THE LION IN WINTER at Village Theater at Cherry Hill

Betrayal, treachery, and a knife fight: its just another normal Christmas celebration for the royal Plantagenet family of Britain. In The Lion in Winter, King Henry II throws a Christmas feast for the newly crowned King of France. Also in attendance for the holiday celebrations are Henrys three plotting sons, each eager to take the throne, and Henrys manipulative wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, newly released from house arrest (after raising an army against Henry). Even though they need to appear a happy family for the King of France, this doesnt stop each Plantagenet from secretly plotting to take the others down. While the three sons backstab and squabble to take their place in history, Eleanor and Henry use their offspring as pawns against each other in a dangerous game of cat and mouse. Told in "marvelously articulate language, with humor that bristles and burns ("Los Angeles Times"), The Lion in Winter is a play that transcends the historical genre to become a bitingly hilarious family drama.

Authors

• James Goldman