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The Ruling Class (Modern Plays)
by Peter BarnesEtonians aren't exactly noted for their grey matter, but I've always found them perfectly adjusted to society. Jack, a possible paranoid schizophrenic with a Messiah complex, inherits the title of the 14th Earl of Gurney after his father passes away in a bizarre accident. Singularly unsuited to a life in the upper echelons of elite society, Jack finds himself at the centre of a ruthless power struggle as his scheming family strives to uphold their reputation. Bubbling with acerbic wit and feverish energy, Olivier Award-winning and Oscar-nominated-writer Peter Barnes's razor-sharp satire combines a ferocious mix of hilarity and horror whilst mercilessly exposing the foibles of the English nobility. This edition of the play is published to coincide with the first-ever revival of this classic cult comedy at the Trafalgar Studios, London, on 16 January 2015.
Clowning as Social Performance in Colombia: Ridicule and Resistance
by Barnaby KingContemporary Clowning as Social Performance in Colombia brings to light the emergence of new kinds of clowning in everyday life in Colombia, focusing particularly on the pervasive presence of clowns in the urban landscape of Bogotá. In doing so it brings a fresh and updated perspective on what clowning is as well as what it does in the 21st century. Featuring descriptions of more than 24 distinct clown performers, Barnaby King provides an engaging and lively account of the performative moment in which clowning transpires, analyzing the techniques and processes at work in producing what is commonly named as “clowning”.In contrast with their North American and European counterparts, clowns in Latin America are seen every day in public settings, are popular cultural figures and sometimes claim to exercise real political influence. Drawing on five years of co-performative ethnography, the book argues that clown artists have thrived by adapting their craft to changing social and economic conditions, in some cases by allying themselves with authority and power, and in others by generating spaces for creativity and resistance in adverse circumstances. By applying performance theory to clowning in a specific cultural context this is the first work to propose an appropriate scholarly response to the diversity and ingenuity of clowning beyond Europe and North America.
The Red Chair (Modern Plays)
by Sarah Cameron Paul Clark Suzy WillsonLet us tell you a strange tale that did unfold someplace in the glum north o'the warld, where there lived a Man who could not stop eating, a Woman doomed to cook his meals and one 'inveesible child'.Told in a rich and saucy Scots dialect with physical verve, a wee dram of whisky to oil the way and a musical score that rolls in like mist over the hills, The Red Chair sees acclaimed Scottish performer Sarah Cameron steer us through a landscape of twisted reason, extreme compulsion and eye-watering complacency, where domestic drudgery happens on an operatic scale and a father's dereliction of duty reaches epic proportions.The Red Chair is based on Sarah's original book that had its first public reading as part of The House of Fairytales at the Port Eliot Festival. It lies somewhere between a Grimm's Tale, an absurdist ghost story and a parent's guide on how not to bring up children.
Islam in Performance: Contemporary Plays from South Asia
by Ashis SenguptaIslam in Performance brings together six contemporary plays from Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan that highlight the political performance of Islam in South Asia, especially since the 1947 partition of the subcontinent. The plays invite comparison with one another, engaging with the issue from perspectives of the three countries concerned: Hindutva politics in India othering the Muslim population for electoral gains, radical Islamization of Pakistan paralyzing political governance and encouraging jihadi violence, and the ever-increasing Islamist threat to Bangladesh's founding secular ethos. Finally, this anthology focuses on the suffering such exclusionary politics of religious nationalism has piled upon minorities across the region. Widely performed but largely unpublished, the plays with their geographic and stylistic range provide a good spectrum of some of the best writing in contemporary South Asian drama. The editor's scholarly introduction offers a framework for studying the plays as both texts and performance pieces.
Harajuku Girls (Modern Plays)
by Francis TurnlyI don't know a girl who hasn't been groped on a train. There's always someone trying to cop a feel. Might as well get paid for it. On Jingu Bridge in Tokyo, teenage girls dress in cosplay outfits for fun, fashion, and the fantasy of being someone else, but for Mari, Keiko and Yumi, their schooldays are over... In a race to escape from overbearing parents, stifling dead-end jobs and economic deprivation, they find their way to Kabukicho, a district of panty shops, love hotels and image clubs, where every aspect of the body and soul can be bought and sold. Only they can decide how far they're willing to go. As the three young women grow up and apart, they tread a dangerously fine line between empowerment and victimhood as they struggle to pursue their dreams, despite the obstacles that society and tradition put in their way.A fascinating and ambitious play about adolescence, independence and sexuality set in the colourful, fascinating world of Japanese cosplay and style, Harajuku Girls premiered at the Finborough Theatre, London, in February 2015.
