Idyll (NHB Modern Plays)

Tempers are fraying in the scorching heat as a rural village is overwhelmed by noise, cars and day trippers... Scratch the surface and you'll find danger bubbling away. Matt Hartley's captivating short play Idyll was first presented as an open-air production by Pentabus Theatre Company in 2021. 'A compelling rural portrait put across with vigour' - Guardian

Matt Hartley grew up in the Peak District and studied drama at the University of Hull. His first play Sixty Five Miles won a Bruntwood Award in the inaugural Bruntwood Competition and was produced by Paines Plough/Hull Truck in 2012. Other work for theatre includes: The Wife of Cyncoed (Sherman Theatre, Cardiff, 2024); Idyll (Pentabus Theatre tour, 2021); Eyam (Shakespeare's Globe, 2018); Here I Belong (Pentabus tour, 2016); Deposit (Hampstead Theatre Downstairs, 2015); Microcosm (Soho Theatre, 2014); Horizon (National Theatre Connections, 2014); The Bee (Edinburgh Festival, 2008); Punch (Hampstead/Heat and Light Company); and Epic, Trolls and Life for Beginners (all at Theatre503, London). He has written for TV's Hollyoaks and his radio plays include The Pursuit and Final Call.