Stan's Cafe's returns to theatres this autumn with a new version of their acclaimed show, Time Critical.

One of the company's most thought provoking productions, Time Critical visits Birmingham Rep, Birmingham from 7-8 October.

The performance sees two competing actors tyrannised by a chess clock. With an allocation of 34 minutes each, one struggles to intercut and condense world events from 1991 to the present, while the other grapples with Stan’s Cafe shows and personal landmarks from the same period.

With the clock ticking, across 68 increasingly tense minutes the duo spin through a cycle of elections, inventions, natural disasters, treaties, product launches, sporting successes, business failures and dance sensations – condensing each landmark.

Prompting and challenging each other, the actors find themselves re-enacting strange confrontations, fragments of famous speeches and even evocative moments from old Stan’s Cafe shows (such as All Our Money) as the chess clock ticks down towards an exhilarating finale.

Starring Craig Stephens (All Our Money, The Many Lives of PET#1, River Tours) and Kianyah Caesar-Downer (BBC One's Doctors, Community Service), Time Critical is a hilarious and captivating rush that explores how we live our lives in relation to the wider world, giving us a unique perspective on the spiralling nature of history.

First performed for Stan’s Cafe's 25th anniversary in November 2016, this reworked version is 16 minutes longer – reflecting the eight eventful years that have passed since the premiere.

Stan’s Cafe is one of this country’s most inventive and playful theatre companies. Founded in 1991, their productions range from the monumental world-touring Of All The People In The World to The Many Lives of PET#1 - a community touring production exploring our relationship with plastics. The company are presently Associate Artists at the Gulbenkian Arts Centre.

For Time Critical tickets and more information, see: stans.cafe