What is lost is eventually rediscovered.
Widely hailed as Tom Stoppard's most masterful work, Arcadia is a witty mental work-out and scientific history lesson, wrapped up as a hugely entertaining play. Billed as tragedy and a comedy, it concerns the residents of Sidely Park, a stately home in deepest darkest Derbyshire, England, both past and present. Alternating between the early 19th Century and modern day, we follow Thomasina, the young lady of the house and her tutor Septimus navigate through chaos and order and originate a scientific discovery that will go on to change the world, and Hannah Jarvis and Bernard Nightingale, the present day scholars who hope to solve the mysteries of the past and form new interpretations...
Direct from a sell out run at the Shaw Festival, Arcadia comes to the Royal Alexandra Theatre, where it will doubtless recreate this success.
Debuting in 1993, this time skipping ensemble piece was an instant hit, winning Best Play at the Oliver Awards and Tonys. It has gone on to become Stoppard's magnum opus, the defining piece for this loquacious and dynamic playwright. The regency era is much explored in modern drama, but never with the realism afforded to Arcadia. It really is a must see over the 2014/15 season.