The Alan Ayckbourn Collection

Six plays from the Olivier, Tony and Moliere Award winning playwright Alan Ayckbourn: The legendary The Norman Conquests trilogy; as well as a brand new recording of his play Henceforward... starring Mad men's Jarred Harris alongside Anne Heche; Just Between Ourselves starring Alfred Molina; and a remaster of L.A. Theatre Works' recording of Man of the Moment.

Ayckbourn's celebrated trilogy The Norman Conquests are three hilarious and poignant plays depicting the same six characters in one house over one weekend, namely Norman and his romantic follies.

Play I - Table Manners : England's famous seducer of other men's wives lays siege to his sister-in-law in the first "battle". A middle-class family trying to have a pleasant country weekend is no match for Norman, who horrifies everyone by doing exactly as he likes.

Play II - Living Together: In the second "battle" Norman gets drunk on homemade wine – and all hell breaks loose. He unleashes his merry brand of manipulative charm on the hapless guests and even his most formidable opponents go down in defeat on the drawing room rug.

Play III - Round and Round the Garden: In the third "battle" the setting is Mother's overgrown English garden, where something more troublesome than brambles lurks among the roses. Havoc ensues as this satirical masterpiece makes its way to a hilarious conclusion.

An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring: Rosalind Ayres as Sarah, Kenneth Danziger as Reg, Martin Jarvis as Norman, Jane Leeves as Annie, Christopher Neame as Tom, and Carolyn Seymour as Ruth. Directed by Dennis Erdman.

Just Between Ourselves

The first of Ayckbourn's darkly comic masterpieces involves a relentlessly cheerful handyman in a disastrously fractured marriage. Two couples develop an unlikely friendship in this painfully funny portrait of British suburban life. An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring: Gia Carides as Pam, Kenneth Danziger as Dennis, Judy Geeson as Vera, Miriam Margolyes as Marjorie and Alfred Molina as Neil. Directed by Waris Hussein.

Henceforward...

Starring Anne Heche and Jared Harris, the hilarious Henceforward... is one of Alan Ayckbourn's most unusual works. In the near-future, a composer with creative block tries to re-unite with his estranged wife and daughter, hoping their reconciliation will free his mind to create his greatest musical masterpiece. But his own erratic impulses hinder his journey to creative freedom. This recording also includes a conversation with playwright Sir Alan Ayckbourn. An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance starring Jared Harris as Jerome, Anne Heche as Nan (act 1) and Corrina, Jack Davenport as Mervyn, Paula Jane Newman as Geain, Moira Quirk as Zoe and Nan (act 2), and Darren Richardson as Lupus. Directed by Martin Jarvis.

Man of the Moment

The price of accidental fame is hashed out in this comedy about a famous bank robber and the clerk who foiled his biggest heist. Ayckbourn's 1988 play anticipates the popularity - and absurdity - of reality TV.