After the End

by Dennis Kelly

They were all in the pub when the explosion happened. Louise wakes up to find herself trapped with Mark, who has saved her life. Mark is always prepared for the worst and has everything he thinks they will need to survive; tinned chilli, Dungeons and Dragons and a knife - now all they need to do is to wait until it's safe to go outside. Can they survive the attack? Can they survive each other?

After The End received its world premiere at The Traverse Theatre in August 2005.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre

106 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2006

About the author

THEATRE INCLUDES: Debris (Theatre503/BAC); Osama the Hero (Hampstead); After the End (Paines Plough/Traverse/The Bush/UK and international tour); Love and Money (Young Vic/Royal Exchange); Taking Care of Baby (Hampstead/Birmingham Rep); Orphans (Paines Plough/Traverse/Birmingham Rep/Soho). Plays for young people include: DNA (National Theatre) and Our Teacher is a Troll (National Theatre of Scotland). He also co-wrote the comedy series Pulling (BBC3) and wrote and created Utopia (Channel 4).

His plays have been performed in over thirty countries worldwide and translated into twenty languages.

Reviews

[jeef · Rating 3 out of 5]

i hate men

[Adam Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Insane that the amateur rights to this play exist lmao

[Soph · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just love the way Dennis Kelly writes dialogue!

[princeyrose · Rating 2 out of 5]

in hindsight, reading this play before going to therapy was probably a bad choice

[ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

More annoyed that she killed the cat than anything else tbf

[Meggie Ferguson]

dislike

[Abi · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a quick read and it was very gripping. I love how throughout it constantly made you question what was real and what was fake, and it also showed the power struggle between the sexes. It showed how relationships can easily deteriorate when under stress, but also that you can't trust anyone. Just a trigger warning for anyone that is wanting to read this play, it does deal with rape, so just know that going into it.

[Alice Woodsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A veritable rollercoaster; the tension builds beautifully, whilst you’re left wondering what’s real and what isn’t. There are some incredibly uncomfortable moments as a reader, that I imagine could only be exacerbated as an audience member. I’m absolutely itching to put this on!

[Ari · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

[Sara Opipari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Così tanto <3

[Fletcher · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

I like fucked up shit. This wasn’t particularly it. I did laugh at points, I did shudder when I was supposed to. I really liked some beats in some scenes but that’s mostly it.

I do really enjoy the style of writing - each character is constantly cut off and disagreeing with the other with most of the dialogue running more like 2 monologues at the same time. Would be cool to work on.

That being said, the ideas in this feel mostly half baked. The cycle of violence is better explored in Downstate. The “you need me on that wall” debate is better explored in A Few Good Men. Onstage SA is better explored in Slave Play. Escalating tension and questions about reality is better explored in Job.

[Vinita Dixit · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty crazy concept of two people stuck in a doomsday bunker and the power dynamics that come into when sharing food, water, heat, etc. Discusses some pretty interesting ideas of who is to blame when humanity commits mass murder. However, there are some parts of the play that feel uncomfortably like an assaulter’s fantasy, particularly one scene (TW: rape) that in excruciatingly slow and vivid detail describes a man raping a woman at knifepoint. I could have done without it to be honest, insinuating it would have been enough to grasp the horror, truly.

[Violet-May Davey · Rating 3 out of 5]

The style of writing was a good read. I liked the structure layout of this play: Beginning, Middle, End, After the End. I did not like how the cat ended up as that was uncalled for. Other than that, the way in which the play was written was interesting, especially with the reference to Dungeons and Dragons.

[Fiona Murphy McCormack · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm uncomfortable.

[Marek · Rating 1 out of 5]

very predictable.

lot s of swearing for no particular point.

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting play. I loved the ideas explored in this and it has some excellent monologues and duologue scenes! Very unique.

[Fayeee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wtf…

[Lady Aimée · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic play but triggering af. I hated the end.

[Santiago Guerra Arrangóiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark, sinister, messy. Brutal. Yet sometimes too appalling for my taste.

[Georgia_May · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only thing is that I guessed what was going on and the reveal wasn't too surprising. Though the reveal was gruesome and I definitely object to seeing r**e onstage.

[Neve Franks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a well written play but my god is it dark !! Louise girl you are a trooper !

[Lashoun · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my cup of tea, although if the goal was to disturb, it certainly succeeded.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow... This is a fucked up play. A bit difficult to read, but it would be amazingly juicy to work on.

[Library of Pearl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just. Brilliant.

[Henry Fosdike · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable contained thriller though personally the ending seemed quite predictable from a long way off. Great dialogue and interesting characters keep you hooked until the end.

[Niall No Chill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very intense and gripping.