Blood (Modern Plays)
by Emteaz HussainLove ain't something you just say. Just this word. It's something you do. A twenty-first-century love story. Caneze meets Sully in the college canteen. The heat rises over triple chilli sauce in Nando's. She makes her move in the sweet smoke of a shisha bar. A touchpaper is lit . . . but neither of them bargained on the lengths to which her brother would go to keep them apart. Blood is a heartfelt play by Emteaz Hussain, the writer of Tamasha's Sweet Cider. It received its world premiere in a production by Tamasha Theatre company in March 2015.
Pigeon English (Plays for Young People)
by Stephen Kelman Gbolahan ObisesanThere was a ruckus at lunch time. It was the best one so far. Nobody knew why they were fighting . . . You actually thought they were going to kill each other. You wanted them to stop. It wasn't funny anymore. Newly arrived from Ghana with his mother and older sister, Harrison Opoku lives on the ninth floor of a block of flats on a London housing estate. The (second) best runner in the whole of Year 7, Harri races through his new life in his personalised trainers - the Adidas stripes drawn on in marker pen - unaware of the danger growing around him.But when a boy is knifed to death on the high street and the police appeal for witnesses draws only silence, Harri decides to start a murder investigation of his own. In doing so, he unwittingly breaks the fragile web his mother has spun around her family to keep them safe, and Harri will come face to face with the very real dangers surrounding him. A powerful, unforgettable tale, importantly relevant for young adult readers of today.Stephen Kelman's 2011 Man-Booker-prize-shortlisted novel has been adapted for the stage by Fringe-First-winner Gbolahan Obisesan (Mad About the Boy). The stage adaptation received its world premiere at Bristol Old Vic in a Bristol Old Vic Young Company and the National Youth Theatre co-commission on 7 August 2013, before transferring to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Theatre in the Dark: Shadow, Gloom and Blackout in Contemporary Theatre (Methuen Drama Engage)
by Adam Alston Martin WeltonTheatre in the Dark: Shadow, Gloom and Blackout in Contemporary Theatre responds to a rising tide of experimentation in theatre practice that eliminates or obscures light. It brings together leading and emerging practitioners and researchers in a volume dedicated to exploring the phenomenon and showcasing a range of possible critical and theoretical approaches.This book considers the aesthetics and phenomenology of dark, gloomy and shadow-strewn theatre performances, as well as the historical and cultural significances of darkness, shadow and the night in theatre and performance contexts. It is concerned as much with the experiences elicited by darkness and obscured or diminished lighting as it is with the conditions that define, frame and at times re-shape what each might 'mean' and 'do'. Contributors provide surveys of relevant practice, interviews with practitioners, theoretical reflections and close critical analyses of work by key innovators in the aesthetics of light, shadow and darkness. The book has a particular focus on the work of contemporary theatre makers – including Sound&Fury, David Rosenberg and Glen Neath, Lundahl & Seitl, Extant, and Analogue – and seeks to deepen the engagement of theatre and performance studies with what might be called 'the sensory turn'. Theatre in the Dark explores ground-breaking areas that will appeal to researchers, practitioners and audiences alike.
Simon Stephens: A Working Diary (Theatre Makers)
by Simon Stephens2014 was a spectacular year for playwright Simon Stephens, who has been described by the Independent as 'a brilliant writer of immense imagination' and by the Financial Times as having 'emerged in this millennium as an outstanding playwright'.2014 was a year for Simon Stephens which featured a high number of world premiere plays including one for the theatre of his birthplace, Manchester's Royal Exchange, a major new play for the Downstairs space at London's Royal Court, and a Chekhov translation for London's Young Vic; a transfer of his West End hit The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to Broadway; and projects in Germany, a country which has seen Stephens lauded, in which he has worked extensively, and which has shaped much of his dramaturgy. In addition to these major projects, Stephens continued his role as a mentor of young writers, actors and directors, and continued to be one of the most frequent, outspoken and fiercely intelligent voices of the playwriting scene. In an exceptionally honest account, Simon Stephens opens up to us, through daily diary entries, his working practices, his inner-most thoughts, his philosophy on theatre, the arts and politics, and his feelings and reactions to specific projects he has worked on. Through this, we are given unprecedented access to the mind of one of the most important playwrights of the twenty-first century.
