Details

The Divide is an extraordinary new work by one of the UK's greatest storytellers, Alan Ayckbourn. Unfolding over two parts, The Divide is a tale for our own turbulent times that unflinchingly examines a dystopian society of brutal repression, forbidden love and seething insurrection. A century from now, England has been decimated by a deadly contagion. Contact between men and women is fatal. They are forcibly separated by a divide. Men wear white as a mark of their purity and women - still infected - wear black as a sign of their sin. Brother and sister Elihu and Soween grow up in a small town devastated by disease, learning the ways of the closely monitored society around them. But when Elihu falls for the daughter of two radical mothers, he risks not only fatal disease but also igniting a bloody revolution. Spread across two separate Parts, The Divide is a hugely engaging and constantly surprising story of a society that segregates - but is still recognisable. It is a vastly ambitious project, teeming with richly imagined detail that recounts the work of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley and even Nigel Kneale's Quatermass films.

Cast/Performers

Lucy Briggs-Owen (Hork), Jake Davies (Elihu), Buffy Davis (Older Soween), Erin Doherty (Soween), Thusitha Jayasundera (Kest), Richard Katz (Rudgrin), Joanne McGuinness (Axi), Sophie Melville (Sassa), Clare Lawrence Moody (Desollia), Weruche Opia (Giella), Martin Quinn (Fergo), Letty Thomas (Grosh), Flinty Williams (Chayza)

Creatives/Company

Author: Alan Ayckbourn
Producer: Old Vic
Director: Annabel Bolton
Music: Christopher Nightingale (songs)
Lighting: David Plater
Sound: Bobby Aitkin
Design: Laura Hopkins