''South Downs'' is a 2011 play by the British playwright and author

David Hare David Hare may refer to: *David Hare (philanthropist) (1775–1842), Scottish philanthropist *David Hare (artist) (1917–1992), American sculptor and photographer *David Hare (playwright) (born 1947), English playwright and theatre and film direc ...

. It is set in 1962 in a public school, similar to Hare's own school, Lancing, in the

South Downs The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the east. ...

. It is a response to

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...

's 1948 play '' The Browning Version'' and was commissioned by Rattigan's estate to mark Rattigan's Centenary. It premiered alongside a revival of Rattigan's ''The Browning Version'' from 2 September to 8 October 2011 at the

Minerva Theatre, Chichester The Minerva Theatre is a studio theatre seating, at full capacity, 310. It is run as part of the adjacent Chichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, and was opened in 1989.Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya John Hidalgo Moya (5 May 1920 – 3 August 1994), ...

). The two plays were directed separately by

Jeremy Herrin Jeremy Herrin is an English theatre director. He is the artistic director of Headlong Theatre. Career Having trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, Herrin was an assistant director ...

(South Downs) and Angus Jackson (The Browning Version). The plays re-opened after a sell-out run at Chichester, at the

Harold Pinter Theatre The Harold Pinter Theatre, known as the Comedy Theatre until 2011,

, London, on 24 April 2012 for three-months. A radio version was produced for

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

, broadcast on 1 September 2012. It was also directed by Jeremy Herrin, produced by Catherine Bailey, and performed by the original cast members.

Roles

References

External links

Reviews and awards

2011, Chichester, Minerva Theatre
''The Telegraph'' Review
Four Stars
''Guardian'' Review
Four Stars
''The Times'' Review
Four Stars
''Evening Standard'' Review
Four Stars

Four Stars 2012, London, The Harold Pinter Theatre
Full list of reviews

*[http://www.whatsonstage.com/news/theatre/london/E8831354809194/Shortlists+revealed+for+2013+Whatsonstage.com+Awards,+voting+opens.html Alex Lawther nominated for London Newcomer of the Year by the What'sOnStage Awards 2012] Plays by David Hare 2011 plays Plays set in England Plays based on other plays Adaptations of works by Terence Rattigan {{2010s-play-stub