Echoes of Cambridge spies Kim Philby and Guy Burgess at Newbury theatre

NEW Era explores exile and belonging next month in Alan Bennett’s play The Old Country, writes Sally Hall.

The Old Country emerged during a time rich with speculation about spies and defectors, a period marked by the notorious Cambridge Five.

First performed in 1977, starring Sir Alec Guinness, Bennett used this play to explore the emotional terrain occupied by those who abandon their homeland for political ideals: or, perhaps, for subtler, more personal reasons.

The protagonist’s situation draws echoes of Cambridge spies such as Kim Philby and Guy Burgess, who famously abandoned their country in the name of ideology, only to grapple with the consequences of their choices in alien lands.

The play is set in the remote countryside of the Soviet Union, in a bungalow that is both sanctuary and prison for Henry, a former British intelligence officer, and his wife Hilary.

The landscape serves as a metaphor for the inner landscape of the exiles: uncertain, isolated, and haunted by the echoes of a life left behind.

This production is Ann Davidson’s directorial debut with New Era, and we are delighted to welcome such an experienced director to our stage.

This is a great choice of play for us, as it is a familiar and much-loved playwright but one of his lesser-known works.

The ideas it presents, especially those which explore what our country means to us, remain relevant today, and the cast are enjoying getting to grips with the nuances of the script.

Stage manager Jane Read has ably led her team of set builders to recreate a Russian dacha in the midst of Wash Common, complete with ingenious walls of wooden slats and brickwork, soft furnishings that seem to have grown organically from the landscape and a ‘lived-in’ look to make this home-very-far-from-home seem vividly real.

Bennett’s writing is renowned for its subtlety, wit and elegance, and The Old Country is no exception. The play unfolds through conversation and character rather than action or spectacle.

The dialogue is taut and layered: tea, biscuits, anecdotes about English weather all become vehicles for deeper exploration of identity, regret and the passage of time.

This amateur production of The Old Country is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd. on behalf of Samuel French Ltd. www.concordtheatricals.co.uk

This highly acclaimed Bennett play is showing on September 11-13 and 16-20 at New Era Theatre, Andover Road, Wash Common, Newbury RG14 6NU.

Tickets are £15 each and available online from ticketsource.co.uk/new-era-players.