The Dresser

In a war-torn provincial theatre an ageing actor manager, known to his loyal acting company as ‘Sir’, is struggling to keep a grip on his sanity and complete his two hundred and twenty-seventh performance of King Lear. Thanks to the efforts of Herr Hitler, all the able-bodied actors are in uniform and bombs are destroying theatres across the country, but the show must go on. Ensuring that it does is Norman. Sir’s devoted dresser, who for sixteen years has been there to fix his wig, massage his ego, remind him of his opening lines and provide the sound effects in the storm scene. Inspired by the memories of his years working as Donald Wolfit’s dresser, Ronald Harwood’s evocative, perceptive and hilarious portrait of backstage life is one of the most acclaimed dramas of modern theatre.