There's gossip going around that we're all like him. That we're all paper thin, that it's all been painted over, and each one of us is gonna sit down one day and not be able to stand up, like we've disappeared to ourselves. Harrogate tells the story of a father struggling to confront his obsessions head-on without destroying his family. It is a play about how we perform versions of ourselves depending on what company we keep, and how we project onto others versions of the people we want to see, rather than accepting who stands in front of us. The play is a triptych about obsession, repression and lust. It received its world premiere on the 11 September 2015 as part of the HighTide Theatre Festival and this edition has been published for its subsequent production in October 2016.

Harrogate tells the story of a father struggling to confront his obsessions head-on without destroying his family.

About the Author
Al Smith's theatre includes Enola (Underbelly, 2005), Radio (Soho / 59E59 NYC, 2006/7), The Astronaut Wives Club (Soho, 2006), The Bird (Underbelly / Arcola, 2008), Gold & Popcorn and Black & White (NYTRep, 2012), Harrogate (HighTide, 2015) and Diary of a Madman (Gate/Traverse, 2016). He has been Pearson Playwright in Residence at the Finborough Theatre and a participant of the Paines Plough Future Perfect scheme.

Reviews
Harrogate plays games with its audience, setting up and then confounding our expectations ... Smith's writing is punchy, sometimes bruising * Financial Times *
[A] knife-like piece of writing * Stage on "Harrogate" *
Smith's skill is in sidling up to a taboo and staying just the right side of it ... A slippery, unpinnable piece: a triptych full of uncanny echoes and reverb * Whatsonstage on "Harrogate" *



Book Information
ISBN 9781350028081
Author Al Smith
Format Paperback
Page Count 112
Imprint Methuen Drama
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 100g