HANGMEN
by MARTIN MCDONAGH
13 August – 14 September 2024
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE
“The electric bloody chair! I’m told when that goes wrong they come out sizzling like a bloody steak.”
It’s 1965, and capital punishment has just been abolished in the UK.
In a dingy pub in the north of England, the landlord, Harry, who until recently was known as ‘the second-best hangman in Britain’, holds court.
Surrounded by a motley crew of sycophants and hangers-on, he relishes the celebrity his profession has brought him.
His wife works behind the bar; neither seems to notice that their anxious, awkward teenage daughter is ripe for exploitation.
The arrival of a mysterious stranger from London creates an atmosphere toxic with suspicion, and when Harry’s arch-rival turns up, the clash of egos is both brutal and desperately sad.
This brilliant, funny and wildly off-beat play ((from the acclaimed writer of In Bruges, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, The Lieutenant of Inishmore and The Lonesome West) is a stinging condemnation of state-sanctioned murder delivered with furious, macabre humour.
Winner: 2016 Olivier Award for Best New Play
“Tremendous, terrifying, electric.” The Guardian
Patrons please note: this production contains strong language, adult themes, smoking on stage, graphic scenes of death and dying, and depictions of violence. It is rated MA.
creative team
Director Deborah Mulhall
Set Designer Tom Bannerman
Lighting Designer Timothy M Carter
Costume Designer Helen Kohlhagen
Sound Designers Mehran Mortezaei, Deborah Mulhall
Assistant Director Timothy M Carter
Dialect Coach Mark G Nagle
Original Music Jim McCrudden
Stage Manager Owen Hirschfeld
ASM Madison Gooley
Operator Ricci Costa
cast
Alastair Brown, Kim Clifton
Nathan Farrow, Madison Gooley
Owen Hirschfeld, Sonya Kerr
Tom Massey, Jim McCrudden
Jack Elliot Mitchell, Gerry Mullaly
Georgia Nicholas, Reuben Solomon
Robert Snars
dates/times
Preview Tue 13 Aug 7:30pm
Opening Night Wed 14 Aug 7:30pm
Thu – Sat 7:30pm, Sun 2pm
Final performance Sat 14 Sep 2pm
Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes with interval
Please note: latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance
tickets
Full $37
Concessions, Groups (6+) $32
New Theatre Members $25
Thrifty Thursdays $25
Preview $20
(Booking and transaction fees apply)
★★★★ “Deborah Mulhall directed one of the highlights of New Theatre’s 2018 season with ‘The Lieutenant of Inishmore’ and now she has done it again with another Martin McDonagh play. ‘Hangmen’ is an exquisite script that is all at once a meditation on capital punishment, a domestic drama, and a disturbingly funny thriller.” Sydney Arts Guide
★★★½ “High drama and black comedy come together in a gripping morality tale … The actors are excellent … Tom Bannerman’s set is so detailed, you can almost smell the stale beer.” Arts Hub
“A lethal thriller filled with absurd and ironic characters caught up in the blackest of comedic entanglements…The characters, the absurdities, the exposition of human follies, are all classic McDonagh material…Fans will find plenty of what they love in this production.” Theatre Thoughts
“An extraordinarily well-crafted comedy…A terrific production. The entire cast do brilliant work.” Theatre Red
“A carefully envisioned, directed and performed production that palpably finds the ‘despair and bruising’ that drives McDonagh’s characters.” Stage Whispers
“Deals with human darkness hilariously…A terrific production.” City Hub
“To be funny, you have to be real, and biting, cruel, cynical, insightful reality is what ‘Hangmen’ delivers in spades.” guidetogay.com
Patrons please note: New Theatre is now EFTPOS-only
at Front of House for both ticket and bar sales.
COVID- Safe protocols:
QR code and vaccination checks are no longer required.
Face masks are not mandatory, but recommended.
By Arrangement with ORiGiN™ Theatrical
On Behalf of Samuel French
A Concord Theatricals Company
Main image: © Somchai Som/Shutterstock
Production images: © Bob Seary