Golden Girls (play)

Golden Girls is a 1984 play by Louise Page that was commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company and was first performed at The Other Place, premiering on 20 June 1984, directed by Barry Kyle. Before reading the full script for the play, at least nine of the cast members were under the impression that they would be taking the lead role. The same cast performed the play at the Gulbenkian Studio, Newcastle-upon-Tyne from 18 to 23 March 1985 and it transferred, with some cast changes, to The Pit in London, where it played from 29 April to 10 September.

Page commented that she wanted to write a play about the "politics of sport" and that Golden Girls was "about desire and ambition and the ambition to be absolutely the best." The play addresses numerous themes including unfair treatment of women in sport, the difficulties of balancing a personal life with being an elite sportsperson, racism in advertising, and the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport. Although Page's writing received a mixed critical reception, Kyle's direction was generally praised, and Josette Simon's performance as Dorcas Ableman was acclaimed.