View source for Wanderlust (2026)

[[Image:Wanderlust.png|thumb|300px|Poster by [[Owen Thomas James]]]]

by [[Nick Payne]] 

[[Director|Directed]] by [[Owen Thomas James]] 

Performances: Tuesday 07 April  – Saturday 11 April  [[2026]], [[Old Fire Station]]


==Introduction ==

Painfully funny and brutally honest, Wanderlust peels back the curtain on modern relationships - exposing the messy, uncomfortable truths we rarely say out loud. Nick Payne's provocative comedy asks whether good intentions are enough, and what we're really willing to sacrifice for the people we love.
When was the last time you really talked about what you need? Joy and Alan have been married for approaching 25 years, but the spark has gone out. Joy's lost interest in sex. Alan hasn't. Their silence around the subject is deafening. Meanwhile, their fifteen-year-old son Tim is navigating his own anxieties about intimacy with excruciating awkwardness. And Alan's young colleague Clare is questioning whether she wants the conventional life that's expected of her. 

Fearless, funny, and deeply human, Wanderlust will make you laugh, squirm, and think twice about everything you thought you knew about intimacy.

==Preview from SLT website==
'''What drew you to directing this play?'''

The first thing that grabbed me was the dialogue. Nick Payne writes the way people actually talk – saying completely the wrong thing at the wrong moment. It’s hilarious, but it’s also painfully human. There’s a real craft to making something feel that effortless. But beyond the laughs, what really drew me in is how unflinchingly the play holds up a mirror to us. It forces you to sit with life’s more uncomfortable truths, the moments we’d rather not dwell on, and recognises that nobody in this story is wholly good or wholly terrible. Everyone is trying, and failing, and trying again. That feels very true to life.
 
It’s also just genuinely fun. People are going to have a brilliant time watching this. And for me personally, it’s unlike anything I’ve directed before, because of just how real it is. That’s been the challenge and the thrill in equal measure.
 
'''Nick Payne is a popular playwright these days - what do you think is the appeal of his writing?'''

He just gets what it means to be a human being. As I’ve said, the dialogue feels as if he’s been quietly eavesdropping on all of our awkward conversations. And this makes the heartfelt storytelling all the more relatable – the emotion always comes first. So you end up caring about the characters before you’ve even realised how clever the structure is.
 
Wanderlust was only his second ever play, and his first outing at the Royal Court, in 2010. After that came Constellations, which received several Olivier nominations. He manages to pack in so much drama into short running times, with playful ideas coming face-to-face with powerful undercurrents of emotion that are surprisingly subtle.
 
I think his greatest appeal is that his plays are about real people. And I think actors love playing his characters because even for their flaws, there’s so much to love about them.
 
'''What themes does the play explore?'''

Wanderlust is at heart about the gap between love and desire – and what it looks like when those two things fall out of step with each other. It asks what happens to intimacy inside a long marriage, and whether the things we promise each other at the start can survive the weight of time, routine, and unspoken resentment.
 
But it’s also about feeling seen. We’ve worked a lot on the characters’ objectives – and we kept coming back to the fact that everybody wants to feel wanted in some way. It also explores the terrifying vulnerability of actually asking for what you want, and the equally terrifying prospect of not being able to give it. And, woven through all of it, there’s a surprisingly tender story about two teenagers navigating the complex world of relationships for the first time. It’s nostalgic and sweet in many ways.
 
I think it strikes a chord with today, because although we live in a world that’s more saturated with images of sex than ever before, genuine intimacy feels harder to talk about than ever.
 
'''How do you work with the challenges of portraying intimate acts on stage?'''

There are quite a few scenes in this play that require real delicacy and trust, so we’ve been lucky enough to work with the incredible Megan Good as our intimacy co-ordinator. She has been an absolute gift. Her job has been to make sure the cast feel completely safe, comfortable and in control, establishing clear boundaries from day one, and then working through the choreography slowly and collaboratively like any other piece of staging.
 
We work behind closed doors for those rehearsals, we take our time, and we check in constantly. And crucially – we try to laugh about it, because nothing dissolves awkwardness faster than finding the absurdity in a situation together!
 
