Invisible Friends

by Alan Ayckbourn

When Lucy, an ordinary teenager, feels ignored by her family, she brings her childhood fantasy friend Zara back to life, only to have her materialize and bring with her a dream family for Lucy

Genres: Plays, Fiction

Paperback

First published January 21, 1991

About the author

Sir Alan Ayckbourn is a popular and prolific English playwright. He has written and produced seventy-three full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, where all but four of his plays have received their first performance. More than 40 have subsequently been produced in the West End, at the Royal National Theatre or by the Royal Shakespeare Company since his first hit Relatively Speaking opened at the Duke of York's Theatre in 1967. Major successes include Absurd Person Singular (1975), The Norman Conquests trilogy (1973), Bedroom Farce (1975), Just Between Ourselves (1976), A Chorus of Disapproval (1984), Woman in Mind (1985), A Small Family Business (1987), Man Of The Moment (1988), House & Garden (1999) and Private Fears in Public Places (2004). His plays have won numerous awards, including seven London Evening Standard Awards. They have been translated into over 35 languages and are performed on stage and television throughout the world. Ten of his plays have been staged on Broadway, attracting two Tony nominations, and one Tony award.

Reviews

[Dora · Rating 2 out of 5]

The play was alright, definitely for children though. Major Coraline vibes

[Douglas Yannaghas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of like Coraline but without the inventiveness or reasoning behind a second family (beyond imagination). It's incredibly well written though, with sharply observed family dynamics.

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it very interesting and true. It was a pretty good play, better than some of the others I have read anyway.