The Atomic Plays

The Atomic Plays: Drama at the Dawn of the Nuclear Age

Step into the secret rooms where history was shaped, principles were tested, and the course of humanity was altered forever. The Atomic Plays is an immersive Sunday afternoon script reading series bringing three masterpiece dramas about the Manhattan Project, the atomic race, and the moral fallout of scientific discovery to the stage.

Why You Can’t Miss It

• High-Stakes Historical Drama: Witness the real-life moral dilemmas, secret interrogations, and high-tension debates of the scientists who unlocked the power of the atom.

• Intimate Script Readings: Experience the raw power of the text. Stripped of heavy sets, these staged readings put brilliant dialogue, complex characters, and powerful storytelling front and center.

• The Perfect Sunday Afternoon Out: Gripping, thought-provoking theatre designed for history buffs, drama lovers, and anyone fascinated by the true stories behind the nuclear age.

Featured Readings - 3:00pm on Sundays

Sunday, September 20, 2026
Copenhagen by Michael Frayn

In 1941, as world war rages, German physicist Werner Heisenberg pays a mysterious visit to his former mentor, Niels Bohr, in occupied Denmark. What actually happened during that fateful meeting? Frayn’s Tony Award-winning masterpiece explores memory, friendship, and the terrifying ethics of building an atomic weapon.

Sunday, December 6, 2026
Farm Hall by Katherine Moar

It’s the summer of 1945. Six of Germany’s top nuclear scientists are detained by British intelligence in a charming English country house. Unaware that their every word is being bugged, they react in real time as news breaks that America has dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. A captivating, darkly funny look at ambition, denial, and political survival.

Sunday, February 21, 2027
In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Heinar Kipphardt

At the height of the Red Scare in 1954, the "father of the atomic bomb" is called before a secret security board. Accused of leftist sympathies and opposition to the hydrogen bomb, Oppenheimer faces a relentless interrogation that pits national loyalty against personal conscience. A gripping courtroom-style drama constructed from actual transcript records.

Our new venue - XUUX Artists Studio, 455 Horton Street East, London.

XUUX (Shoosh) is a place for musicians, singers, dancers, and now thespians.