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JAMES A SAUNDERS (1925 - 2004) |
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Nationality: English Email: Click here to contact Website: Click here to visit |
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Literary Agent: Casarotto Ramsay and Associates Ltd |
doollee is indebted to Weed (weed@wussu.com) for contibutions to this page.
James Saunders was born in Islington, North London. Educated at Wembley County School and Southampton University, he became a chemistry tutor by day at Davis's, Holland Park (London) and a playwright by night, until devoting all his time to writing. He received an Arts Council playwright's bursary for The Ark in 1960, and became a full-time playwright in 1964. His early plays led him to be considered one of the main British exponents of the Theatre of the Absurd. Later works continued to explore the limits of traditional theatre. In 1984 he was awarded a Major Bursary.
Plays by James A Saunders
Act | ||
| 1st Produced: | Fun Art Bus, an Inter-Action Project by Ed Berman | 1972 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "The Fun Art Bus", compiled by Justin Wintle, Methuen, London, 1973 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30817 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | 2 characters | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | In 1972, it's first year, the Fun Art Bus (a converted double decker) toured the London boroughs and other parts of Britain presenting a unique combination of entertainment and theatre for children and adults. This volume contains an account of the ideas of 'environmental theatre' which are central to the work of Inter-Action and of the Fun Art Bus project. It also contains a selection of the material performed on the Bus, including short plays written for the Bus by Jim Hiley, James Saunders, Chris Bailey, Michael Stevens, Henry Livings, Frank Marcus, David Halliwell and Neil Hornick. It will be a valuable source book for anyone concerned with youth and community drama. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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After Liverpool | ||
| 1st Produced: | Edinburgh | 1971 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1973 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30818 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Pieces Piece | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | any number | |||||
Notes: | broadcast 1971 | |||||
Synopsis: | Using a musical analogy the script gives some themes, within and between any number of variations. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Alas, Poor Fred | ||
| 1st Produced: | Studio Theatre Limited at the Library Theatre (the Theatre-in-the-Round), Scarborough | 1959 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Studio Theatre, Scarborough, 1960 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30819 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Original Playwright - Eugene Ionesco | |||||
Synopsis: | The original published script was modestly sub-titled 'a duologue in the style of Ionesco'. Certainly he learned from Ionesco - as did Beckett - but the main lesson was freedom. Aristotelian drama had three rules of unity (time, place and action). Modern drama has no rules at all and the playwright is free to do whatever he likes. Quite apart from being able to move around freely in space and time, he is released from all restrictions of logic, causality and consistency. He can change his mind as he goes along about what kind of play he's writing and his characters don't have to stay 'in character'. Fantasies can be translated into outward events and the playwright can use all the conventions and all the amenities of theatre as a giant box of tricks to play with - or experiment with. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Ark, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1959 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30820 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | music by Geoffrey Wright | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Barnstable | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1960 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Hutchinson, London, 1961 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30821 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 3 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | broadcast 1959 | |||||
Synopsis: | the Carboy household is frantic: chimneys are crashing to the ground, dead moles strew the lawn and Barnstable is persistently shooting thrushes | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Birdsong | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1979 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Savoury Meringue and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30822 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | set inside a birdcage, with the birds as characters, the play has universal connotations | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Bodies | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1977 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1978 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30823 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Comedy Drama Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 2 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | As the play begins, Anne and Mervyn, a seemingly well-setded middle-aged couple, are awaiting the arrival of Helen and David, a younger couple who were formerly their neighbors and close friends. Their reunion begins on a light and humorous note, but as the after-dinner talk grows more serious we become aware that the two couples had once engaged in an adulterous arrangement - and both have found it difficult to deal with the self-recriminations which this has created. Mervyn has begun to drink more than he should; Anne is coldly cynical; and Helen and David have turned to group therapy. But their problems still remain and, as the conversation becomes more revealing - and provocative - the underlying values of human existence are drawn into question. In the end the inescapability of the deep-seated guilt is powerfully evident with Mervyn, his vulnerability touchingly evident, sinking into tearful, defeated despair. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Borage Pigeon Affair, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1969 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Deutsch, London, 1970 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30824 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 15 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | Borage, a quiet suburban spot not too many miles from Hyde Park, is a town in trouble. Apart from the usual domestic problems, there's the problem of pigeons. Should the offending birds be exterminated - a solution vigorously proposed by Conservative Councillor Dr Dinsdale Badger - or should they continue to live and multiply (and to befoul the statue of Borage's greatest benefactor)? Opposing Badger is Socialist Councillor Makepeace Garnish, whose two great loves are pigeons and Mabel Badger (Dinsdale's wife), with whom he enjoys clandestine meetings in neighbouring telephone boxes. To this already explosive mixture is added the randy Peter Loathing and the Travesty television team, who have been sent out to investigate - and preferably exacerbate - the problem. What happens to Borage and its all-too-familiar citizens makes this not only one of the funniest plays to have been written for years, but also an abrasive comment on the fatuities and sheer nastiness of so much of our public and private life. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Bye Bye Blues | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1973 | |||||
Company: | Richmond Fringe Theatre | |||||
| 1st Published: | Fringescripts, London, 1973 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30825 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 3 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | deals with the conflicts between freedom, control and responsibility, discussed by three pairs of strangers | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Caucasian Chalk Circle, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | Richmond, Surrey | 1979 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30826 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 38 | Female | 11 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Original Playwright - Bertolt Brecht | |||||
