THE poster depicts a fast-moving passenger plane. The press release talks of a blazing new comedy. The play's setting is Fort Worth Dallas airport. None of these, however, was intended in bad taste and so the show goes on for John Godber's world premiere of Departures.

Next stop is the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, from October 15 to 20, then home to Hull Truck Theatre from October 23 to November 3.

Godber is not callously ignoring the apocalyptic events of September 11 in New York and Washington but is at pains to point out that his play is a study of an upwardly-mobile professional couple's emotional baggage, the setting being a series of departure lounges. No plane is involved.

"I couldn't not go ahead with the show," he says, calmly. "The tour had already started in Sheffield three weeks before the plane hijackings in America.

"I'll say to you, as I've said to 30 other reporters, the booking of a tour takes place six months beforehand, and no one could have anticipated the events of September 11."

He acknowledges the sensitivity now surrounding any artistic endeavour involving the subject of air travel "No one, least of all us, would put on something that could cause offence, and Departures is palpably not about air disasters - they are separate issues" he says. "But since September 11, the play has very quickly become a period piece.

"Now, everyone is concerned about flying, so those who want a shared anxiety about flying can have that, and those who feel the play is insensitive won't come - but even on the night of September 11 only two people who'd booked didn't come to that night's performance at the Bolton Octagon."

Partly inspired by Godber "not being the best flyer in the world", Departures uses the setting of ten departure lounges around the world to make a literary allusion about events in life being inter-connected in the manner of inter-connecting flights. Put simply, events at one airport affect those at another down the line, and the same applies to relationships.

Through the fractious partnership of designer-chic couple Jim and Claire, Godber constructs an exploration of trust. "For me, flying is about trust, and that's the central theme here: that thing of how far do we trust each other."

Difficult as it may be to laugh at present, Godber can still bring a smile: "Last November was my last flight, and if it continues like this, it'll be caravan holidays from now on."

For Scarborough tickets, ring 01723 370541; for Hull, 01482 323638.