Considered to be one of Ayckbourn’s bravest plays, set in real time in a domestic setting, “Absent Friends” is about the innocent destructiveness of the well intentioned: the agent of chaos on this occasion is the bereaved Colin, whose fiancee has lately drowned and for whom his not-so-close friends throw a consolatory tea party. Even the anticipation of Colin’s arrival exposes the fractures in the relationships: Diana, the hostess, is convinced that her husband, Paul, is having an affair with one of the guests, Evelyn. For her part, Evelyn is a moodily taciturn young mum tethered to a hopelessly incompetent husband, John. The party is completed by Marge who lacking a child of her own, becomes surrogate mother to her permanently ailing partner. When the beaming Colin turns up, Ayckbourn really puts the catalyst amongst the pigeons.

Presented by The Haslemere Thespians

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