“When you’re dead, you’ll regret not having fun with your genital organs”
- Joe Orton
Entertaining Mr Sloane is a hilarious no shame romp of filthy goings-on in British suburbia!
By Joe Orton
Directed by Conrad Newport
4 July – 1 August
Circa Two, Circa Theatre, 1 Taranaki St
Cost: Adults $38 / Over 65 $30 / Under 25 $20 / Groups 6+ $32ea
Middle-aged homebody Kath and her brother Ed are more than happy to accommodate the young and extremely sexy Mr. Sloane into their home. Both become so infatuated with the shady young tenant with a murky past – to win him they will let him get away with anything – perhaps even murder.
First produced in 1964 when The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were at the forefront of a swinging London and the impending sexual revolution, Joe Orton’s wickedly biting comedy sparked controversy with its mischievous peep at the hypocrisy behind the ‘new’ permissive society of the 1960’s and the British fascination with sex. Entertaining Mr. Sloane continues to be revived all around the world for a very good reason – it is very sexy and it is very funny.
Despite its success in performance, it was not until the London production of Loot in 1966 - less than a year before Joe Orton's untimely death - that theatre audiences and critics began to more fully appreciate the originality of Entertaining Mr Sloane and Orton's elegant, alarming and hilarious writing.
Orton is infamous as the taboo-tweaking British playwright who delighted in loading his dialogue with satirical insights and racy double entendres. While Orton’s plays live on today, he is perhaps best known for his brutal murder in 1967 when he was bludgeoned to death at 34 by his jealous lover Kenneth Halliwell.
Not only is Entertaining Mr Sloane a good old fashioned sex romp for a cold winter’s night, Orton’s gleefully amoral tone still has the power to upset the prudish amongst us. So make sure you leave your puritanical morals at the door and have your laughing glands ready to be stimulated.
Featuring: Ken Blackburn as Kemp, Yvette Parsons as Kath, Stephen Papps as Ed and Richard Dey as Sloane.
Set Design by Sean Coyle | Lighting Design by Jennifer Lal | Costume Design by Gillie Coxill
