The Rivals

About the show

Robert Bathurst and Patricia Hodge star in the most famous play set in Bath, as The Rivals celebrates its 250th anniversary in a sparkling revival!

Bath in the Roaring Twenties: risque? revelry, romance, and rivalry in the Assembly Rooms – a town torn between tradition and the new age.

Lydia and Jack are made for each other – but Lydia’s a rebel and Jack’s too posh to be her beau. What’s a chap to do? A little harmless deception, of course.

Meanwhile, Jack’s father, Sir Anthony Absolute, is absolutely determined to be obeyed, and Lydia’s guardian Mrs Malaprop, one of the greatest comic creations in British theatre, is seeking a love affair of her own – if only she could find the right words...

Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s sparkling satire of love and language has lost none of its bite and brilliance. Orange Tree Artistic Director Tom Littler gives this 250th anniversary revival a jazzy new production: a sumptuous treat to chase away the winter cold.