Welcome to the small hours at George and Martha’s – the alcohol is flowing, the gloves are off, and the games are just getting started.

Edward Albee’s multi award-winning play Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a wild, gripping and darkly funny exploration of the lies we tell to protect ourselves.

Disillusioned university professor George and his wife Martha invite an unwitting younger couple, Nick and Honey, into their home. It’s not long before things spiral, dragging everyone into the heart of a tempestuous relationship. What starts as a spur of the moment nightcap turns into a psychological showdown.

Edward Albee’s masterpiece of raw intensity and searing insight is directed by Oxford Playhouse Artistic Director Mike Tweddle. Don’t miss one of the most explosive nights in modern theatre.

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Oxford Playhouse marks its return to producing with a stylistically inventive main stage production of Edward Albee’s fast-paced, bitingly funny and emotionally devastating Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The first production directed by Artistic Director, Mike Tweddle, this revival celebrates the play’s return to the Oxford Playhouse stage after 25 years. Set in a fictional New England academic town, Albee’s searing drama finds a resonant home in Oxford.

The production stars award-winning actor and RSC Associate Artist Katy Stephens (The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, And Then There Were None, Titus Andronicus), who plays Martha for the first time in her career, opposite Matthew Pidgeon as George, the disillusioned associate professor of history. Pidgeon’s extensive stage career includes Stranger Things: The First Shadow and Wolf Hall.

Martha, the daughter of the college president where George teaches, invites a young couple, Honey and Nick, back to their home after a faculty party, unwittingly drawing them into a night of psychological games, secrets, and emotional unravelling. Honey is played by Leah Haile (The Winter’s Tale, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child ), with Nick portrayed by Ben Hall (The Day of the Jackal, Henry VI: Rebellion / Wars of the Roses).

The set and costumes will be designed by award-winning designer Liz Ascroft, whose career spans over 40 years and includes credits The Homecoming and Only Fools and Horses: The Musical. Lighting Design is by Ashley Bale and Will Hayman, and the Sound Designer and Composer is Max Pappenheim. It will be the first Oxford Playhouse production directed by the Artistic Director of Oxford Playhouse, appointed in 2023, Mike Tweddle.

‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ is at Oxford Playhouse from Friday, 20 February until Saturday, 7 March.

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Date and Time: On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 19:00 – Sat, 07 Mar 2026 22:00

Venue details: Oxford Playhouse, 11-12 Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, OX1 2LW, United Kingdom

Category: Arts | Performing Arts | Theatre

Price:
Tickets start from: GBP 15.00

Artists: Katy Stephens, Matthew Pidgeon, Leah Haile, Ben Hall

£15