Les Liaisons Dangereuses  

by Christopher Hampton

based on the novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos

directed by Marianne Elliott

BAFTA Award-winner Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread) joins Aidan Turner (Rivals) in a striking new staging of Christopher Hampton’s celebrated adaptation of the classic novel, where among the glittering salons of the super-rich, one misstep can mean ruin.

Marquise de Merteuil is a master in the art of survival. Alongside the magnetic Vicomte de Valmont, they turn seduction into strategy and weaponise desire.  But when their alliance collapses into rivalry, the battle between them threatens to destroy everyone in their path.

Filmed live on stage at the National Theatre, Marianne Elliott (Angels in America) directs this thrilling game of love, lies, and social warfare.

Presented as part of The Hitchin Festival

A lively and thought provoking historical play, set in 1896 at Girton College, previously in Hitchin, but moved to none other than Cambridge - one of the first colleges in England to admit women.  

Blending humour, romance and moments of tension, the play explores themes of equality, ambition and the cost of challenging tradition.   It highlights the courage of women who pushed against restrictive norms to claim their place in academia - and helped pave the way for future generations.

Ticket prices: £13 & £11 (concessions)

This documentary is a portrait of Edna O’Brien, the groundbreaking Irish novelist whose life was marked by literary fame, controversy, exile, and artistic reinvention.

The film includes readings from her journals (voiced by Jessie Buckley) and contributions from writers such as Gabriel Byrne and Walter Mosley, tracing O’Brien’s journey from banned author to international icon.

Documentary, 100m

Presented as part of The Hitchin Festival

REVIEW | TRAILER

Buy a ticket to two shows and see the third one for free.   All tickets must be purchased in the same transaction.

No further discount can be applied separately online. 

The discount is applied when you add at least one ticket for each performance from this series into the check out.

Multiple tickets can still be purchased in one transaction.    Tickets can be purchased on the door each night – subject to availability.

Thursday 17th September:

FIRE and RAIN by Martin Hancock

When natural resources are gone, what is the future going to look like?   In a world where most of the water in the world has been drawn into the salty oceans, the great rivers gone, the only available water is what you can salvage and recycle from your own body.   What would nature make us give up to put things right, and at what cost?

Four Wildfire Fighters find themselves in a strange, unfamiliar place.   A message is received by one of their number through their brain-embedded ID Chip.   In their world, certain words remain but their meaning has been lost to an incinerating climate, so how should they interpret this view of a very different world?   Is the vision seen by one of them showing an open door to a better dimension, or are humans becoming sacrificial lambs to the unforgiving laws of nature?

Friday 18th September:

SAFETY in NUMBERS by Adam Francis

Two trainspotters are poised on a platform, eagerly anticipating the arrival of an elusive train.   The Z307 will complete their trainspotting book.   As they reflect on the enormity of their seemingly banal quest, they need and needle each other, exposing Trainspotter 1’s narcissistic trait of being both the torturer and rescuer of his acquaintance, and Trainspotter 2’s allotted role of victim.   As the rumbling of the train tracks grows in frequency, the two men are interrupted by the arrival of a Worker who holds up a figurative mirror to their inadequacies.   Defending their honour and purpose, they retaliate, unpicking the Worker’s own insipidity and trivial life.   When the Worker protests his importance, it seems that only the arrival of the Z307 can calm the waters.   The three of them now wait, too afraid of what lies beyond their platform.

The play scrutinises Man’s desire for independence, power and hierarchy, while exposing our yearning to belong, no matter what the cost.

Saturday 19th September:

GOOD GRIEF by Rob Graham

Inspired by a true story of love, loss and friendship, Good Grief is a brutally honest, powerful and personal account of one man's attempts to deal with the reality of loss and the ensuing void which threatens to consume him.   It is both visceral and funny, often within the same breath.   Drawing from his own personal experiences, Adie has undoubtedly laid himself bare and, as a result, the play packs very real and occasionally uncomfortable punches, all served up in a web of dark humour.

Quote from London Theatre1:  “In this witty, beautifully written piece, Adie manages to deliver laughs aplenty punctuated by moments of deep and authentic emotional pain, all the while swerving deftly past any hint of mawkish sentimentality.”

Under Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship, nothing will stop his mandatory birthday celebrations, including choosing a child from each school class across the land to bake a cake in his honour. Despite Lamia’s best efforts to avoid it, knowing how difficult it will be to source the ingredients, she is picked among her peers to produce the cake, which she must do, or face the consequences.  

Lamia’s quest for the ingredients allows us explore the gamut of Iraqi society, painting a moving portrait of the resilience of a people caught between authoritarian rule and injudicious American imperialism.

It was the first Iraqi film to feature at the Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered in the Directors' Fortnight and won both the section's Audience Award, as well as the festival's prestigious Camera d'Or.

Highly recommended

Directed by Keith Swainston

Jenny and Sam, and their baby Phoebe, have recently moved into their new home. But something feels frightening and wrong. Very wrong. Over the baby monitor, at 2:22 every night, Jenny hears footsteps around her daughter's cot. Could the house be haunted?

When their friends Lauren and Ben come round for a housewarming dinner, they drink wine, relive their pasts, and argue about the existence of ghosts. They decide to stay up until 2:22, to discover the truth. Over one adrenaline-filled night – as the foxes scream outside – secrets will emerge and ghosts may appear…

Spine-chilling, funny and scary, Danny Robins' play 2:22 was premiered at the Noël Coward Theatre in London's West End in August 2021, that version was directed by Matthew Dunster went on to win Best New Play at the 2022 WhatsOnStage Awards, and was nominated for Best New Play at the Olivier Awards.

This amateur production is presented by The Bancroft Players in association with Nick Hern Books Ltd and is proudly sponsored by Raymond James Hitchin.

A heartwarming Christmas classic for the whole family.

Step into the snowy streets of Bedford Falls this festive season and rediscover one of the most beloved Christmas stories ever told.

It's Christmas Eve, 1946, and George Bailey feels as though life has passed him by. Burdened by disappointment and convinced the world would be better off without him, George is about to make a desperate decision. But when a guardian angel appears and shows him what life would have been like if he had never existed, George begins an extraordinary journey that reveals the true value of friendship, family, love and community.

Based on the iconic film that has captured hearts for generations, Mary Elliott Nelson's stage adaptation brings all the warmth, wonder and festive magic of Frank Capra's masterpiece to life. Filled with laughter, hope, memorable characters and a powerful message about the difference one person can make, this is the perfect Christmas treat for audiences of all ages.

Whether you're revisiting a treasured favourite or discovering George Bailey's story for the very first time, It's a Wonderful Life is a joyful celebration of kindness, togetherness and the spirit of Christmas.

Gather your family, wrap up warm and join us for an unforgettable festive experience that will leave you smiling long after the final curtain falls.

Because every time a bell rings, an angel gets their wings.

Perfect for families, friends and anyone who believes in the magic of Christmas.

This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Nick Hern Books and proudly sponsored by Raymond James Hitchin.