Did this make my top 50 of 2025? Check out Read About Stuff’s Favourite 50 Shows of 2025.

Sylvia’s wedding to Marek should be the best day of her life, yet by the end of her big day, her family is unlikely to ever be the same again in this fierce, funny and urgent play. 

Returning to London after an acclaimed premiere at the National Theatre, it is a play that is unflinching in its look at domestic family life, the trials and tribulations of longevity in love and, even more bleakly in this piece, xenophobia too. Underneath the play’s bubbly and initially quite jovial exposition lies a darker sense of direction, with hidden tensions threatening to bubble over almost as seamlessly as the wedding fizz. 

Despite it centring on Sylvia’s (Sinéad Matthews) wedding, her sisters Maggie (Aisling Loftus) and Hazel (Lucy Black) face big decisions of their own on their sister’s big day. Maggie, recently estranged from her close-knit family, returns to Mansfield harbouring a devastating secret that threatens to drive the family apart. Meanwhile, Hazel’s marriage to John (Adrian Bower) is on the rocks, seemingly a result of his unemployment, made all the more bitter by Hazel’s xenophobic outburst towards new brother-in-law Marek (Julian Kostov) after the latter’s job offer to John. 

Beth Steel’s script thrives on the authenticity of its dialogue. The gripes of the former mining community feel completely genuine and serve as a great backdrop to this marriage between contrasting nationalities in a place that feels stagnant in time. Its look at xenophobia is stark, but Steel’s writing does well to weave this into the narrative rather than magnify it at the expense of the other, just as gripping plotlines which all, eventually, converge. What starts as a seemingly normal wedding day quickly collapses into a visually and audibly brutal conclusion, yet it retains the focus on familial relationships throughout. 

This is largely due to the exceptional cast. Matthews, Loftus and Black are all superb as the siblings, quickly and effectively fostering an authentic bond. The sense of family is also enhanced by the other chaotic members, too, most notably Dorothy Atkinson’s outrageous, foul-mouthed Aunty Carol, and the dry yet endearing father of the bride, Tony (Alan Williams). It is a neat touch by Steel to avoid showing us Marek’s family, enhancing his position as an outsider, but also allowing the focus to stick to the three sisters and the impact of their actions on those around them. 

Despite the comedy-laden first half, the play quickly fills with a sense of dread as the painful conclusion draws nearer. It does, though, throw in a few curveballs into the narrative, particularly through troubled teen Leanne (Ruby Thompson), which propels the play to its shocking climax. 

Furthermore, Samal Blak’s design, especially the play’s set, helps to capture the audience’s voyeuristic inclusion into the family’s big day. The stage configuration is partially in the round, sitting audience members onto the stage and within the action. Initially, this catalyses some quick, useful laughs, but as the play gets darker, this makes for uncomfortable viewing, especially for those so close to the physical and emotional violence. 

By its conclusion, Till The Stars Come Down explodes almost every possible human emotion in just over two and a half hours. An engrossing piece, it is hard not to be extensively moved by the play’s scintillating and devastating conclusion, which promises to leave almost as long an impact on the viewer as the wedding day does for Sylvia and her family. 

A triumphant piece of theatre. 

A triumphant piece of theatre.