The Chairs, Almeida Theatre

Former associate director of the Bush Theatre Omar Elerian comes to the Almeida with The Chairs, a new version of Romanian-French playwright and avant-garde theatre pioneer Eugène Ionesco’s 1951 play. Translated and directed by Elerian himself, the tragic farce is bolstered by a quirky, convention-defying cast comprising Olivier-winner Kathryn Hunter, her spouse the Complicité co-founder Marcello Magni, and Olivier Award-winning choreographer and performer Toby Sedgwick (War Horse). All three performers and Elerian himself are graduates of the prestigious Parisian Ecole Jacques Lecoq.

As the waters rise and the world outside crumbles, an Old Man (Magni) and an Old Woman (Hunter) set out chairs for an invisible audience of anyone and everyone – bankers, ballet dancers, leavers and remainers – to hear the Old Man make a revelation on the meaning of life delivered by an orator. But will his message ever be delivered?

Elerian’s retelling of the absurdist tragicomedy is pitched as a reflection ‘on a life lived together: on what has been, what might have been, and what it all really means.’

Seventy years after it was written, The Chairs is still likely to leave you scratching your head.

It's set to be a big year for the Italian-Palestinian director who, following The Chairs, heads straight into directing Sami Ibrahim's two Palestinians go dogging at the Royal Court.

Elerian impressed the critics in 2018 with his direction of Arinzé Kene play Misty, an examination of gentrification and the soul of London through a mix of gig theatre, spoken word, live art and direct address. The play opened at the Bush Theatre before transferring to the West End’s Trafalgar Studios later that same year.

We’re hopeful some of Misty's surreal, boundary-pushing flair will be carried across to his take on The Chairs.