The great Ruth Wilson will star in this unbelievably audacious 24-hour show, which was due to run at the Young Vic as part of LIFT’s cancelled 2020 programme, and finally arrive in 2023 as a LIFT co-production.
In a nutshell, ‘The Second Woman’ will see Wilson perform the same scene 100 times, with a different man performing opposite her in each run through. The scene they perform is adapted from John Cervantez’s 1977 film ‘Opening Night’, and features a seemingly estranged man and woman eat some food, have a dance, and then he leaves. The magic of Nat Randall and Anna Breckon’s show – which has been performed across the world – lies in the skilful use of live video to bring to life the different dynamics and fluctuating power relationships between Wilson and her hundred men.
The show will run from 4pm Friday to 4pm Saturday and there are three tiers of ticketing: a 24-hour ticket, entry from either 9.30pm, midnight, 2am, 4am, 6am, 8am or 10am, or on the door tickets (which will inevitably become available because most audience members will have no intention of stay for 24 hours).
In all versions, once you’re in you’re in, but only short breaks outside the auditorium are permitted (so toilet yes, go out for a meal no, pop home to sleep for 12 hours absolutely not).