brilliance and split-second timing, Noises Off takes us behind the scenes with a company of actors, stage manager and a temperamental director in a hilarious and heartfelt tribute to the unpredictability of life in theatre.

The cast for the new production will feature Marc Small (Barefoot in the Park, Pitlochry Festival Theatre); Connor Going (Wind in the Willows, Pitlochry Festival Theatre and The Choir of Man, Australia and USA tour); Rachael McAllister (A Christmas Carol, Pitlochry Festival Theatre); Keith Jack (Any Dream Will Do, BBC; Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Fame, UK Tours); Deirdre Davis (Eileen Donachie in River City, BBC Scotland, Bold Girls, Citizens Theatre and Monarch of the Glen, Pitlochry Festival Theatre); Keith Macpherson (The Yellow Door, Lyceum/ Edinburgh International Book Festival; Waiting for Godot, Citizens Theatre and Stan and Ollie, BBC Films); Meg Chaplin (Arrival, imPOSSIBLE and The Midnight Child, UK Tour); Richard Colvin (Sunshine on Leith, UK Tour and A Christmas Carol, Bolton Octagon) and Alyson Orr (Cinderella, Pavilion Theatre Glasgow).

Noises Off is directed by Ben Occhipinti with set and costume design by Liz Cooke, lighting design by Peter Fennell and sound design by Kevin Murray.

Playwright Michael Frayn said: “Wonderful to see theatre gradually coming back to life after Covid. And for me, the Pitlochry Festival is a particularly cheering milestone along the road to normality because they’re doing the first professional UK post-Covid production of Noises Off. So, thank you, Pitlochry! I send you my very best wishes for the production, and I hope it helps to spread a little cheerfulness around.”

Director and Pitlochry Festival Theatre Associate Director Ben Occhipinti added: “It is a great privilege to be directing Michael Frayn’s Noises Off in its 40th anniversary year. It probably goes without saying that this play is one of the greatest farce’s ever written and I am in no doubt that audiences will enjoy watching and laughing together this summer.

“Michael Frayn is such an exceptional dramatist that he’s been able to create such a brilliant story with many loveable characters whilst also making us belly laugh. With a brilliant company of actors, it is sure to bring the house down as they try to manage all the doors and sardines! The design is wondrous, so I also know audiences will love to enjoy the mise-en-scène which Noises Off has become infamous for over the years.”

For more information and tickets, visit pitlochryfestivaltheatre.com