Synopsis: | an Old Chinese Legend, a cruel town governor murdered, wife escapes leaving baby. Returns to try and 'drag the baby out of the Chal Circle' | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Cinderella Comes of Age | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1949 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30827 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Committal | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1960 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30828 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Dog Accident | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1969 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Ten of the Best, Inter-Action Imprint, London, 1979 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30829 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | broadcast 1958 | |||||
Synopsis: | A naturalistic play is one that is written as if the story had happened in real life. In staging it, the actors will try to seem just like people one might meet outside the theatre. The extreme case of a naturalistic play would be one that would be mistaken for real life if it were performed in a real life setting. In the theatre, even the most naturalistic play has to follow certain conventions. It has a dramatic 'shape' which real life doesn't have: for instance, a play has a beginning, a middle and an end whereas real life goes on and on; in a play, only the incident shown can be seen whereas in life things are happening simultaneously all over the world. A play therefore has to condense time and exaggerate effects; anything which is not relevant to the action is left out. The conventions are hidden but they are still there. Can you see them in Dog Accident? No playwright wants simply to present a slice of life. The writer wants the play to do something to the audience, to involve its emotions or make it think in a particular way. What do you think were the playwright's intentions in Dog Accident? It shows how four young people might react to a commonplace situation, but it gives only one possibility. If you improvise the scene and react to it in your own way, it will be interesting to see how the course of events differs. A version of Dog Accident was in fact performed some years ago in the street of a shopping area in Liverpool. The 'dog' was radio-controlled to whine and twitch. A small crowd gathered mostly at a distance, not wanting to risk getting involved in what was happening. Then some people came closer: one bystander entered into the dialogue, another covered the dog with a blanket before walking away. Someone called the police. When they arrived, the policemen were at first stern. ('What's going on here?') When told it was only a play, they became jolly. It was as if they had decided to act a different kind of policemen and, being in uniform, they knew that the audience - their audience now - was waiting to see how well they played their parts. Afterwards, the actors, the director and the author discussed whether they had cheated in pretending that the play was real. They decided that perhaps they had. Were they right? What do you think? | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Double, Double | ||
| 1st Produced: | RADA, London | 1962 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1964 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30830 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 6 | Female | 4 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | comedy set in a bus garage canteen | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Ends and Echoes | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1960 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Return To a City in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30831 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | includes Barnstable, Committal, Return To a City | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Fall | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1981 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1985 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30832 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 4 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | three very different sisters meet at their mothers house to await the death of their father, they gradually reveal the complexities of their own lives | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Games | ||
| 1st Produced: | Edinburgh | 1971 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1973 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30833 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Unstructured | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | any number | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | about freedom, responsibility and choice treated as aspects of an actual event which takes place during the performance | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Girl in Melanie Klein, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | Watford, Hertfordshire | 1980 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30834 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | from novel by Ronald Harwood | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Hans Kohlhaas | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1972 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30835 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 7 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Original Playwright - Heinrich von Kleist; aka Michael Kohlhaas | |||||
Synopsis: | in 16C Germany fair minded family man is used in exploitation of war | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Haven | ||
| 1st Produced: | Comedy Theatre, London | 1969 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | ISBN/ASIN: | - | ||||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30836 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Sketch | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | aka A Man's Best Friend, in We Who Are About To . . ., later called Mixed Doubles | |||||
Synopsis: | an entertainment on marriage | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Island, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1975 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Bye Bye Blues and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30837 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Male Chauvinist comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 5 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | first professional production was by the Richmond Fringe at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond (Surrey, England), on 21 January, 1977 | |||||
Synopsis: | on a semi tropical island five sisters live in idyllic paradise until two brothers are washed up on the beach | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Italian Girl, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1967 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30838 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 4 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | written with Iris Murdoch, from novel by Murdoch | |||||
Synopsis: | The action of the play takes place in and around a large house in the North Country, including Isabel's sitting-room, the kitchen, Otto's workshop and part of the garden. Focus on sexual intrigue and disturbed social conventions with an odious set of people | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Journey to London, A | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1974 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30839 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 7 | Female | 5 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | completion of play by Vanbrugh | |||||
