Inspired by the real life and works of Charles Bukowski, a dramatic compilation of six short plays spanning 1950s-1970s USA.
Ordinary Madness is about the beauty in the dirt, the extraordinary in the mundane, the hard shell with the soft centre, about that bluebird in our soul that wants to get out.
Inspired by the works and life of post-war American poet and novelist Charles Bukowski, Ordinary Madness digs into the depravity of urban life and American society in the 1950s-1970s. Drawing from Bukowski’s focus on working-class life and telling the stories of the “insignificant people”, through six interconnected short stories, Art Theatre London explore themes of superficial society, crime, failing healthcare and loneliness in a big city.
Performed by a cast of five multi-rolling actors and accompanied by a 1950s-1970s soundtrack, each story captures the dark humour, provocative energy and sexual imagery of Bukowski’s prose with a satirical contemporary twist. Drawing parallels with modern-day London, Ordinary Madness paints a picture the lives of working-class people in post-war American society.
Director Anya Viller said, “Full of cynicism, irony and humour, the performance suggests that we are all just people in the end. Being weak but pretending to be strong is generally very human. And these insignificant characters, in a sense, oppose the "American Dream" and our modern obsession with success. Because...it’s okay to be an ordinary person. Everyone has the right to cut themselves while shaving.”
Cast
Victoria Valcheva, Andrew Buzzeo, Francesca Wilson Waterworth, James Viller, Amy Leeson
★★★★★ “Theatre done brilliantly” - London Theatre 1
★★★★★ “Played with wit and verve by an exceptionally talented cast” - Audience Club
Listings
8 Feb – 9 March 2025
Riverside Studios, 101 Queen Caroline St, London W6 9BN
Times: Tues – Fri - 7:45pm & Sun - 5pm
Prices: £15 - £40
Tickets: www.riversidestudios.co.uk