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Time catches up with 1970s classic
PAUL FOLEY is disappointed by a production that encourages the audience to laugh at rather than with the characters
THE HOSTESS FROM HELL: Kym Marsh as Beverly with Graeme Hawley as Laurence [Johan Persson]

Abigail’s Party
Royal Exchange Manchester

 

MIKE LEIGH’S Abigail’s Party was a huge hit with both critics and audiences when it premiered at the Hampstead Theatre 1977. Its success led to a  televised version being screened in the prestigious Play for Today series on BBC.

Leigh has created a tragi-comedy around Beverley and Laurence, an upwardly mobile couple with aspirations for sophistication.

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