Edward Albee’s 'The Zoo Story', a timely, award-winning play exploring young male loneliness, comes to Harrogate from 28th February, starring ex-St.John Fisher actor Frankie Bounds
The Classic Theatre Project of Yorkshire, presents this gripping, 60-minute, one-act play that feels as urgent today as when it premiered in 1959.
The production stars Frankie Bounds, former Ashville and St John Fisher's Student, bringing a strong local connection to this internationally celebrated work.
Performed as lunchtime theatre on a Saturday and Sunday afternoon, The Zoo Story offers an intense, thought-provoking experience in just one hour.
To encourage young people back into theatre, tickets for Under 25s are free.
Set on a park bench in New York’s Central Park, the play charts a chance encounter between Jerry, a young man isolated from society, and Peter, a comfortable middle-class professional living safely within his own “zoo.” What begins as conversation becomes confrontation — exposing loneliness, disconnection and the fragile structures that hold modern life together.
The themes resonate strongly today. In the UK, over one in eight young people aged 16–24 are currently not in education, employment or training, with young men disproportionately affected.
Against this backdrop, 'The Zoo Story' speaks directly to a growing crisis of young male loneliness, social alienation and loss of purpose.
The company said:
“If this is your first Albee play, you’re in for a rare treat,
“The writing is wickedly funny, deeply unsettling and ends with a rug-pulled-from-under-you climax that leaves audiences breathless.”
The Classic Theatre Project's mission is to bring meaningful, high-quality theatre to discerning Yorkshire audiences — theatre that entertains, provokes and lingers long after the final line.
Performances:
- 28 February, 2:30–3:30pm — The Stage at the Stable, Huby (near Harrogate)
- 4 March, 7:30–8:30pm — The Cardigan Arms, Kirkstall, Leeds
- 8 March, 2:30–3:30pm — The Wesley Centre, Harrogate
Tickets: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/theclassictheatreproject
The Zoo Story by Edward Albee — 60 minutes. Two characters. One bench. No escape.
Here Frankie's full chat with Your Harrogate's George Dickson here:
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