A CORRUPT business tycoon attempting ruthlessly to avoid the consequences of his own actions sounds like a pretty modern theme.

In fact Man and Boy was written by Terence Rattigan in the 1960s but its zeitgeist has prompted the Company of Ten to make it their next production at the Abbey Theatre in St Albans.

Set in 1934 in a dilapidated basement flat in Greenwich Village, corrupt Romanian tycoon Gregor Antonescu pays a visit to his estranged illegitimate son Basil who is scraping together a living as a pianist in a nightclub.

Gregor is in big trouble with his business on the brink of ruin but he is not a man to give up without a fight. A merger with another company could save his affairs and he has information about that corporation’s president that he could use to his advantage.

Although Basil becomes an unwitting tool in his father’s callous plotting, he still craves his father’s attention – in other words he cannot stop loving the worthless man who has betrayed him.

Although regarded as one of the great dramatists of the 20th Century, Rattigan became unfashionable in the 1960s but his centenary year has seen revivals of many of his plays and a highly favourable re-evaluation of his talent as a dramatist.

The production runs from next Friday, November 11, to Saturday, November 19, in the main theatre and starts at 8pm. Tickets are available from the box office on 01727 857861 or online at www.abbeytheatre.org.uk