Two young volunteers, Connie and Tristan, fall for each other while taking part in an antidepressant trial. Their chemistry is undeniable – but is it real or a side-effect of the drug?
Overseeing the experiment are doctors and former lovers, Lorna and Toby, whose professional disagreements about depression and medication expose fractures in their own relationship.
This summer Dapper Productions is reviving The Effect by Lucy Prebble – a sharp, captivating four-hander exploring love, neuroscience, and the reliability of our own feelings – following its critically acclaimed productions at The National Theatre in 2012 and 2023.
Multi-award-winning Sam Edmunds will direct a new, intimate version of the play that places audiences at the heart of the trial and its emotional and ethical repercussions.
Sam’s directing credits include The Chaos That Has Been and Will No Doubt Return, (Southwark Playhouse and UK Tour 2025) and Blanket Ban (Southwark Playhouse 2023).
Acclaimed screen writer and playwright Lucy Prebble was an executive producer and writer on the hit HBO TV drama Succession as well as co-writer of Sky’s I Hate Suzie, starring Billie Piper.
CAST
Connie Hall: Millie Smith
Tristan Frey: Shadrach Agozino
Dr Lorna James: Sara Odeen-Isbister
Dr Toby Sealey: Andrew Pearson-Wright
PRODUCTION & CREATIVE TEAM
Director: Sam Edmunds
Producer: Sara Odeen-Isbister
Movement Director / Intimacy Coordinator: Jess Tucker Boyd
Set Design: Rob Miles
Lighting Design: Sam Edmunds
Sound Design: Gabriel Burns
Graphic Design: Tom Murch
Photography: Ali Wright
Ticket Information
Performance Dates: Tues 30th June – Sat 11th July 2026
Performance Time: 7.30pm / 2.30pm
Run Time: 115 mins (including interval)
Tickets: £23 / £19.50
Early Bird Tickets £16.50 – First Come First Served