Photo Flash: The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey Presents NOISES OFF

Frayn's other hit Broadway productions include Copenhagen and Democracy. Frayn got the idea for the play while watching one of his plays from the backstage wings. "It was funnier from behind than in front and I thought that one day I must write a farce from behind," Frayn noted. Frayn's Olivier Award-winning Noises Off pulls back the curtain on a third-rate troupe of actors performing the sex-farce Nothing On, where backstage romance, slamming doors, missing actors and a plate of sardines lead to hilarious on-stage chaos.

In Noises Off, audiences see Nothing On performed three times - once in a disastrous dress rehearsal, once from backstage, and once again later in the run! Frank Rich, of the New York Times, said that Noises Off "is, was, and probably always will be the funniest play written in my lifetime."