Synopsis: | the naïve Headpiece come to London and Saunders continues the story of their encounters with disreputable types | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Making It Better | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1992 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Samuel French, London, 1992 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30840 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Political Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | broadcast 1991 | |||||
Synopsis: | In the London of the late eighties two Czech migrants betray everything after entanglement with husband and wife journalists | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Man's Best Friend, A | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1969 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in Mixed Doubles - An Entertainment On Marriage, Methuen, London, 1970 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30841 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Sketch | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Originally presented as one of eight plays under the title "We Who Are About To. . ." at the Hampstead Theatre Club on February 6th 1969, which was subsequently presented as "Mixed Doubles" at the Comedy Theatre, London on April 9th 1969 | |||||
Synopsis: | Mixed Doubles, 'an entertainment on marriage,' takes the form of eight short plays, each for two characters. . . Each is an independent play in its own right but the whole sequence, linked by a series of wickedly anti-authoritarian monologues written by George Melly adds up to an amusing if acid picture of the progress of married life from honeymoon to cemetry. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Moonshine | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1955 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30842 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Mountain, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | Bristol | 1979 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30843 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Mrs Scour and the Future of Western Civilisation | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1976 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30844 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Neighbours | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1964 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30845 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | First professional performance in Great Britain at the Hampstead Theatre Club on May 8, 1967, in a double bill with LeRoi Jones' Dutchman. Subsequently it transferred to the Mayfair Theatre | |||||
Synopsis: | Two people. A man. A woman. . . black, white, liberal, impulsive. Two people sitting in a room stripping each other of their masks. This story, this play is about who we think we are, what we think we think until somebody places a mirror in front of us. It is about those prejudices (as a white woman and as a black man) we assume we don't have and those tensions we choose to ignore. A black man. A white woman. And no "rule of thumb" to follow. These characters and their colors that cannot be pigeon holed. This man, this woman. The observer must not only watch the play, but herself. Not only should she see the prejudices and generalizations that are prevalent, but follow her own conclusions and expectations and see where they will lead her: maybe a dead end, maybe an unexplored room? Whatever happens it's about trying to jump over those conclusions we make so quickly and really stop to think, look and reflect. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Next Time I'll Sing To You | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1962 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Deutsch, London, 1963 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30846 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | from a theme from "A Hermit Disclosed" by Raleigh Trevelyan | |||||
Synopsis: | examines why a man chose to live as a hermit for 36 years until his eventual death | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Nothing To Declare | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1983 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30847 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | broadcast 1982 | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Old Man Who Liked Cats, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | - - - | - - - | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in Playforms - seven scripts for secondary drama - James Saunders and Robin Rook, CUP, Cambridge, 1997 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #56146 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | setting: the old man's bedroom, his house, and the house of his widowed daughter and grandson | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Opus | ||
| 1st Produced: | Loughton, Essex | 1971 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30848 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Over the Wall | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1977 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Play 10", Arnold, London, 1977 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30849 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | any number | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Pedagogue,The | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1963 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30850 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | BBC 1964 | |||||
Synopsis: | The Pedagogue was. . . written for the Questors - in April 1963. They produced it two months later. The schoolmaster.. [lives] by logic and [expects] things to go smoothly. He believes in science, authority, man's capacity for survival, and has faith that everything happens for the best. The children in the classroom are created partly through sound-effects but chiefly by writing in one side of the dialogue that the schoolmaster has with them, which makes it possible for us to guess not only what they say but also how they move. Beryl is particularly vivid. The second half of the play becomes less realistic, as the teacher gets carried away from Phipps's essay into his own account of the Creation. This prepares for the end of the play when the unspecified events outside - perhaps the beginnings of a nuclear war - scare all the children into running away. The pedagogue talks on to an empty classroom and finally the Word fades into silence. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Play For Yesterday, or The Little Hut Of Enmity | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1974 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Savoury Meringue and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30851 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 3 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Player Piano | ||
| 1st Produced: | London | 1978 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30852 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | from novel by Kurt Vonnegut | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Playforms | ||
| 1st Produced: | - - - | - - - | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | I don't think it has been published. Try emailing Playwright or Agent where listed at top of page. | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30853 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | n/a | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Poor Old Simon | ||
| 1st Produced: | Capitol Theatre, Horsham (Sussex, England) | 1973 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Savoury Meringue and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30854 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | in Mixed Blessings | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Random Moments in a May Garden | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1977 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Bye Bye Blues and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30855 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 5 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | broadcast by BBC Radio 3 on 20 January, 1974 | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Redevelopment, or Slum Clearance | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1990 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Faber and Faber, London, 1990 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30856 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 8 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Original Playwright - Vaclav Havel, from a literal translation by Marie Winn | |||||
