Off the Ground Theatre present a modern tale of corruption, lies and stupidity. Set in Russia, it might prove more familiar than you think...

A small Russian town is trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of drunk, frequently ridiculous and constantly inept politicians who have fought and cheated their way to the top. They push propaganda, they intimidate, they threaten and control the media - all to maintain their ill-gotten positions of power.

When Ilya, a shell-shocked soldier who can no longer drink, returns home from the frontlines in Chechnya, he is hailed as a hero. Caught in the eye of a political tornado, he is pushed and pulled as the leaders of his hometown manipulate him to further their own agendas.

First performed by the RSC in 2009, this hilarious, populist play is more relevant in our current political climate than ever before. Inspired by Gogolian comedy, it cuts to the core of small-town bureaucracy, with more than toxic echoes of larger national problems.

"The Drunks is an interesting piece of theatre which has worryingly become more relevant than ever. The sense of things going on hold for the winter and people hiding from an abundance of fake news and incompetent politicians at the bottom of a vodka bottle is both frightening and darkly comical. "****
North West End

Written by Michail and Vyachislav Durnenkov.
Translated by Nina Raine.
Cast - Daniel Cambridge, Tom Martin, Kathryn McGurk, Luis Mujica, Mat Oliphant, Phil Rayner, Connor Wray.
Directed by Dan Meigh