The Mill at Sonning

Box office

0118 969 8000

Sonning Eye, Reading, RG4 6TY.

We'll Always Have Paris, 24th February to 10th April
A comedy by Jill Hyem. Ah, Paris! The rooftops, the organ grinder’s music, the Frenchman with a penchant for ‘English ladies’. Three women “of a certain age” gravitate to Paris. There’s Nancy, a retired headmistress determined to throw off her shackles. Anna, recently widowed – and free – after years of nursing a sick husband. And Raquel, a divorcee in search of eternal youth and a new toy boy. A feel-good play with laughter and tears, the promise of romance, lovely love and not-so-lovely anger, friendship and loyalty, and the advantages of growing old. Perhaps not La Vie en Rose but certainly a night to leave you charmed, amused, thoughtful – and smiling. Not to be missed!

Love From a Stranger, 14th April to 22nd May
This is an exciting brand-new adaptation of Philomel Cottage, the original short story by Agatha Christie. Love From a Stranger is a blood-curdling drama about frustrated spinster Alix King who has been engaged for years to Dick. Dependable but dull, Dick refuses to marry Alix until he can support her. When Alix unexpectedly inherits a fortune Dick is too proud to accept sharing it. Then along comes a stranger. Handsome, successful and just that little bit dangerous, Gerald sweeps her off her feet. Before you know it they are married and move into Philomel Cottage. All too soon their happiness begins to disintegrate. Strange things begin to happen and Alix suspects that the man she rushed into marrying may not be what he seems to be. And who knows, maybe Alix has some dark secrets of her own. This chilling thriller is a must for all Christie fans – full of twists and turns as it builds to a surprising and murderous denouement.

If I Were You, 26th May to 10th July
Meet Mal and Jill Rodale. Their marriage is on the rocks. Mal is an aggressive store manager with little empathy for his staff or customers, and is having an affair – conveniently during his lunch breaks. Jill is a housewife, with regrets of not fulfilling her dreams – and knows about Mal’s infidelity. On top of this their son Sam wants to appear in a school production of Shakespeare, much to the opposition of Mal, who questions Sam’s sexuality. However, he loves his conventional daughter Chrissie and prized son-in-law Dean, who also works at Mal‘s store. But little does Mal know that Chrissie isn‘t happy. Something that she can only confide in with her mother Jill. But things are about to change for the Rodales. One morning, Mal and Jill wake up and make a remarkable discovery – they have somehow swapped bodies! Leaving Jill to go to work and Mal to stay at home – with hilarious consequences! This is Alan Ayckbourn’s seventieth play! And as ever, he has produced a blissfully funny comedy farce that is both poignant and inevitably heart-warming.

I Ought to be in Pictures, 14th July to 21st August
By Neil Simon. Herb Tucker has it easy. He lives in a Hollywood beach house, has a beautiful and adoring girlfriend, Steffy, and makes his living as a screenwriter… Well, it’s not quite like that. Herb is struggling with writer’s block, his beach house is a cheap and colourless bungalow, and he can’t bring himself to propose marriage. Cue the arrival of the lively and determined Libby, a nineteen year old who speaks to her dead grandmother and dreams of becoming a movie star in any way she can! We soon discover that Libby is Herb’s daughter, whom he hasn’t seen since he walked out on her mother sixteen years previously. Libby, demanding that Herb helps her break into the movie business, moves in, and soon emotions run high as Herb is forced to deal with his past, his responsibilities as a father, and his fear of commitment.

For more details

see the Mill's web site at www.millatsonning.com.