Palace of the End at Manchester’s Roya Exchange tackles horror of the Iraq war

Jan 25 2009 by Michael Green, Chester Chronicle

A HARD-hitting new play which exposes the ugly truth behind the headlines of the current war in Iraq receives its British premiere in The Studio at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre next month.

Palace of the End is a remarkable triptych of monologues by award-winning Canadian playwright Judith Thompson and can be seen from February 4-21.

The play is heard from three very different perspectives - including a female American soldier facing court-martial for torture and prisoner abuse, a British former UN Weapons Inspector exposed as a source for the BBC and an Iraqi mother and political leader who suffered the greatest loss imaginable at the hands of Saddam Hussein.

The production is directed by Royal Exchange artistic director Greg Hersov, whose many previous RET credits include The Tempest with Pete Postlethwaite.

Hersov said: “Palace of the End is about the Iraq War and its effect on three individuals. All three characters are created from real (and in some cases well known!) people. This is the first play that I’ve read that dramatises and illuminates this crucial event in our recent history. It is an astonishingly powerful piece of writing that will stay with you for a long time.”

Judith Thompson is a award-winning Canadian playwright who lives in Toronto and was last at the Royal Exchange in 2002 with Habitat.

For booking details, ring the box office on 0161 833 9833 or visit royalexchange.co.uk/bookonline.