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Bourne's Play Without Words Tours After National

Following its return season at the National Theatre, Matthew Bourne's double Olivier Award-winning Play Without Words will embark on a two-month regional tour in spring 2004 (See News, 19 Aug 2003). The tour opens on 16 March 2004 at Norwich's Theatre Royal before continuing, until 22 May, to nine further venues.

It's Chelsea 1963 and, behind the privileged façade of domestic social order, there lies a struggle for power, territory and sexual domination. Often finding inspiration in cinematic forms, in this case British new wave cinema of the early 1960s, Play Without Words is, true to its title, non-verbal, movement-based storytelling.

Play Without Words had its world premiere in August 2003 as part of the £1.5 million, five-month "Transformation" season of new writing in the re-configured Lyttelton Theatre, where its three-week stint quickly sold out. The piece, a collaboration between the National and Bourne's own New Adventures company, was nominated for two Whatonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards (Best Ensemble Performance and Best Choreographer) and won two Oliviers, for Best Entertainment and Best Theatre Choreographer.

For 14 years, Bourne was best known, with producer Katharine Dore, as one half of the renowned Adventures in Motion Pictures whose much-lauded works included the all-male Swan Lake, Cinderella and The Car Man. He announced his solo outfit, New Adventures, in August 2001.

Play Without Words reunited Bourne, who devised the piece, with his award-winning AMP designer Lez Brotherston. Lighting is by Paule Constable, music by Terry Davies and sound by Christopher Shutt. The piece is inspired by Robin Maugham's The Servant and the Joseph Losey film of it.

At the National, the production reopens on 16 December 2003 (previews 10 December) at the NT Lyttelton, where it's booking in repertory up to 24 January 2004. On tour, after opening at Norwich, it will continues to Edinburgh, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Salford, High Wycombe, Birmingham, Woking, Bromley and Plymouth. Bourne's other New Adventures' hit of last year, Nutcracker! also returns this Christmas for a limited season from 2 December 2003 to 24 January 2004, at Sadler's Wells, in addition to new regional dates.

- by Terri Paddock

DON'T MISS our Whatsonstage.com Outing to the first new performance of PLAY WITHOUT WORDS on Wednesday 10 October 2003 - including a FREE drink & exclusive post-show reception with Matthew Bourne himself!!
Click here for more info & to BOOK NOW!

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