Play Mas (Modern Plays)
by Mustapha MaturaBoy, wen we come ter power we go change dis whole island, upside down, we go make all dem people who was taking advantage a we, suffer, we go make dem bawl. 1950s Port of Spain. Samuel, a young tailor's assistant, dreams of Trinidad's independence. On the eve of carnival everyone fills the streets, dressed up to play mas. This annual celebration turns to tragedy and spurs Samuel on to make a decision that will change the political landscape of the future of this vibrant, volatile island.A wickedly funny, exuberant and poignant play from Mustapha Matura. Born in Trinidad, he is the multi-award-winning writer of numerous plays including Rum an' Coca-Cola, Playboy of the West Indies and The Coup. Play Mas premiered at the Royal Court in 1974, winning the Evening Standard Award for Best Play, and transferred to the West End. This edition was published to coincide with its first major revival at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, which opened on 11 March 2015.
Carmen Disruption (Modern Plays)
by Simon StephensI'll gather my breath. I'll walk out of my room. I'll know exactly where I'm going to go. The voice in my head tells me exactly where to go. In the opulent grandeur of a European city, a renowned singer abandons the opera house for the truth of the streets. A gorgeous prostitute. A tough-talking taxi driver. A global trader. A teenage dreamer. Everyone's looking for something.Simon Stephens's strange and beautiful play re-imagines Bizet's opera Carmen and the possibility of love in a fractured urban world. Carmen Disruption received its world premiere at the Deutsche Schauspielhaus, Hamburg, in March 2014 and its UK premiere at the Almeida Theatre on 10 April 2015.
My Mother Said I Never Should GCSE Student Guide (GCSE Student Guides)
by Sophie BushWritten specifically for GCSE students by academics in the field, the Methuen Drama GCSE Guides conveniently gather indispensable resources and tips for successful understanding and writing all in one place, preparing students to approach their exams with confidence.Key features include a critical commentary of the play with extensive, clearly labelled analyses on themes, characters and context. They take studying drama even further with sections on dramatic technique, critical reception, related works, fascinating behind-the-scenes interviews with playwrights, directors or actors, and a helpful glossary of dramatic terms.Charlotte Keatley's My Mother Said I Never Should grapples with social forces that threaten to split four generations of women apart. When Jackie, who is unmarried, gives away her baby to her mother, the women are united in keeping this family secret yet divided in their opinions of it. Closely following the requirements of GCSE English Literature assessment objectives, these studies include expert advice on how to write about modern drama. With featured activities for group study and independent work, they are versatile and valuable to students and teachers alike.
My Mother Said I Never Should GCSE Student Edition (GCSE Student Guides)
by Charlotte Keatley Sophie BushWritten specifically for GCSE students by academics in the field, the Methuen Drama GCSE Student Editions provide in-depth explanatory material alongside the play texts frequently studied at Key Stage 4. Whether for use in the classroom or independent study, these editions offer a fully comprehensive and lightly glossed play text with accompanying notes specifically directed towards readers of this age, which unravel essential topics and challenge all students to delve further into literary analysis. Charlotte Keatley's My Mother Said I Never Should grapples with social forces that threaten to split four generations of women apart. When Jackie, who is unmarried, gives away her baby to her mother, the women are united in keeping this family secret yet divided in their opinions of it. In addition to some on-page explanatory notes and the play text itself, this edition contains sub-headed analyses of themes, characters, context and dramatic devices, as well as background information on the playwright. The Methuen Drama GCSE Student Editions never lose sight of their readership, and offer students the confidence to engage with the material, explore their own interpretations, and improve their understanding of the works.
Shakespeare's Insults: A Pragmatic Dictionary (Arden Shakespeare Dictionaries)
by Nathalie Vienne-GuerrinWhy are certain words used as insults in Shakespeare's world and what do these words do and say? Shakespeare's plays abound with insults which are more often merely cited than thoroughly studied, quotation prevailing over exploration. The purpose of this richly detailed dictionary is to go beyond the surface of these words and to analyse why and how words become insults in Shakespeare's world. It's an invaluable resource and reference guide for anyone grappling with the complexities and rewards of Shakespeare's inventive use of language in the realm of insult and verbal sparring.
Shakespeare's World of Words
by Paul YachninWas Shakespeare really the original genius he has appeared to be since the eighteenth century, a poet whose words came from nature itself? The contributors to this volume propose that Shakespeare was not the poet of nature, but rather that he is a genius of rewriting and re-creation, someone able to generate a new language and new ways of seeing the world by orchestrating existing social and literary vocabularies. Each chapter in the volume begins with a key word or phrase from Shakespeare and builds toward a broader consideration of the social, poetic, and theatrical dimensions of his language. The chapters capture well the richness of Shakespeare's world of words by including discussions of biblical language, Latinity, philosophy of language and subjectivity, languages of commerce, criminality, history, and education, the gestural vocabulary of performance, as well as accounts of verbal modality and Shakespeare's metrics. An Afterword outlines a number of other important languages in Shakespeare, including those of law, news, and natural philosophy.
