Richard E Grant in Otherwise Engaged
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Otherwise Engaged Posts Closing Notices, 28 Jan

The first West End revival of Simon Gray’s Otherwise Engaged has posted closing notices at the Criterion Theatre. Following a brief regional tour, the production - which stars Richard E Grant (pictured) and Whatsonstage.com Award nominee Anthony Head – opened at the Criterion on 31 October 2005 (previews from 25 October). It will finish its limited season on 28 January 2006, at the end of its current booking period.

Witty, urbane, sophisticated and selfish, publisher Simon Hench is a man of taste and discretion, who is accustomed to keeping himself at a graceful distance from the messy distractions of his family and friends. He has a problem though - well, several actually - only he just doesn't know it yet. Settling in for an evening with his new recording of Wagner's Parsifal, Simon is besieged by a deluge of unwelcome visitors, and his usually cool demeanour begins to buckle as life finally catches up with him.

Gray’s play was first seen in the West End at the Queen’s Theatre in a 1975 production directed by Harold Pinter and starring Alan Bates, Nigel Hawthorne, Julian Glover and Ian Charleson.

In the new production, directed by Simon Curtis (Dinner with Friends, Roots) and designed by Simon Higlett, Grant is joined in the cast of Anthony Head, David Bamber, Peter Wight, Liam Garrigan, Amanda Ryan and Amanda Drew.

Prior to its West End transfer, Otherwise Engaged visited Bath, Oxford, Milton Keynes and Woking. The revival is produced by Mark Rubinstein, Sonia Friedman Productions, Lee Menzies and TEG Productions. It has been nominated for two Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers’ Choice Awards – Best Supporting Actor for Anthony Head and Best Play Revival (click here to vote now!).

No further productions have yet been announced for the Criterion.

- by Terri Paddock

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