Celebrating our Talking Heads tour

We would like to take a moment to say a huge thank you to everyone who joined us on our Talking Heads tour, supported us, and helped make it such a success. From intimate venues to larger theatres, we’ve been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm, and wonderful feedback we’ve received from audiences around the country.

It has been a privilege to take Alan Bennett’s iconic monologues on the road and share the thought-provoking and emotional stories within ‘A Lady of Letters’ and ‘Soldiering On’.  These pieces may have been written forty years ago, but they continue to resonate deeply with many today and remain just as relevant now as when they were first performed.

For our two brilliant actors, Sue Whyte and Caroline Mann, bringing these characters to life has been a joy. Standing alone on stage, captivating an audience for an hour with nothing but words and emotion is incredibly powerful. Their dedication and passion for storytelling has shone through every performance, and audiences have felt that emotion and connection every night.

Here are just a few of the wonderful reviews:

“What a fantastic evening. Brilliant writing and acting. Really enjoyed it.”

“It was excellent. I remember watching the original TV versions in the 1980s. Brought back memories. Such a great playwright and such excellent performances.”

“That was amazing. Beautiful performances.”

“Fabulous! So funny, sad and poignant.”

“What a wonderful evening. So glad I came. Fantastic performances.”

“Absolutely brilliant. The two actors did Alan Bennett proud.”

“So good. Please come back to our theatre soon.”

“I can’t thank you enough for bringing this to our theatre. What a wonderful evening.”

Sophie Francis from Daily Info Oxford said the “it was the acting that took centre stage, and with Bennett’s eloquent and poignantly comic writing, both performances were impeccably rendered.” Read the full review.

Amanda Burden from Elementary Whatson said: “Stepping into the shoes of Routledge is no mean feat, but Caroline Mann, steps up to the challenge with aplomb, bringing lonely spinster Irene Ruddock to life adeptly."  And “Mann and Whyte command the stage alone for just short of an hour, never missing a line.”
Read the full review. 

Nigel Minchin from St Albans Life said: “an enjoyable and entertaining night out”. Read the full review. 

The aim of our tour has been to share professional theatre with everyone, wherever they live. We believe high-quality theatre should be accessible and affordable. Everyone needs to see a piece of themselves on stage and hear the stories that are important and resonate with them. Local theatre matters.

It’s also a reminder of how vital it is that small theatre companies are seen, supported, and given the opportunity to share their work. As an industry, we thrive on diversity and smaller companies, like The Play’s The Thing, play a huge role in keeping that diversity and creativity going.

Unfortunately, opportunities and platforms for telling these stories in and around our city are incredibly hard to find. As we’ve said before, we need spaces where artists can have a voice, perform and connect with audiences who might not otherwise have access to theatre and the arts. We find touring is our way of being able to do this.

We’re proud of what we’ve achieved on our Talking Heads tour, the audiences we’ve reached and the conversations we’ve sparked. We can’t wait to do it all again!

Thank you for joining us on this journey.