Contemporary Plays from Iraq: A Cradle; A Strange Bird on Our Roof; Cartoon Dreams; Ishtar in Baghdad; Me, Torture, and Your Love; Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad; Summer Rain; The Takeover; The Widow
by A. Al-Azraki Monadhil Daoud Albayati Abdul Razaq al Rubai Ali Abdel-Nabi Al-Zaidi Rasha Fadhil Awatif Naeem Abdul-Kareem Mahdi Saleh Kareem Shghidel Hoshang Waziri James Al-ShammaContemporary Plays from Iraq is a ground-breaking collection of Middle Eastern drama translated into English for the very first time. With works from both established and emerging male and female playwrights, written in country and in exile, this volume offers current Iraqi perspectives on a war and occupation that have significantly impacted the Middle East and the rest of the world. Dealing exclusively with contemporary plays originating from Iraq, this anthology gives under-studied Arabic political theatre the attention it deserves and provides a general introduction that sets the plays within their cultural and historical contexts. The plays are preceded by introductions from the playwrights themselves, further enriching each piece for the enjoyment and understanding of the reader.The volume is introduced and translated by James Al-Shamma, Assistant Professor at Belmont University, US, and A. Al-Azraki, an Iraqi playwright.
King Richard III: Language and Writing (Arden Student Skills: Language and Writing)
by Rebecca LemonA new type of study aid which combines lively critical insight with practical guidance on the critical writings skills students need to develop in order to engage fully with Shakespeare's texts. The book's core focus is on language: both understanding and enjoying Shakespeare's complex dramatic language, and expanding the student's own critical vocabulary as they respond to the play.The book explores several different approaches to Shakespeare's language. It looks at how the subtleties of Shakespeare's language reveal the thought processes and motivations of his characters, often in ways those characters themselves don't recognise; it analyses how Shakespeare's language works within or sometimes against various historical contexts, the contexts of stage performance, of genre and of discourses of his day (of religion, law, commerce, and friendship); and it explores how the peculiarities of Shakespeare's language often point to broad issues, themes, or ways of thinking that transcend any one character or line of action. Each chapter includes a "Writing Matters" section, giving students ideas and guidance for building their own critical response to the play and the skills to articulate it with confidence.
Reading Shakespeare's Soliloquies: Text, Theatre, Film
by Neil Corcoran'Now I am alone,' says Hamlet before speaking a soliloquy. But what is a Shakespearean soliloquy? How has it been understood in literary and theatrical history? How does it work in screen versions of Shakespeare? What influence has it had? Neil Corcoran offers a thorough exploration and explanation of the origin, nature, development and reception of Shakespeare's soliloquies. Divided into four parts, the book supplies the historical, dramatic and theoretical contexts necessary to understanding, offers extensive and insightful close readings of particular soliloquies and includes interviews with eight renowned Shakespearean actors providing details of the practical performance of the soliloquy. A comprehensive study of a key aspect of Shakespeare's dramatic art, this book is ideal for students and theatre-goers keen to understand the complexities and rewards of Shakespeare's unique use of the soliloquy.
Lampedusa (Modern Plays)
by Anders LustgartenThis is where the world began. This was Caesar's highway. Hannibal's road to glory. These were the trading routes of the Phoenicians and the Carthaginians, the Ottomans and the Byzantines . . . We all come from the sea and back to the sea we will go. The Mediterranean gave birth to the world.Step into the shoes of those whose job it is to enforce our harsh new rules: an Italian coastguard and a payday lender from Leeds. How do they do it? And what happens to them? Lampedusa is a powerful play about immigration and welfare. This edition was published to coincide with the premiere at the Soho Theatre, London, on 8 April 2015, as part of the Soho Theatre's season of Politics.
Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho (Modern Plays)
by Jon Brittain Matt TedfordLook at us, Margaret - the press is on our side. We're heroes: the public is behind us, we're protecting our children, the party is united behind the cause. You can stand against it if you want, but you will stand alone.Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first female Prime Minister, gets lost around the streets of Soho on the eve of the vote for Section 28. Unwittingly, she finds herself quickly becoming a cabaret sensation within London's gay community.This camp political drag cabaret explores, through songs and laughter, homophobia and censorship, and how one person could have made a difference.Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho received its world premiere at London's Theatre503 in June 2013 as part of the Thatcherwrite Festival, and was revived in a full production there in December 2013. This second edition is published to coincide with its transfer to the Leicester Square Theatre and Norwich Playhouse in March 2015, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August 2015.
