Lyn Gardner’s Weekly Picks

Myra’s Story returns briefly to Trafalgar Theatre next Sunday, a one woman show which has had huge success touring the country telling the story of a middle-aged homeless woman. The success of the show is a blistering solo performance from Fiona Hewitt-Twamley, who plays 16 characters as she tells the story of a woman whose life is blighted by tragedy and who loses herself in alcohol. Performances will benefit homeless charities.

Wars rage in both Europe and the Middle East, so this new staging of Greek Tragedy, Iphigenia (Arcola), should have real clout. Iphigenia was the daughter who Agamemnon sacrificed to ensure he and his Greek army had a fair wind to take him to Troy to fight the Trojans. British-Iranian actor Mithra Malek plays the doomed Iphigenia in a production directed by Sedar Bilis, which weaves the ancient tale with contemporary interviews with mothers who have lost their children to war.

Also well worth checking out are the final performances for the Donmar’s Evening All Afternoon, Anna Ziegler’s delicate exploration of memory and loss which comes blessed with two finely calibrated performances from Anastasia Hille and Erin Kellyman.

Looking ahead, Stephen Managan, Ardal O’Hanlon, Sarah Hadland and Janie Dee are the stars of The Truth, a witty and sophisticated comedy about the deceptions we practise upon ourselves from French playwright Florian Zeller. He brought a beady-eyed precision to The Father and the Mother. Director Lindsay Posner first directed this show-- which comes with shades of Pinter’s Betrayal-- at the Menier a decade ago. This recast version has Mangan playing Michael, who has been having an affair with his best friend’s wife, Alice. It’s a play which asks whether honesty really is a virtue and whether relationships can survive the telling of hard truths.