Last of the Red Hot Lovers is a Neil Simon comedy centered on Barney Cashman, a middle-aged, happily married restaurateur who, amid a wave of late-1960s sexual liberation he feels he has missed out on, decides to attempt an extramarital fling. The play unfolds across three separate acts, each depicting a different bumbling seduction attempt with a different woman in his mother's apartment, borrowed for the occasion during off hours. His would-be conquests range from a brassy, world-weary regular to a nervous neighbor to an old friend battling her own disillusionment, and each encounter goes hilariously, awkwardly wrong. Simon mines rich comic material from Barney's guilt, ineptitude, and fundamentally decent nature, which keeps sabotaging his half-hearted attempts at infidelity. Beneath the farce lies a gentler commentary on midlife anxiety, changing sexual mores, and the gap between fantasy and reality. It remains one of Simon's most performed comedies for its sharp dialogue and showcase roles for four distinct comic performances.

​