Queen's Theatre Hornchurch to Stage Joe Orton's LOOT This February

A darkly funny biting satire of the Roman Catholic Church, social attitudes to death, and the integrity of the police force, Loot follows young thieves Dennis and Hal, who rob the bank next door to the funeral parlour where Dennis works and hide the stolen money in Hal's mother's coffin. When Inspector Truscott arrives to investigate, the pair do everything they can to throw him off the trail aided by Nurse McMahon and Hal's long-suffering father, Mr McLeavy. What follows is a whirlwind of cover-ups, escalating confusion, and brazen audacity, filled with razor-sharp dialogue, physical farce, and increasingly outrageous twists that spiral into the absurd as everyone scrambles to stay one step ahead.

Loot premiered in 1965, starring legendary actors Geraldine McEwan, Kenneth Williams, Ian McShane, and Duncan Macrae directed by Peter Wood. Initial reception was mixed, but after significant rewrites and the restoration of much of the original text that had been cut by censors, the play's fortunes changed. Two revivals the following year, in Manchester and London, transformed its reception, and Loot went on to win Best Play of 1966 at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards. The play is now considered a modern classic and one of the most significant British plays of the 20th century. Loot marks director Bethany Pitts' first opportunity to lead work on a mid-scale stage, reflecting Queen's Theatre Hornchurch's continued investment in nurturing and sustaining creative talent.

Director Bethany Pitts said, “In a world where truth is a commodity, Orton's darkly comic vision of humanity and Loot's themes of police corruption, hypocrisy and greed hit home anew today. Orton reinvented farce to go beyond light entertainment and to truly hold a mirror up to the dark underbelly of our society. I'm thrilled to be directing this production in 2026, and to bring his unique brand of anarchic and painfully funny humour to QTH.''

Joe Orton (1933 – 1967) was born John Kingsley Orton in Leicester and from the age of two, lived on the Saffron Lane council estate. Between 1964 and 1967, Joe Orton contributed to an exciting working-class culture that swept through the nation.His first stage play, Entertaining Mr Sloane, was a huge success while his second, Loot, won the coveted Evening Standard award for Best Play. Next year will be the 60th anniversary of his death. 

Bethany Pitts is an award-winning director and dramaturg, specialising in new, contemporary political work and revisions of classical texts. She trained on The National Theatre Studio Directors Course and as the Resident Assistant Director at Theatre Royal Plymouth and Theatre 503. She is an Associate Director of the new writing company Polaroid Theatre and has read scripts extensively, including for the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting and Papatango. Her recent credits include: Sylvia (English Theatre Frankfurt), The Misandrist (Arcola Theatre) and A Different Class (Queen's Theatre Hornchurch). She is currently developing an adaptation of Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf with the writer Maud Dromgoole under the mentorship of Katie Mitchell.