‘You told me you loved me, once. You said you carried me. You remember that? You still carry me? Or did you drop me, somewhere along the line?’
A chance encounter at an AA meeting and they’re drawn to one another. Then later, once they’re drinking again, they both have this almost-feeling that they might have met before – could even have been together, sometime in the past… They should really get sober together and figure it all out: that would be a worthwhile project. Maybe they will. Just after one last drink…
A compassionate and unflinching study of love, addiction and memory, Joe White’s play Blackout Songs was first performed at Hampstead Theatre, London, in November 2022, directed by Guy Jones.
‘A dark, witty, indispensable drama… saturated with a gut-wrenching sense of how far alcohol addiction can plunge people, but lit up by flashes of humour… amply confirms the promise [of Joe White’s] debut Mayfly‘
— Telegraph
‘Brave and original writing, hard-edged and unsentimental one minute, heart-meltingly warm the next. A funny kind of romantic tragedy that becomes compulsive to watch’
— Guardian
‘Dark, witty yet truthful… A compelling watch that carefully unpicks ideas about pain and art, co-dependency and whether you can truly know someone whilst both are under the influence’
— WhatsOnStage
‘A devastating study of love and alcoholism… pulls no punches… spellbinding… razor sharp dialogue’
— Reviews Hub
‘Gut-churning… a stumbling odyssey through a mutually destructive relationship… has a sour tang of authenticity… there’s a savage hilarity to the dialogue, which is as sharp and jagged as smashed glass’
— The Stage
‘A tender study of the boundaries between desire and addiction… White tackles boldly weighty themes, but his touch is light and crisp. His writing is layered with wit and irreverent humour whilst buttressed with searing curiosity and immense compassion’
— Broadway World
‘Impressive… a spiky tragicomedy whose jagged, nonlinear style is accompanied by whiplash shifts in mood… The impact couldn’t be stronger, prompting the best sort of guessing game about where the play might end up next’
— New York Times
