OLEANNA

by Mamet, David

Rights currently withdrawn in the UK

Mamet’s scathing investigation of ‘political correctness’ at a time of moral uncertainty has provoked audiences worldwide in one of the most exciting and important new plays for many years. When a college student files a sexual harassment claim against her professor, both of their lives will never be the same again. In three scenes, we witness the first encounter which leads to the charge, and a subsequent meeting between the two once the charge has been filed when they go over the events from the first — everything seems to be twisted one way, then another — until the failure of the professor to get his student to retract her charge escalates everything to a new and more dangerous level for both. The third meeting, against the advice of their respective counsels, finds both desperately struggling to achieve their own aims and reaches a violent climax which leaves both professor and student physically and emotional devastated. ‘Mamet sends a wrecking ball smack into the face of political correctness, an enthralling, emotionally-charged battle of the sexes that reaches a heart-pounding climax and raises questions about power, privilege, exploitation and the educational process. Riveting.’ — Sunday Express.