MOTHER OF HIM Closes July 4 at the Courtyard Theatre

The Courtyard Theatre presents the British premiere of Mother of Him by Evan Placey and directed by Guy Retallack. Winner of both the King's Cross Award for New Playwriting in the UK and Canada's Under 30 National Playwriting Award, Mother of Him, by Evan Placey, will get its British premiere, in a production, directed by Guy Retallack, at the Courtyard Theatre from Wednesday 2 June to Sunday 4 July.

It's a snowy December morning like any other in Toronto, Canada, as Brenda Kapowitz sends her 8 year-old son Jason off to school, while her teenage son Matthew remains asleep upstairs. Soon she'll begin lighting candles for the 8 nights of Hanukkah. You'd think Brenda was like any other mother. But in 8 days Matthew will be sentenced for three terrible crimes. In 5 days the judge will decide whether to accept or reject Brenda's application that her son be sentenced as a child. And today Brenda's face is splashed across the cover of every newspaper. As the press are camped outside, Matthew is under house arrest, and it's the laws that form inside the house that matter most. Boys can become men. And a mother can at once become victim and monster. She could be any mother. But she's not. She's his.

Mother of Him is about how far our love for our children can go, and at what cost to ourselves.

The cast is headed by Madeleine Potter as Brenda with Tom Golding as Matthew, with Dale Rapley, Will Byrne, Gideo Leibowitz, Chris Gilling and Jennifer Thompson.

Evan Placey (writer) graduated with an MA Distinction in Writing for Stage and Broadcast Media from the Central School of Speech and Drama. He was a member of the Young Writers Programme at The Royal Court Theatre, and was invited into their Invitation Writers Group. He was also invited onto the advanced playwrights' group run by Stephen Jeffreys at RADA. His comedy, "Dinner on the 14th Floor" was part of the International Reading Series at Harbourfront Centre for the Arts, Toronto, and was produced in Seoul, South Korea in 2007. His play, "Snow Falls On The Oublie Trees" was shortlisted for Metamorphosis08 at the Churchill Theatre. "Rainbowbright23" was performed during Rough Cuts at The Royal Court Theatre, directed by Lyndsey Turner.

Guy Retallack (director) was assistant director to Max Stafford Clark on four productions for Out of Joint, including "Shopping & F***ing" by Mark Ravenhill. Guy directed Eddie Marsan in "Richard III" firstly at the NT Studio, and subsequently for Wild Thyme in London and Germany. Other notable productions include Jane Austen's "Emma" (Tricyle Theatre), starring Doon Mackichan, "Faster" for Filter Theatre, "The Secret Rapture" starring Jenny Seagrove (Lyric Theatre), "The Lifeblood" by Glynn Maxwell, which won "Best Play" 2004 for The British Theatre Guide, and was a finalist for the Peter Brook Empty Space Award, and The Who's "Tommy", which was nominated for Best Musical by Manchester Evening News in 2005. In 2007 Guy directed the highly acclaimed "Future Me" by Stephen Brown (Theatre503), and "Liberty" by Glyn Maxwell at Shakespeare's Globe. In 2009 BBC Radio 3 presented Glynn Maxwell's adaptation of "The Gambler" by Dostoevsky, starring Patricia Routledge.

Courtyard Theatre
Main House
Bowling Green Walk
40 Pitfield Street
London
N1 6EU

www.thecourtyard.org.uk

Box Office:
0844 477 1000
www.ticketweb.co.uk

Nearest Tube:
Old?Street

Wednesday 2 June - Sunday 4 July

Tue - Sun at 7.45pm

Press night Thursday June 3
at 7.45pm

Tickets: £16.00
(£12.00 concessions)