“Relative Motion”: new drama about coercive control lands at Southwark Playhouse — full cast revealed

A new drama that weaves together romantic comedy, psychological thriller and dark comedy comes to the London stage this winter. As BroadwayWorld reports, the full cast of “Relative Motion,” written by the British author of South African origin Stephanie Greenwood, will take the stage in The Little auditorium of Southwark Playhouse Borough from November 11 to December 5.

The play is a two-hander with only two actors: Greenwood herself will play Sam, a physics student, alongside Sean Hart, who plays Paul, an aspiring novelist. The couple meet by chance on a London commuter train, and their romance, according to BroadwayWorld, begins with small compromises and power dynamics that gradually reveal the development of coercive control within the couple.

According to BroadwayWorld, “Relative Motion” explores love, memory and perspective, raising the question of how easily we can miss the moment when a relationship begins to change. The production is directed by the award-winning director Wiebke Green.

Greenwood is no stranger to the stage: according to British theatre media, she has performed in “Frankenstein” at the Shakespeare Theatre Company and in “Soldier On” at The Other Palace and on its British tour, and has also written the plays “It’s Beautiful, Over There” and “How Not to Fund a Honeymoon.” Sean Hart, meanwhile, is known to television audiences for roles in Disney+’s “A Small Light” and ITV’s and Hulu’s “Harlots,” as well as from the Royal Shakespeare Company’s stage in “Titus Andronicus.”