Synopsis: | architects plan a radical restoration of a village that is a soulless, characterless drawing board monstrosity, residents protest met with arrogance from authorities | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Retreat | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1995 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | First Writes, London, 1995 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30857 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | A middle-aged man and a 19 year old girl together in a room late at night take each other on a journey of exploration into the realms of grief and guilt. As layer after layer is stripped away we see how they can find comfort and healing from each other. This is one of those plays that grips you so totally and affects you so beautifully that you feel you want to spend the whole night in the company of these two wounded but fascinating human beings. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Return To A City | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1960 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Andre Deutsch, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30858 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Modern Drama Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 2 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | First performance at the Questors Theatre, Ealing, 13th June 1960 with two other one-act plays, Barnstable and Committal, under the title Ends and Echoes | |||||
Synopsis: | Return to a city was written in 1959. . . It's tone and atmosphere are reminiscent of Beckett's Endgame. We are in a broken world in which only a handful of characters seem to have survived. The comforts and protections which we take for granted are denied to them. The house has only half a roof and two walls (and a bit). Food is so scarce that a bone is a treat. As in King Lear, desolation drives 'unaccompanied man' to ask basic questions about his own existence. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Savoury Meringue | ||
| 1st Produced: | Ambiance Lunch-Hour Theatre Club at the Almost Free Theatre, London | 1971 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Savoury Meringue and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30859 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: |
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Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Scent of Flowers, A | ||
| 1st Produced: | Duke of York's Theatre, London | 1964 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Deutsch, London, 1965 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30860 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 7 | Female | 2 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | a girl has died in deep distress and, as the priest and the undertaker's men proceed with burial, she is present on stage | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Slight Accident, A | ||
| 1st Produced: | Nottingham | 1961 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30861 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 2 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | a wife seeks to explain the accidental shooting of her husband | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Squat | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1976 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | ISBN/ASIN: | - | ||||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30862 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | 60 min One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 3 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | a documentary about Grosvenor Road, Twickenham. http://www.wussu.com/squatting/grosroad.htm | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Travails of Sancho Panza, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | National Theatre, London | 1969 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Heinemann, London, 1970 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30863 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Adaptation | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | from Don Quixote by Cervantes | |||||
Synopsis: | Cervantes's story of Don Quixte and his long-suffering servant Sancho Panza has a universal and timeless appeal. James Saunders has taken some favourite episodes from it and woven them into a boisterous and humane comedy. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Triangle | ||
| 1st Produced: | Close Theatre, Glasgow | 1965 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30864 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Monologue Play/Drama | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 1 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | written with others | |||||
Synopsis: | As the play begins, our Actor is undergoing psychoanalysis. Oh yes, the psychiatrist is imaginary. It soon becomes clear that the Actor is involved in a piece of experimental theatre. The nature of the experiment is that he has been given 20 minutes of script, and contracted to perform for at least 40 minutes. As a result, his scathing wit has free reign as he meanders from text to improv and back again. One more thing - he has an insatiable appetite for whisky, and is close to a nervous breakdown. Fun for all the family. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Trio | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1967 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Neighbours and Other Plays", Deutsh, London, 1968 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30865 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Violent Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 1 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | Trio was one of a series of sketches written in 1964. . . It's about a performance in front of a public. It keeps getting interrupted and the cellist's joke of aiming his bow like a rifle at a noisy aeroplane is developed into more elaborate visual jokes as the musicians are beseiged by real or imaginary insects. There is some clowning with a fly-spray, and sound-effects are added in as we get bursts of machine-gun fire from the violin and the cello is used as an anti-aircraft gun. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
What Theatre Really Is | ||
| 1st Produced: | - - - | - - - | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Play 10", Arnold, London, 1977 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30866 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | Ten Min | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | - | ||
Parts other: | 18 characters | |||||
Notes: | - | |||||
Synopsis: | Any number can play. But for convenience I have assumed nine actors, designated by numbers, and nine members of the auduience, designated by letters. This play was written to be done in a classroom (though, if you want to have a go at adapting it for a 'real' stage and a 'real' audience, you can). The play is unfinished. What follows, I imagine, is that the teacher, playing the part of The Teacher, brilliantly resolves the paradox; this is followed by an improvised discussion, or argument, or riot; and the bell goes, or the police are called. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
Who Was Hilary Maconochie? | ||
| 1st Produced: | 1963 | |||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | in "Savoury Meringue and Other Plays", Amber Lane Press, Ambergate, Derbyshire, 1980 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #30867 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
|
| ||||||
Genre: | One Act | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | 3 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | The first professional production was by the Theatre In The Round Company in Scarborough (Yorkshire, England), in 1963 | |||||
Synopsis: |
| |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
|
