★★★★★ - Buzz
Posted on 17 September 2019
"There are twists and turns – some literal gasp out loud moments – and it is wonderfully unpredictable."
Box office: 020 7978 7040
The Other Room in association with Theatre503
Running Time: (1hr 35mins)
High above New York City, the super-rich wine and dine in sky-line restaurants dreaming of bigger and better cities. In a military bunker deep in the heart of an American wasteland, the poor compete for food and preferment in a programme with more than sinister ends. What happens when the rift between haves and the have-nots becomes unassailable?
Matthew Bulgo returns to The Other Room once again with this intellectual thriller. Directed by one of Wales’ most established directors, Sara Lloyd, American Nightmare dissects the battle lines that exist within the eponymous ‘American Dream’.
THE VIOLENCE SERIES is a trio of dystopian dramas – written by Matthew Bulgo, Tess Berry-Hart and Mari Izzard – set in a world that is familiar but on fire. Commissioned and produced by The Other Room for their Autumn 2019 season, each play explores the themes that divide us and asks profound questions about the darker side of humanity. When does an act become violent? Should we really fight fire with fire? And how far would you go to avoid it?
Matthew Bulgo
Matthew Bulgo trained at LAMDA and works as an actor, playwright, dramaturg and tutor.
Credits as a playwright include: #YOLO (National Theatre, NT Connections); Constellation Street (The Other Room); Last Christmas (Dirty Protest/Theatr Clwyd) which transferred to the Edinburgh Fringe, Soho Theatre and the Traverse Theatre; The Awkward Years (The Other Room/Chapter); A Night in The Clink (Papertrail/Sherman Theatre); The Knowledge (Dirty Protest/Royal Court, ‘Surprise Theatre’ Season); My Father’s Hands (Paines Plough, Come To Where I’m From); Lacuna (Three Streets Productions, New Wimbledon Studio); Real Human Being (Taking Flight Theatre).
He was the recipient of the Best Playwright award at the Wales Theatre Awards 2015 for his debut play Last Christmas and received the accolade again in 2017 for Constellation Street which also picked up the award for Best Production. He is an Associate Director of Dirty Protest.
"There are twists and turns – some literal gasp out loud moments – and it is wonderfully unpredictable."
"Bulgo uses allegorical tales to convey the mental landscapes of his protagonists"
"engaging and intense"
"...like a film thriller"
"the Other Room keeps confirming itself as a home for thought-provoking theatre"
"...ninety absorbing minutes."
“If this is an example of the quality of the productions in the series, we are in for some exciting theatre”
