Alan Ayckbourn heads up the Truth Will Out cast!

Alan Ayckbourn heads cast in rehearsed reading of his pandemic-cancelled show Truth Will Out 

Our Director Emeritus and globally renowned playwright Alan Ayckbourn will make a rare outing as an actor here at the SJT in September. 

He'll be on stage playing the role of Jim in a rehearsed reading of his own play, Truth Will Out, which was due to be produced in 2020, but was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Also in the cast is one of his regular company members, Christopher Godwin – Alan has directed Christopher many times over the years, including in the world premieres of Absurd Person Singular, The Norman Conquests and, most recently, Better Off Dead, but the pair last appeared on stage together as actors in 1963.

They will be joined by the cast of Ayckbourn’s 89th play, Constant Companions, which is playing here from 7 September to 7 October: Georgia Burnell, Andy Cryer, Tanya-Loretta Dee, Alexandra Mathie, Naomi Petersen, Richard Stacey and Leigh Symonds. Completing the cast of eleven are two faces very familiar to fans of Ayckbourn's work: John Branwell and Fran Marshall.

Everyone has secrets. Certainly former shop steward George, his right-wing MP daughter Janet, investigative journalist Peggy, and senior civil servant Sefton, do. And all it’s going to take is one tech-savvy teenager with a mind of his own and time on his hands to bring their worlds tumbling down – and maybe everyone else’s along with them. A storm is brewing…

Truth Will Out is a modern satire on family, relationships, politics and the state of the nation from the pen of one of our greatest modern moralists. This rehearsed reading by professional actors will be the first time the author has ever heard it read aloud.

Alan says:

“The last time I acted on stage opposite Christopher Godwin was in Dylan Thomas’s The Doctor and the Devils in Cardiff in 1963, when I was wise enough to play my token Scotsman in Wales!”

The reading of Truth Will Out is part of a series of fundraising events. Our Fundraising and Development Officer, Stephanie Dattani, says:

“We're hugely grateful for Alan and to the rest of the company for doing this special reading for us, which will raise funds for exciting new work on our stages.”

Truth Will Out can be seen in the Round at the SJT on Sunday 17 September at 2.30pm. Tickets, priced at £25, are available from our Box Office on 01723 370 541 and online here.