People spoil things; there are so many of them and the last thing one wants is them traipsing through one's house. But with the park a jungle and a bath on the billiard table, what is one to do? Dorothy wonders if an attic sale could be a solution.
After centuries a traditional family estate lies in a state of disrepair; desperately requiring financing to keep the once grand residence restored and maintained. Lady Dorothy, our world-weary, beleaguered central character, would rather sell off the contents of the house or even allow explicit films to shoot at the residence in order to save the property from the grips of the National Trust. However her rather more proper sister wholeheartedly disagrees. This central conflict enables Bennett to examine the philosophical and ethical dilemmas of restoration, in an age of rapant public consumption, with hillarious and touching results.
People premiered at the National Theatre, London, in October 2012.
“…it confirms Bennett's peculiar gift for blending the satiric and the elegiac.” **** The Guardian
“At 78, Alan Bennett has lost little of his mischievous wit and sense of the ridiculous.” **** The Telegraph