16 to 23 October 2004

in the Studio Theatre

Dealing With Clair

by Martin Crimp

directed by Karl Rhys

Today, as the 1980s take their turn in the retro spotlight of popular culture (with its typically rose-tinted filter), you'd be forgiven for thinking that it was solely a decade of naff bands, dubious fashion decisions and -- for a few -- hedonistic money-making. In all, a daft but generally genial time. One incident, however, suggests a much more complex view: the disappearance in July 1986 of the Fulham estate agent, Suzy Lamplugh. It is this event that acts as a springboard for one of Martin Crimp's early plays: a creepy dissection of the corrosive effect of the decade's particular brand of individualism and the moral bankruptcy it entails. It's a sobering corrective to any cosy, nostalgic vision of those heady times.

Review