Treats

While her bullying and unfaithful boyfriend, Dave, is reporting in Iraq, Ann seizes the opportunity to change the locks and take up with her infinitely more considerate colleague Patrick. But Patrick proves no match against savagery and charisma when Dave comes crashing home, determined to win back his girl. First staged at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 1976, this updated version demonstrates that, in love, our instinct for making the wrong decisions remains as sharp as ever. Treats was revived at the Garrick Theatre, London, in February 2007, following a tour to Windsor, Malvern, Bath and Richmond.

Christopher Hampton was born in the Azores in 1946. He wrote his first play, When Did You Last See My Mother?, at the age of eighteen. Since then, his plays have included The Philanthropist, Savages, Tales from Hollywood, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, White Chameleon, The Talking Cure, Appomattox and A German Life. Appomattox was turned into an opera by Philip Glass in 2014. He has translated plays by Ibsen, Molière, von Horváth, Chekhov and Yasmina Reza (including Art and Life x 3). He has translated seven plays by Florian Zeller, including The Father and The Son, both of which he subsequently co-wrote for the screen with Florian Zeller, winning an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Father in 2021. Musicals include Rebecca, Stephen Ward, Sunset Boulevard and The Third Man. His television work includes adaptations of The History Man, Hôtel du Lac and The Singapore Grip. His screenplays include The Honorary Consul, The Good Father, Dangerous Liaisons, Mary Reilly, Total Eclipse, The Quiet American, Atonement, Cheri, A Dangerous Method, Ali & Nino, Carrington, The Secret Agent and Imagining Argentina, the last three of which he also directed.