FOLLOWING the national and international success of the Ayckbourn Ensemble, the Stephen Joseph Theatre Company returns to Bath with Alan Ayckbourn’s brand new play Roundelay this February.

Alan Ayckbourn’s 78th play once again provides theatre which is both thought-provoking and thoroughly entertaining. Roundelay is a total of five interconnected scenes: The Agent, The Judge, The Novelist, The Politician and The Star. Written to be played in no particular order, four will be randomly selected by the audience prior to the performance. Some of the scenes are connected through shared characters, some through overlapping narrative. Which will you see? There are 120 possible combinations and no-one, including the actors, will know until 25 minutes before the play begins, when the sequence for the next performance will be determined by a draw at the Theatre Royal.

Alan Ayckbourn says: “The over-riding theme is memory - what we choose to remember and to forget, false memories, personal histories we distort, the pasts we invent, memories that age takes away from us, long-forgotten memories which time restores to us, memories of the same events the details of which no two people ever quite share.

“The plays are all related. Some are sequels to others which turn out to be preludes to others. Each performance will unfold differently in this unique adventure in live theatre. Which order will you see? Nobody knows for certain, least of all us!”

Roundelay appears at the Theatre Royal Bath from Monday, February 2 to Saturday, February 7. Visit www.theatreroyal.org.uk for tickets and more information.