Summary: | Jack Thorne's play the end of history... is a domestic drama focussing on the lives of two political idealists and their children. It was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on 27 June 2019. The play is set in a family home in Newbury, Berkshire, belonging to married couple Sal and David. The first act, set in 1997, sees Sal trying to cook dinner for the family. She and David have pulled off a coup and gathered their three children back home for the weekend. Eldest son Carl is bringing his new girlfriend Harriet to meet everyone for the first time; middle daughter Polly is back from Cambridge University for the occasion; and youngest Tom, still at school, will hopefully make it out of detention in time for dinner. But Sal and David would rather feed their kids with leftist ideals and welfarism than fancy cuisine, and as the action skips forward, first to 2007, and then in the final act to 2017, the impact of their idealism on the younger generation is both critiqued and celebrated. The premiere production was directed by John Tiffany and designed by Grace Smart. It was performed by Kate O'Flynn, Lesley Sharp, David Morrissey, Sam Swainsbury, Zoe Boyle and Laurie Davidson.
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