(Elisabeth Mahoney’s article appeared in the Guardian, 10/13.)
Three moments, one family and an almighty intergenerational conflict: this is the territory for Mike Bartlett's new play, and it sounds like stock dramatic stuff. Yet, in pitting well-heeled baby boomers against their far less successful children, Bartlett tethers this to the specific present. As 37-year-old daughter Rosie says to her Oxford-educated, early-retired parents: "Everyone I know has less than their parents did at their age."
The acts are set in 1967, 1990 and 2011, and the first two – mini-sitcoms, really, that turn suddenly bitter – in particular, are deliciously rich in period detail.
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