Classic TV series The Twilight Zone was brought to life on stage in a wickedly surreal adaptation of Rod Serling's weird and wonderful stories premiered at the Almeida Theatre, with tickets selling out. It has transferred to the West End at the Ambassadors Theatre, with tickets on sale now.
Adapted by Anne Washburn, the play interweaves several Twilight Zone stories together into one flowing piece. Washburn picks some of the series' most memorable episodes, which were all standalone stories exploring science, technology and the human experience.
First aired in 1959, The Twilight Zone ran on CBS for 15 years and is one of the most influential American TV shows ever. Inspiring the likes of Black Mirror, and being referenced in almost every major television series of the 21st century, each episode The Twilight Zone would provide a watercooler moment, with moral questions raised at the end of each edition.
Washburn's stage adaptation of The Twilight Zone weaved multiple stories together, requiring her and director Richard Jones to watch all 156 episodes before deciding to include some major episodes, along with a few obscure storylines.
This production is the first stage adaptation of the series, and uses stage trickery and magic to pull off some impressive, mind-bending stunts live onstage.
Following previews, the play first opened at the Almeida Theatre on 12th December 2017 with a cast that included Lizzy Connolly, Amy Griffiths and Matthew Needham. Tickets for the production sold well, with many performances in the run sold-out.
The Twilight Zone tickets are now on sale.
The Twilight Zone reviews
"A fitting homage to Serling, a master of the weird and wonderful" Will Longman, LondonTheatre.co.uk
"It will delight fans of the original and welcome in newcomers too, which is no mean feat. I am no sci-fi aficionado, but I relished it." Fiona Mountford, Evening Standard
"Jones creates a whirling paranormal kaleidoscope with the aid of a first-rate team. Paul Steinberg's black-and-white design is built around the rotating symbols, doors and scientific formulae that prefaced the TV series." Michael Billington, the Guardian
"Anne Washburn's stage version of the iconic 1959 sci-fi show is a glorious exercise in kitsch with a few smart lessons about the present" Andrzej Lukowski, Time Out
"Washburn has created a mash-up of eight of the original transmissions (based on stories by Rod Serling, Charles Beaumont and Richard Matheson), the strands disconcertingly interwoven in ways that increase the tension and sense of foreboding." Paul Taylor, the Independent
Top Twilight Zone episodes
If you're new to The Twilight Zone, or need to refresh your memory on some of the most memorable episodes, here's a video of the top 10 Twilight Zone moments.
The Twilight Zone 2019 reboot
A reboot of The Twilight Zone is set to premiere on CBS in 2019 developed by Get Out writer and Oscar winner Jordan Peele.
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By: Anne Washburn Director: Richard Jones Cast list: Oliver Alvin-Wilson, Alisha Bailey, Natasha J Barnes, Adrianna Bertola, Neil Haigh, Nicholas Karimi, Dan Crossley, Dyfan Dwyfor, Lauren O’Neill and Matthew Steer
The West End is already full of stage versions of films, with Waitress and 9 to 5 newly added to the musicals roster and All About Eve to the one for plays. Now the back TV catalogue is being plundered too, with Only Fools and Horses recently turned into a musical and now a transfer for the Almeida's 2017 stage version of The Twilight Zone. The original series aired between 1959 and 1964, with subsequent revivals following in the mid-eighties and then early noughties, with yet another series now...
