National Theatre Live: Retrograde

Playwright David Hare transports us to 1953, into the heart of the McCarthy-era witch hunts. Young dramatist James Merrill faces an unbearable choice: safeguard his career or defend his former lover, composer Larry, whose name has been blacklisted. In the stifling confines of a New York hotel room, a psychological duel unfolds with an agent from the House Un-American Activities Committee. Every word here is a weapon, every glance an accusation. This intimate 2025 drama examines the price of principles in an era when fear became state policy and betrayal a commonplace.