Show Plot Noises Off

Authors: Michael Frayn

Time Period: The early 1980s

Setting:

• The Dudgeon Theatre on a gloomy Saturday night in the West Country town of Goole, England.
• The backstage area of the Theatre Royal in Ashton-under-Lyne during a Wednesday matinee.
• The stage of the Playhouse in Stockton-on-Tees near the end of a grueling tour.
• Within the play-within-a-play (Nothing On): A multi-room 16th-century country house in Essex, England.

Summary: The chaotic behind-the-scenes and onstage drama of a fictional sex comedy called Nothing On during a touring production's dress rehearsal, mid-run performance, and final disastrous show.