That Face
That Face is a two-act play by British playwright Polly Stenham, first performed in 2007, that examines the dysfunction within an affluent family grappling with addiction, emotional neglect, and reversed parent-child roles.[1] The story centers on teenage siblings Mia and Henry, who navigate their mother Martha's alcoholism and dependency, culminating in a crisis triggered by a school incident that draws in their estranged father.[2] Written when Stenham was just 19 as part of the Royal Court Theatre's Young Writers Programme, the play premiered at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, Royal Court, London, on 20 April 2007, directed by Jeremy Herrin.[3] It transferred to the West End's Duke of York's Theatre in May 2008 for a limited run, featuring a notable cast including Lindsay Duncan as Martha, Matt Smith as Henry, and Hannah Murray as Mia.[3] The production earned critical acclaim for its raw intensity and Stenham's debut prowess, winning the Evening Standard Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright, the Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright, and the TMA Award for Best Play, while receiving a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play.[3] Subsequent productions include a 2010 mounting by the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York City and a 2023 revival at the Orange Tree Theatre in London, directed by Josh Seymour, which highlighted the play's enduring relevance in portraying familial bonds strained by loneliness and misplaced affection.[1] Themes of codependency and the psychological toll of parental failure underscore the work's visceral exploration of upper-class fragility, making it a seminal piece in contemporary British drama.[2]Background and development
Conception and writing
Polly Stenham began writing That Face at the age of 19 in 2005, while enrolled in the Royal Court Theatre's Young Writers Programme as a student at University College London.[4] She drew inspiration from her observations of upper-middle-class British family dynamics, including dysfunction, privilege, and the stigma surrounding mental illness, shaped by her own experiences of parental separation at age 13 and being raised primarily by her father.[5][6] Although the play explores themes of addiction and emotional turmoil within a wealthy household, Stenham has emphasized that it is not directly autobiographical, instead reflecting broader patterns she witnessed rather than specific personal events.[5] Stenham completed the script in 2006, shortly before her father's death, to whom the play is dedicated, and submitted it as part of the Young Writers Programme, leading to its selection for further development.[4][3] The work was influenced by dark family dramas she attended with her father, such as Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, which informed character dynamics like the alcoholic matriarch, as well as her encounters with school bullying and hazing.[5] To prioritize the project, she dropped out of university that year.[4] The play underwent initial workshopping through the Royal Court's programme under artistic director Dominic Cooke, who nurtured its expansion from a competition entry into a full production.[5] This development process culminated in rehearsals directed by Jeremy Herrin, who guided the script toward its premiere at the Royal Court in 2007.[4]Initial reception and awards context
That Face premiered on 20 April 2007 at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Upstairs in London, directed by Jeremy Herrin.[1] The original cast featured Lindsay Duncan as the alcoholic mother Martha, Matt Smith as her son Henry, Felicity Jones as Mia, alongside Abigail Hood as Alice, Catherine Steadman as Izzy, and Julian Wadham as Hugh.[7] The production, developed through the Royal Court's Young Writers Programme, ran until 19 May 2007 in the intimate upstairs space, marking the debut of 20-year-old playwright Polly Stenham.[7] Following its success at the Royal Court, That Face transferred to the West End's Duke of York's Theatre, with previews beginning 1 May 2008 and the official opening on 9 May 2008.[8] The move preserved much of the original cast, including Duncan and Smith, while introducing Hannah Murray, who replaced Felicity Jones as Mia in her professional stage debut.[3] This transfer solidified the play's early momentum, extending its run and broadening its audience reach beyond experimental theatre circles.[9] The premiere earned Stenham immediate acclaim, including the Evening Standard's Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright in 2007, recognizing her as a bold new voice in British drama.[10] In 2008, she received the Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright, further affirming That Face as a landmark debut that showcased her prodigious talent for exploring dysfunctional family dynamics with raw intensity.[11] These early honors positioned Stenham alongside other young British playwrights who had similarly disrupted the stage at tender ages, establishing her reputation as a prodigy capable of mature, emotionally charged storytelling.[12]Plot
That Face is structured in two acts. The play opens at Mia's boarding school, where she and her friend Izzy haze a younger student named Alice by forcing her to drink alcohol and take valium pills stolen from Mia's mother, Martha. Alice overdoses and is hospitalized, leading to Mia's suspension and the involvement of school authorities.[1][13] At the family's luxurious but decaying London home, Martha, an alcoholic and pill-dependent socialite, relies heavily on her adult son Henry, who has assumed a parental role towards her since their divorce from Hugh years earlier. Henry, an aspiring artist, enables Martha's addictions while managing her erratic behavior and emotional outbursts. Mia resents her mother's neglect and her brother's overprotectiveness. When Hugh, now living in [Hong Kong](/page/Hong Kong) with a new family, returns to address the school incident, long-buried family tensions and codependent dynamics surface, forcing confrontations about addiction, abandonment, and reversed roles within the family.[1][13]Characters
- Martha: The alcoholic and pill-addicted mother who relies on her children for care and exerts emotional control over the family.[1]
- Henry: Martha's 18-year-old son, who has dropped out of school to look after her and aspires to be a painter.[14]
- Mia: Martha's teenage daughter, a boarding school student who gets involved in a school incident using her mother's drugs.[1]
- Hugh: The estranged father, a successful businessman living abroad, who returns due to the family crisis.[15]
- Izzy: Mia's school friend, who participates in the incident and develops a relationship with Henry, causing tension.[14]
- Alice: A 13-year-old boarding school student who becomes the victim of a cruel prank by Mia and Izzy.[14]