'''Tell us about the characters we'll meet'''

Joy (Cait Hart Dyke) and Alan (Ed Reeve) have been married for nearly 25 years. They’re still in love with each other, just not quite in the way they used to be, and they’re both making rather spectacular decisions about what to do about it. There’s Stephen (Tariq Rasheed), an old flame of Joy’s who turns up at her GP surgery with an embarrassing problem, and Clare (Charlotte Robathan), a younger colleague of Alan’s who has run away from the expectations life has put on her. Neil (Chris Cordell) is the school’s Head of IT who’s caught doing something he really shouldn’t in a classroom. And then there’s Tim (Adam Al-Janabi) and Michelle (Yasmin Monet Prince), two fifteen-year-olds who are in many ways the most clear-eyed and tender people in the entire play.
 
And while you’ll no doubt laugh, wince and root for them, you’ll probably recognise bits of yourself too – possibly in more than one of them.
 
'''It's not your first time directing, but it's your debut at SLT - how's it been for you?'''

An absolute blast, honestly. I feel incredibly lucky to have gotten to work with this talented bunch of actors. Rehearsing this play has been nothing but a joy, and all the midweek and weekend evenings have been full of laughs. I was lucky enough to be approached by Cal Beckett at the SLT launch night, and she has been a complete godsend as stage manager, fielding my endless questions about how everything works with the patience of a saint.
 
I also met Kelly Q that same evening, who signed up as assistant director without fully realising what sort of sexually-charged play she was letting herself in for! She’s been extraordinary – organised, full of ideas, and always the first person to roll up her sleeves, I’m so glad to have shared this experience with her. And then there’s Stephen Hayward, who has somehow taken my rambling, ever-changing vision for the set and turned it into something absolutely spot on.
 
And that’s just a snapshot of the help and support I’ve been given by the whole SLT community. I have been made to feel really welcome and I’m so grateful to be a part of the family now.
 
'''Describe the show in three words'''

Awkward. Sexy. Real.

==Cast ==

* Joy Richards - [[Cait Hart Dyke]]
* Alan Richards - [[Ed Reeve]]
* Stephen Moore - [[Tariq Rasheed]]
* Clare Walsh - [[Charlotte Robathan]]
* Tim Richards - [[Adam Al-janabi]]
* Michelle McCullen - [[Yasmin Monet Prince]]
* Waiter / Neil - [[Chris Cordell]]

== Crew ==
* Assistant Director - [[Kelly Q]]
* Stage Manager - [[Caroline Beckett|Cal Beckett]]
* Assistant Stage Manager - [[Sophie Garston]]
* Lighting Designer - [[James Jackson]]
* Sound Designer - [[Owen Thomas James]]
* Operator - [[Sarah Farage]]
* Set Designer - [[Stephen Hayward]]
* Costumes - [[Lorraine Spenceley]]
* Photography - [[Sophie Davies]], [[Phil Gammon]]
* Intimacy Coordinator - [[Megan Good]]
* Rigging - [[Sean Thomas]]
* Set Build - [[Alistair Simpson]], [[Sean Thomas]], [[Graham Clements]], [[Jack Long]], [[Tim Allwright]], [[Chris Purcell]], [[Nayana Wright]], [[Jess Osorio]], cast and crew

== Reviews ==

Wanderlust is a beautiful, tender and awkwardly hilarious show that the team have worked SO hard on. Please do book your tickets for the performances this week, it's a special one. 

'''Stephen Hayward'''


Have to say tonight’s performance of Wanderlust was absolutely fabulous - well done all! xxxxx

'''Christine Theophilus'''


Wanderlust is wonderful! Congratulations to all the actors and crew. Loved it.

'''Janine Wunsche'''


Wanderlust was wonderful last night - great set - fantastic acting by all - funny - engaging - thought provoking - and just a really good night out ! Well done to all involved !!

'''Lloyd Kristian'''


Wanderlust was AMAZING is all I can say. I really, really enjoyed the show throughout. Great comedy moments and incredible direction. Massive well done to all involved. I would defo recommend getting down to SLT to catch this masterpiece 

'''Saffy Andrews'''

== Gallery ==

<center>'''[http://www.photos.sltarchive.co.uk/wanderlust/ Find the full set of show photos here]'''</center>

== Reminiscences and Anecdotes ==

Members are encouraged to write about their experiences of working on or seeing this production.  Please leave your name.  Anonymous entries may be deleted.

== See Also ==
Have there been other SLT productions of this play?  Link to them here.

Or add anything that is related ''within this site''.  The author's page for instance or other plays with a similar theme.

== References ==


== External Links ==

*'''[http://www.someplace.com/thisplay This play on the web]


[[Category:Productions]]
[[Category:Old Fire Station Productions]]