Noël Coward’s Private Lives opens this week at Ilkley Playhouse

Private Lives opens on Thursday at Ilkley Playhouse [Photo: Russell O'Callaghan]

Ilkley Playhouse presents Noël Coward’s sparkling classic comedy Private Lives, opening this week and running from 10–19 September.

Five years after a disastrous marriage and divorce, Amanda and Elyot have both moved on—or so they think. Now honeymooning with their new spouses at a luxurious French hotel, the former couple discover, to their horror, that their suites are next door to each other.

It isn’t long before the old spark between Amanda and Elyot bursts back into life. They simply cannot live without each other—but the real question is: can they live with each other?

Written by Noël Coward and arguably his biggest hit, Private Lives was first performed in 1930, with Coward himself taking the role of Elyot. He also wrote the song Someday I’ll Find You especially for the play.

Private Lives opens on Thursday at Ilkley Playhouse [Photo: Russell O'Callaghan]

Packed with razor-sharp one-liners, romantic entanglements and brilliantly combustible chemistry, Private Lives promises an evening that is funny, intriguing and just a little bit provocative. Despite being written almost a century ago, its wit, relationships and observations on love feel remarkably modern.

This timeless comedy is at Ilkley Playhouse 10–19 September at 7:30pm and 2:30pm on Saturday 12 September

Tickets: £6–£15, available from ilkleyplayhouse.co.uk.