Middle (play)
{{Short description|2022 play by David Eldridge}}
{{Infobox play|name=Middle|image=|image_size=|caption=|writer=David Eldridge|characters=Maggie
Gary|setting=|premiere=|place=Dorfman Theatre|orig_lang=English|subject=|genre=|web=}}
Middle is a 2022 play by David Eldridge. A two-hander, Middle is the second of three plays exploring love and relationships, following Beginning.{{Cite web |date=2021-11-01 |title=Middle |url=https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/middle |access-date=2022-09-04 |website=National Theatre}}{{Cite web |date=2022-05-25 |title='Middle' review — David Eldridge's marital drama is sincere but too conservative |url=https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/reviews/middle-national-theatre-review |access-date=2022-09-04 |website=London Theatre}}
Plot
Middle follows Maggie and Gary in what is the middle of their relationship. When Maggie drops the bombshell of "I don’t think I love you any more", the play explores their relationship and how they are to move forward.
Productions
Directed by Polly Findlay, the play opened in the Dorfman at the National Theatre on 4 May 2022, following previews from 27 April.{{Cite web |last=Rabinowitz |first=Chloe |title=New David Eldridge Play MIDDLE to Open in April at the National Theatre |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/New-David-Eldridge-Play-MIDDLE-to-Open-in-April-at-the-National-Theatre-20220329 |access-date=2022-09-04 |website=BroadwayWorld.com |language=en}} It played a limited run to 18 June 2022. The cast featured Claire Rushbrook as Maggie and Daniel Ryan as Gary.
Critical reception
In her four star review for Time Out, Caroline McGinn says the play "is always gripping, often painfully funny, and mostly deeply sad. Director Polly Findlay manages the pace and the sad/funny balance beautifully."{{Cite web |last=McGinn |first=Caroline |title=Couples look away: ‘Middle’ at the National Theatre is a truly painful depiction of middle-class marriage |url=https://www.timeout.com/london/theatre/middle-review |access-date=2022-09-04 |website=Time Out London |language=en-GB}} Arifa Akbar for The Guardian gave the play three stars out of five and stated that it "feels like a true and tender representation of a marriage in its middle stages, a drama that is tepid at times, a little plodding and soft around the edges but forging on."{{Cite web |date=2022-05-05 |title=Middle review – marital and midlife reckoning brings gags and gripes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/may/05/middle-review-david-eldridge-theatre |access-date=2022-09-04 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}