The Arsonists

By Max Frisch

The Arsonists Top / Details / The Company
Sat 01 Sep 2007

SWITZERLAND

Fires are becoming something of a problem. But Biedermann has it all under control. A respected member of the community with a loving wife and a flourishing business, surely nothing can get to him. The great philanthrope, he is happy to meet his civic duty and give shelter to two new houseguests, and when they start filling the attic with petrol drums, he’ll help them wire the fuse.

Frisch’s parable about accommodating the very thing that will destroy you is given its first major UK revival since its Royal Court premiere in 1961, which was directed by Lindsay Anderson with Alfred Marks and John Thaw in the cast.

The Arsonists, directed by Ramin Gray, is performed in repertoire with Eugene Ionesco’s Rhinoceros, which is directed by Dominic Cooke, and features largely the same cast.

Director –Ramin Gray

Designer- Anthony Ward

Lighting- Johanna Town

Sound- Christopher Shutt

Cast- Zawe Ashton, Michael Begley, Paul Chahidi, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacqueline Defferary, David Hinton, Will Keen, Munir Khairdin, Claire Prempeh, Alwynne Taylor, Graham Turner

 

"Beautifully performed and inexhaustibly provocative in the best possible way."

What's on Stage

"Ramin Gray...has ensured that Frisch feels topical and provocative."

The Time

"Keen plays [Biedermann] brilliantly."

Guardian

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