THE ODD COUPLE

Wed 27 - Sat 30 May 1998 at 7.45pm
Studio Theatre, Northampton College, Booth Lane, Northampton

Photo gallery

The most successful American playwright of his era, Neil Simon was born in the Bronx on 4 July, 1927, and educated at New York University.

Early in his career, he was a radio and television scriptwriter, then turning to the stage by writing his first full-length Broadway show Come Blow Your Horn, in 1961. He is the only playwright in history to have four plays running simultaneously on Broadway.

Simon, a shrewd observer of human foibles and a master of the surprise one-line joke, often makes remarkably effective comedies out of potentially unpleasant themes. Much of his success depends on these qualities, since his plays rarely offer major plot twists. Which brings us to tonight...

Most of you will be familiar with the 1968 film starring Jack Lemmon & Walter Matthau. Simon rewrote the script in 1986, changing the men's roles to women's. Instead of meeting for the weekly poker game, the ladies play Trivial Pursuit. It is about two very different women attempting to live together for companionship. This is a story about friendship.