Top Girls | 5:00pm

Top Girls

Written by Caryl Churchill. Directed by Rosamunde Hutt.

Witnessing the selfless work of the NHS from self isolation in Downing Street, Boris Johnson says there 'really is such a thing as society', contradicting Tory icon, Margaret Thatcher, beloved by 'Top Girl', Marlene, who proclaimed in 1987 that there was 'no such thing', and extolled the virtues of individualism.

In 'Top Girls', Marlene treats her dinner party guests to endless prosecco in a trendy London restaurant whilst her sister Joyce does four cleaning jobs to make ends meet and her whip-smart colleagues gaze resentfully up at the glass ceiling which she has no intention of smashing for them.

In the current Covid-19 crisis, newspaper headlines shout, 'Why are women leaders doing better than men?' and when in rehearsal we discuss who we would like to invite to our own dinner party, those women who have calmly led their countries through these dreadful times are indeed at the top of our invitation list: Tsai Ing-Wen from Taiwan, Jacinda Ardern from New Zealand and Sanna Marin from Finland. And more.  

Written in 1982, long before 'Me Too' and 'Time's Up', the themes explored by Caryl Churchill in this feminist classic still resonate with ferocity across the world. And although much has changed for today's Top Girls, we still reap the consequences of that momentous turning point in British history, 4th May, 1979, the day Margaret Thatcher came to power.

This performance will be streamed via our YouTube Channel on Thursday 21st May at 5pm (UK).

*Performance contains strong language and themes of an adult nature