Five Characters in Search of a Good Night's Sleep (NHB Modern Plays)

Five insomniacs try to make it through the night. From dusk to dawn, they struggle with a crisis in their lives which they must resolve by morning. Increasingly conscious of their shortening futures and lengthening pasts, they fill their nights with distracting activities, desperate sleep techniques, evaluations of their lives, delusions, fears, panics and utter foolishness as they prepare to face the day. Five Characters in Search of a Good Night's Sleep was first performed by ViSiBLE Theatre Ensemble at Southwark Playhouse, London, in 2022, in a production directed by Mike Alfreds. It was devised and written by Mike Alfreds with Sonja Linden and members of the company. ViSiBLE is a theatre company dedicated to creating performance work that throws fresh perspectives on later life and living longer. A key aspect of its identity is creating work collaboratively, drawing on the creativity and talent of Britain's huge wealth of experienced older actors. 'A masterclass in monologue... an interesting piece of theatre that encourages you to consider the torment of insomnia' - Upper Circle 'The writing is beautifully candid... it's refreshing to see older characters portrayed in a multi-faceted way that explores existentialism and humanity rather than stereotyping and defining them by their age' - North West End UK 'A great example of storytelling, with five sound monologues' - London Theatre Reviews

Mike Alfreds has been directing plays for more than fifty years. In the 1970s he founded Shared Experience, and has since worked for the National Theatre, Shakespeare's Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company and also extensively abroad. He is hugely respected within the profession.