Giving by Hannah Patterson

Giving by Hannah Patterson

There seem to be a lot of people out there with a lot of money who don’t quite know what to do with it

Laura has been commissioned to write an exclusive profile of businesswoman extraordinaire Mary Greene, who has recently become a leading philanthropist.

But as Laura digs deeper into Mary’s charitable motivations, she discovers a much more interesting angle. Michael, Mary’s “Charitable Giving Advisor”, seems to have an inordinate amount of influence over her decisions. Is it right that he wields so much power when his motives and priorities might not stand up to scrutiny? Or does the rationale for – and the morality of – philanthropic giving matter less than the outcome? It’s always better to give than to receive. Isn’t it?

Hannah Patterson’s absorbing play asks whether giving to charity can ever truly be altruistic and who actually gains the most - the recipient, the donor or the broker? It received a reading at the Arcola's PlayWROUGHT Festival in 2016 and was premiered at Hampstead Downstairs on 12 May 2016, directed by Bijan Sheibani.

Hannah Patterson’s script begins in an apartment somewhere south of London where Robert (Mark Rice-Oxley) and Joanna (Trudi Jackson) live with their 9-week-old daughterJoanna, bored, sleepless and recovering from a Cesarean birth, is not thrilled when Robert announces he’s invited their friend Jake (Alan Cox) to dinner. Robert adds that Jake is bringing his new girlfriend, Stella (Daisy Hughes), a vegetarian. This is even less thrilling.The guests arrive, the Chilean red flows, and we learn of Joanna’s unhappiness, Robert’s imperiled professorship and Stella’s extreme youth. She’s still in high school. But what begins as a riff on “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” morphs into a modern-day “Doll’s House.” * New York Times on "Playing With Grown Ups" *
The lighthearted title of 'Playing with Grown Ups' disguises a darker core. Set over the course of a single evening, Hannah Patterson’s . . . play . . . casts a nonjudgmental eye on a 40-year-old first-time mother who finds no pleasure in parenting. . . . There are echoes of 'A Doll’s House' and a refreshing lack of preachiness * Time Out New York on "Playing With Grown Ups" *
[An] enjoyable and thought-provoking four-hander ... There is something for everyone in this sharply observed comedy, which tackles everything from middle-aged regret and the myth of having it all to the question of whether fulfilment lies in a pile of nappies. It is potential dynamite and there are moments when this piece fizzes with comedy as well as emotion ... the play is smartly funny and intelligent, and dares to confront a taboo: that not every woman falls head over heels in love with her baby, and that sometimes work may be more alluring and fulfilling than motherhood. * Guardian on "Playing With Grown Ups" *
Engaging new writing that asks the important question "can women have it all?" without providing a simplistic answer. * Daily Telegraph on "Playing With Grown Ups" *
Patterson’s sharp, funny script twists the knife into twenty-first-century life, bleak in its portrayal . . . of a generation of women struggling with the reality of feminism’s legacy. * Stage on "Playing With Grown Ups" *

Hannah Patterson's theatre credits include Come To Where I’m From (Paines Plough/Southbank Centre), Playing With Grown Ups (Theatre503/Brits off Broadway) and MUCH (Cock Tavern), which she is adapting for film.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781350012189
ISBN 10	1350012181
Title	Giving
Author	Hannah Patterson
Series	Modern Plays
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Year published	2016-05-12
Number of pages	112
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.