Official: Matthew Perry to Bring First Play THE END OF LONGING to the West End

Internationally acclaimed actor Matthew Perry (Friends, The Odd Couple) leads the cast in the World Premiere of his playwriting debut, The End of Longing, at the Playhouse Theatre, London, from 2 February - 14 May 2016. This fast paced, and bittersweet comic new play, will be directed by the critically acclaimed and award-winning director, Lindsay Posner (Speed-the-Plow, Other Desert Cities) reuniting the pair, following their first West End collaboration on Sexual Perversity in Chicago at the Comedy Theatre in 2003.

Meet Jack, Stephanie, Joseph and Stevie: four lost souls, entering their forties and searching for meaning. After sharing one raucous night together in a downtown Los Angeles bar, their lives become irreversibly entwined in a rollercoaster journey that forces them to confront the darker sides of their relationships.

A sharply written and hilarious dark comedy, The End of Longing, will make you realise that broken people don't need to stay broken. Further casting for this four hander will be announced shortly.

Matthew Perry said "Being on stage makes you feel naked. Being on stage in a play that I have written will make me feel doubly naked. So if you'd like to see me doubly naked, tickets go on sale today."

Matthew Perry is best known for playing Chandler Bing in the highly rated, critically acclaimed series, Friends, which ran from 1994 to 2004.

Perry is currently the star and executive producer on CBS's The Odd Couple, the classic comedy by Neil Simon. The series debuted as the biggest new comedy of the 2014 season, with over 13 million viewers. The second season will premiere in 2016. Previous to this Perry starred in and co-executive produced Go On, NBC's highly rated comedy and has twice guest starred on the award-winning series, The Good Wife. In 2011 Matthew was the executive producer, co-writer and star of the ABC show Mr Sunshine. He has received Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for his starring role in TNT's The Ron Clark Story, and in 2006 starred in Aaron Sorkin's NBC drama Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, in a role that was written for him. He also received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Joe Quincy in The West Wing.

Other screen credits include the films 17 Again, alongside Zac Efron, The Whole Nine Yards, opposite Bruce Willis, which was followed up by The Whole Ten Yards, Three to Tango, alongside Neve Campbell, Dylan McDermott and Oliver Platt, Fools Rush In with Salma Hayek and A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, with the late River Phoenix.

Matthew was last in the West End, in 2003, in David Mamet's Sexual Perversity in Chicago - also directed by Lindsay Posner, at the Comedy Theatre.

Lindsay Posner is a critically acclaimed and award-winning director. His most recent theatre credits include Dinner with Saddam and Communicating Doors at the Menier Chocolate Factory, She Stoops to Conquer at the Theatre Royal Bath, Hayfever at the Theatre Royal Bath/Duke of York's Theatre, Speed the Plow at the Playhouse Theatre, Other Desert Cities and The Provok'd Wife at the Old Vic, The Winslow Boy at the Old Vic & Roundabout Theater, New York, The Hypochondriac, A Little Hotel on the Side for Theatre Royal Bath, Relatively Speaking for Theatre Royal Bath/Wyndham's Theatre/UK Tour, Noises Off at the Old Vic/Novello Theatre/UK Tour, Abigail's Party at the Menier Chocolate Factory/Wyndham's Theatre/UK Tour, Butley and The Birthday Party at the Duchess Theatre, Uncle Vanya & An Ideal Husband at the Vaudeville Theatre, The Turn of The Screw, Tom and Viv, House of Games, Romance and The Hypochondriac at the Almeida Theatre; A View From The Bridge at the Duke of York's Theatre (which was nominated for four Olivier Awards), Carousel at the Churchill Theatre/UK tour/Savoy Theatre, Fiddler On The Roof at Sheffield Crucible/Savoy Theatre, Fool for Love and A Life In The Theatre at the Apollo Theatre, Oleanna at the Garrick Theatre, Calderon's Doctor of Honour for Cheek by Jowl at the Donmar Warehouse, The Caretaker at Bristol Old Vic, Sexual Perversity in Chicago at the Comedy Theatre, Power and Tartuffe at the National Theatre, Twelfth Night, The Rivals, Volpone and The Taming of the Shrew all for the RSC, The Misanthrope and American Buffalo at the Young Vic, The Lady from the Sea for the Lyric, Hammersmith/West Yorkshire Playhouse.

Lindsay Posner was associate director at the Royal Court Theatre from 1987 to 1992 where his production of Death and the Maiden won two Olivier Awards. Other Royal Court productions in that period include: Colquhoun and McBryde; The Treatment; American Bagpipe; Ficky Stingers; No One Sees The Video; Built on Sand; Blood; Downfall; and Ambulance.

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