Low Level Panic (NHB Modern Plays)

Three flatmates. A single bathroom. And a whole world of men. In this funny, unapologetic play, three twenty-something women figure out how they really feel about sex, their bodies and each other. With a vibrancy and stylistic freedom, Low Level Panic interrogates the effects of society's objectification of women. Low Level Panic premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in 1988, winning the Samuel Beckett Award. This edition was published alongside its first major revival at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, in 2017. 'Low level panic is the constant fear that runs through women's lives like a cold underground stream, its source is male violence and it is fed by tributaries of pornography. Clare McIntyre's play looks at the repercussions this fear has on the lives of three women' - Time Out 'McIntyre has a deadly accurate ear, a subtle sense of humour and a deep fund of compassion: she writes with thrilling understanding' - Sunday Times

Clare McIntyre (1952-2009) was amongst the extraordinary generation of British female playwrights who emerged in the 1980s. Her best-known plays, including Low Level Panic (Royal Court Theatre, London, 1988) and My Heart's a Suitcase (Royal Court, 1990; winner of the Evening Standard and London Drama Critics awards for Most Promising Playwright), are now considered modern feminist classics. She also had an extensive career writing and acting for film, radio and television.