Almost the
Birthday Party

Etcetera Theatre, London, 2014 (world premiere)
Old Red Lion Theatre, London, 2024 (revival)

When a resting actor and his retired partner invite complete strangers to join a play reading group in their parlour, things take an unsettling turn. Roused in the dead of night to recall their fateful first stab at act one of Pinter's, The Birthday Party, hilarity and absurdity unfold. But as elusive pages of the script surface and figures from the troubling tableau demand an encore, Kenny and Vern’s innocent quest for friendship spirals into a Pinteresque nightmare!

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REVIEWS

★★★★ "It’s certainly A COMEDY OF THE FINEST ORDER, and the menace comes from the most unexpected direction in the most bizarre fashion. It will keep you laughing until the very end"
Everything Theatre

"The second half is as witty and menacing as the first. Kalburgi created characters so evocatively... the dialogue is compelling and has a musical rhythm. You don’t need to know the original play by Pinter because this work speaks for itself, loud and clear.”
The Archer

★★★★★ "The ideas are SHARP, FUNNY, AND NICELY ABSURD, with Kalburgi’s ear for rhythm and a sense of character observation drawing us in."
LouReviews

★★★★ "SINISTER and ABSURD with TWISTED COMIC BANTER"
London Pub Theatres Magazine

2024

2014

★★★★ "HILARIOUS! Absurd and wonderfully black comedy!
Kalburgi writes with immense confidence within his own comedic style.
So, So Gay

"AN INTOXICATING FLURRY OF DRAMA! It sucks you in, and has you laughing from the get-go."
Maybe It's Because I'm A Londoner

"A CAPTIVATING dark comedy!"
Remote Goat

"SHEER VERVE! A bravura performance, full of energy, wit, and theatricality."
Everything Theatre

"Kalburgi displays a commanding view of this slow-burning dark comedy. This riveting work is at once strange and entertaining, thoughtful and droll, replete with amusing lines, all infused with an uncomfortable sense of absurdness."
East London Radio

"A ‘PINTERESQUE’ dark comedy!"
UK Theatre Network

Roger Sansom as Vern & Gil Sutherland as Kenny
Etcetera Theatre production, London, 2014.
Directed by Scott Le Crass.

"Exquisitely played by Gil Sutherland and Roger Sansom... a bravura performance, full of energy, wit and theatricality. Their experience and their handling of Paul Kalburgi’s taut script gives them a gravitas that really makes them shine. Almost the Birthday Party stands out for its sheer verve and professionalism, both in the writing and the performances."

- Steve Caplin, Everything Theatre

PRODUCTION HISTORY

Original

Licensed

2024 - Old Red Lion Theatre, London (Dir. Scott Le Crass)
2014 - Etcetera Theatre, London (Dir. Scott Le Crass)

2024 - Whitchurch Little Theatre Group, Regional Tour, Shropshire, UK
2022 - Our Star Theatre Company, Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, UK
2019 - Carnoustie Theatre Club, SCDA One Act Play Festival*, Fife, Scotland
*Winner, Best Play, Alex Drummond Trophy

Almost The Birthday Party is published by Lazy Bee Scripts.
Click here to purchase the script and license a production.

GrimFest Launch Party
Everything Theatre Podcast, October 2024

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The Archer, October 2024