Whisky Taster

The Whisky Taster is a contemporary, subtle and witty exploration of feeling and perception in the modern world of advertising. Moving from monochrome to technicolour, James Graham's latest play is about seeing things too clearly in a city that never stands still. Barney and Nicola are advertising wonder kids. They win accounts with wit, charm and a secret weapon: Barney's ability to feel, smell and taste colours, and to translate these sensations into words. Lately Barney has been finding things far too colourful and wishes his full throttle London life was more black and white, but Nicola is hell bent on winning accounts at all costs. When the two hire an old Scottish Whisky Taster to help them with a new campaign, the enigmatic and mysterious figure slows the Londoners to a stop with his strange wisdom, just as the deadline looms. This play explores perception, sensitivity and feeling through the neurological condition synesthesia. Whilst the characters thrive on the surface with witty banter and accomplished advertising pitches, their real lives threaten to intrude with a deeper, darker vein of seriousness and potential despair.When every sensation can be turned into a marketable, profitable brand, they start to lose sight of the real value of experience.

"A brilliantly pacey and culturally penetrating new comedy by James Graham ... It induces some of the exhilaration you get from the headlong knowingness of the best TV comedy, such as The Thick of It, while having the strong metaphoric framework of inspired theatre ... Part of the great pleasure of the piece lies in the way the superb cast fly with dialogue that has its ear to the future. By these means and metaphors, the very talented author manages to pack in unpretentiously many of our current preoccupations." Paul Taylor, Independent, 2.2.10 "The Whisky Taster at the Bush Theatre displays a superb gift for comic dialogue by playwright James Graham. It is charming, fun, sad and original, and has much to say about the times in which we live." Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph, 1.2.10 "Thought-provoking, observant and emotionally intelligent, this is a superb piece of new writing". Aleks Sierz, The Stage, 27.1.10 "The prodigiously talented James Graham has written The Whisky Taster ... a touching love story ... is extremely funny but has a heart." Philip Fisher, British Theatre Guide 'part advertising industry satire, part thwarted romantic comedy, and part celebration of Scotch' Michael Billington, The Guardian, 27.01.10

James Graham won the Catherine Johnson Award for the Best Play 2007 for Eden's Empire. His previous plays include Albert's Boy (recipient of a Pearson Playwriting Bursary) Little Madam (Finborough), Tory Boyz (Soho Theatre) and suddenlossofdignity.com (Bush). He is writer-in-residence at the Finborough Theatre.