Written by Dennis Kelly Date premiered 9 August 2009 First performance 9 August 2009 Original language English language | Characters Helen
Danny
Liam
Shane Genre Drama Playwright Dennis Kelly | |
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Place premiered Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh Similar Dennis Kelly plays, Dramas | ||
orphans by dennis kelly trailer
Orphans is a 2009 play by London playwright Dennis Kelly, an exploration of violence in urban areas. Kelly said “I always want my plays to have tension; whether the audience hates it or loves it is up to them, but I never want them to be bored.”
Contents
Nim orphans
Synopsis
Helen and her husband Danny are celebrating the news that Helen is newly pregnant with their second child with a quiet night in, but it is interrupted by Helen's brother Liam, who arrives covered in blood claiming to have found a young lad injured on the street. When Liam's recollection of the event begins to change under questioning, suspicions are aroused followed by increasing concern that he may have been more involved than first thought. Liam and Helen explains the events stage by stage causing him to accidentally reveal that Danny and Helen had a twisted sexual affair for years without anyone knowing. The play ends with Danny and Helen having sex on stage.
Characters
Stage Productions
Roxana Silbert directed the first production of this play, which premiered at the Traverse Theatre Edinburgh in August 2009, followed by a short run at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre in September, and finally the Soho Theatre London in October. The production starred Claire-Louise Cordwell as Helen, Jonathan McGuinness as Danny and Joe Armstrong as Liam. The play won a Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and received numerous favourable reviews.