Shrapnel: 34 Fragments of a Massacre (Modern Plays)
by Anders LustgartenThere is no such thing as a happy colonised people.Never has been and never will be.That is our basic delusion.December 2011. Watching video footage from a drone, Pentagon officials see a huddle of people – unarmed smugglers, with mules – treading their familiar path across the Turkish-Iraqi border. Hours later, Turkish Armed Forces drop bombs on the group. 34 civilians are killed.The Roboski massacre is one of the most controversial episodes in the 'war on terror'. Piecing together the fragments of the tragedy, Anders Lustgarten's startling new play dares to ask what a massacre is made of.Shrapnel is a story of malicious commands and mournful commemorations; an urgent, powerful insight into the state of modern warfare. This edition was published to coincide with the UK premiere at the Arcola Theatre, London, on 11 March 2015.
peddling (Modern Plays)
by Harry Mellingif I was gold almighty himself,and destroyed this first attempt at life.what would my second version be?. . . a dead end of endless possibility.A pedlar boy wakes up in a field somewhere in London, surrounded by the remnants of the night before. With no memory of how he has come to be there, he knows he must go back to the start in order to understand it all. His attempts to retrace events from the previous days lead him on a haunting journey where everything comes into question: his life, his world, his future.peddling is Harry Melling's remarkable debut play following a day in the life of a door-to-door salesman as he battles difficult questions and attempts to come to terms with the resulting truths.peddling received its world premiere at Hightide Festival on 10 April 2014, performed by Harry Melling, before transferring to 59E59 Theatre, NY, for a four-week run. It was revived in 2015 by HighTide at the Arcola Theatre, London.
One Hand Clapping (Modern Plays)
by Anthony Burgess Lucia CoxSometimes when I'm at work and waiting for customers I think about the two of us living like kings and not bothering about the future. Because there may not be any future to bother about, you know. Not for anybody, one of these days. And it's a wicked world.Average couple Janet and Howard's lives begin to unravel when Howard's photographic memory helps win him a gameshow fortune. Janet doesn't want their lives to change that much. She's quite happy working at the supermarket, cooking for her husband three times a day and watching quiz shows in the evening. But once Howard unleashes his photographic brain on the world, the once modest used-car salesman can't seem to stop. And what he sees as the logical conclusion to his success isn't something Janet can agree to. Burgess's 1961 darkly comic satire of drab English consumerism is adapted for the stage by Lucia Cox. This edition was published to coincide with the US premiere at the Brits Off-Broadway Festival, at 59E59 Theatre, New York, in May 2015.
Hamlet: Arden Performance Editions (Arden Performance Editions)
by William Shakespeare Abigail Rokison-WoodallThe young Prince Hamlet, returning from university, finds his Kingdom in disarray: 'something is rotten in the state of Denmark'. With his father dead, and his uncle and mother marrying, Hamlet is confronted by an armored ghost, who, claiming to be the King, implores him to enact revenge upon the newlyweds and restore order to the realm. Yet, Hamlet's ability to act conflicts with his will to think: curing the rot and stabilising the kingdom will unleash a series of tragedies that threaten to ruin his entire family.Arden Performance Editions are ideal for anyone engaging with a Shakespeare play in performance. With clear facing-page notes giving definitions of words, easily accessible information about key textual variants, lineation, metrical ambiguities and pronunciation, each edition has been developed to open the play's possibilities and meanings to actors and students.Designed to be used and to be useful, each edition has plenty of space for personal annotations and the well-spaced text is easy to read and to navigate.Each edition offers: - Short, clear definitions of words- Information about key textual variants- Notes on pronunciation of difficult names and unfamiliar words- An easy to read layout with space to write your own notes- A short introduction to the play
Seneca: Hercules Furens (Companions to Greek and Roman Tragedy)
by Neil BernsteinHercules is the best-known character from classical mythology. Seneca's play Hercules Furens presents the hero at a moment of triumph turned to tragedy. Hercules returns from his final labor, his journey to the Underworld, and then slaughters his family in an episode of madness. This play exerted great influence on Shakespeare and other Renaissance tragedians, and also inspired contemporary adaptations in film, TV, and comics. Aimed at undergraduates and non-specialists, this companion introduces the play's action, historical context and literary tradition, critical reception, adaptation, and performance tradition.