THE RIVALS

About the show

Bath in the Roaring Twenties: risqué revelry, romance, and rivalry in the Assembly Rooms – a town torn between tradition and the new age. Lydia and Jack (Zoe Brough and Kit Young) are made for each other – but Lydia’s a rebel and Jack’s too posh to be her beau. What’s a chap to do? A little harmless deception, of course. Meanwhile, Jack’s father, Anthony Absolute (Robert Bathurst), is absolutely determined to be obeyed, and Lydia’s guardian Mrs Malaprop (Patricia Hodge) is seeking a love-affair of her own – if only she could find the right words… Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s sparkling satire of love and language has lost none of its bite and brilliance. OT Artistic Director Tom Littler gives this 250th anniversary revival a jazzy new production: a sumptuous treat to chase away the winter cold. Patricia Hodge, one of our leading stage actors and widely known from Miranda and Rumpole of the Bailey, stars in the iconic role of Mrs Malaprop. Alongside her as the irascible Anthony Absolute is Robert Bathurst (Cold Feet, Joking Apart). Zoe Brough returns to the OT following her role as Nell Gwyn in Playhouse Creatures to play Lydia Languish, opposite Kit Young (Shadow and Bone, Out of Darkness) as Jack Absolute.