Search results for ""NICK HERN BOOKS""
Nick Hern Books Game
In a housing crisis, a young couple are offered a home of their own. But at what price? Mike Bartlett's provocative play Game invites us to spy on a family as they embark on a dangerous new way to live. Game premiered at the Almeida Theatre, London, in February 2015.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books slope
An intimate and hedonistic examination of a nineteenth-century love triangle, pamela carter's play slope explores the affair between the poets Paul Verlaine and Arthur Rimbaud, and its impact on Verlaine's young wife, Mathilde. Their verbal sparring is scabrous and hilarious, and their rollercoaster relationships as passionate and claustrophobic as they are cruel and ridiculous. Originally produced in 2006 by Untitled Projects, slope returned in a new production by the company at the Glasgow Citizens and the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in 2014.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Hope
'We live in an age of cuts. We are a working-class town, that’s our strength – and in the current climate, our weakness.' An urgent political play from the writer behind Let The Right One In and This is England ’86. Hope is a funny and scathing fable attacking the squeeze on local government. How do you save twenty-two million pounds? Mark and Hilary, the leaders of the Council, are about to find out. Jack Thorne's play Hope premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in November 2014.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Our Few and Evil Days
A chilling yet deeply human story about the limits of devotion. Adele and her parents have always been close. But recently, that closeness has been tainted by an increasing sense of mistrust. Tonight, a visit from a stranger will force them to confront the terrifying reality of their relationship. Mark O'Rowe's play Our Few and Evil Days premiered at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, in September 2014 as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival, in a production directed by the author and featuring Sinéad Cusack and Ciarán Hinds.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Ballyturk
A gut-wrenchingly funny, achingly sad play featuring jaw-dropping moments of physical comedy. The lives of two men unravel over the course of ninety minutes. Where are they? Who are they? What room is this, and what might be beyond the walls? Enda Walsh's play Ballyturk premiered at Galway International Arts Festival in 2014. It subsequently toured Ireland before opening at the National Theatre, London.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books The Girl's Guide to Saving the World
A frank and funny new play about friendship, feminism and what it means to be successful. Jane and Bella are best friends. They're starting a revolution. But they're falling out of step. Toby dreams of babies, buggies, and home improvement. But he can't even father his cat. And that boy keeps telling Jane to take what she wants. But what is that, exactly? Three young people in their late twenties attempt to make sense of their own uncertain worlds. Even if it means losing sight of each other in the process. Elinor Cook's The Girl's Guide to Saving the World was premiered as part of the HighTide Festival in April 2014.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books The Pride
The powerful debut play from Alexi Kaye Campbell, winner of an Olivier Award, the Critics' Circle Award for Most Promising Playwright, and the John Whiting Award for Best New Play. Alternating between 1958 and 2008, The Pride examines changing attitudes to sexuality, looking at intimacy, identity and the courage it takes to be who you really are. The 1958 Philip is in love with Oliver, but married to Sylvia. The 2008 Oliver is addicted to sex with strangers. Sylvia loves them both. The Pride was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs in November 2008. This edition of the play was published alongside its revival at the Trafalgar Studios in the West End in 2013.
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Nick Hern Books A Time to Reap
From a forested Polish village to the blinding lights of London, A Time to Reap looks at one woman's story against the mountain landscape of an evolving nation and one of Poland's hottest political topics – abortion and the Catholic Church. Anna Wakulik's startling play A Time to Reap was first performed, in this English translation by Catherine Grosvenor, at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in February 2013. The play was developed by the Royal Court from its 2011 International Residency for Emerging Playwrights.
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Nick Hern Books The River
On a moonless night in August when the sea trout are ready to run, a man brings his new girlfriend to the remote family cabin where he has come for the fly-fishing since he was a boy. But she's not the only woman he has brought here – or indeed the last. A bewitching story from the author of global smash hit Jerusalem, Jez Butterworth's play The River was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in October 2012.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Egusi Soup
A fast and funny family drama about intergenerational and cross-cultural relationships - containing plenty of spicy bits… It's the anniversary of John Anyia's death, and the Anyias are packing their suitcases, preparing to head home to Nigeria for a memorial service in his honour. But before they go, they're going to have to get rid of some excess baggage. Janice Okoh's play Egusi Soup was first performed as a script-in-hand performance at Menagerie Theatre Company's Hotbed Festival in July 2009 and, in October 2009, embarked on tour in a co-production with Eastern Angles. It was revived in 2012 in a co-production between Menagerie and Soho Theatre, in association with the Mercury Theatre, Colchester.
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Nick Hern Books The Kitchen Sink
An irresistibly funny and tender play about big dreams and small changes. Amid the dreaming, the dramas and the dirty dishes, something has to give. But will it be Kath or the kitchen sink? Things aren't going to plan for one family in Withernsea, Yorkshire. Pieces are falling off Martin's milk float as quickly as he's losing customers and something's up with Kath's kitchen sink. Billy is pinning his hopes of a place at art college on a revealing portrait of Dolly Parton, whilst Sophie's dreams of becoming a ju-jitsu teacher might be disappearing down the plughole. Tom Wells' play The Kitchen Sink was first performed at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2011. It won its author the George Devine Award and the Most Promising Playwright Award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards. This volume also includes the monologue Spacewang, in which a teenage girl roams the streets of Withernsea in search of aliens.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books The Haunting
A spine-chilling play by Hugh Janes, based on several original ghost stories by Charles Dickens. In an ancient, crumbling mansion, sheltering from the howling winds that tear across the surrounding desolate moorland, two men stumble across a dark and terrifying secret that will change both of their lives. When a young book dealer, David Filde, is employed by a former associate of his uncle to catalogue a private library, he finds an incredible array of rare and antiquated books. But as a series of strange and unexplained events conspires to keep Filde from his work, he realises that if he is to convince his sceptical employer that the mysterious phenomena he is experiencing are real, they must journey together to the very edge of terror, and beyond... Hugh Janes' play The Haunting was first performed at the Theatre Royal, Windsor, in 2010. The play offers rich material for amateur theatre companies or student groups who want to introduce their audiences to another side of Dickens' work - and have them jump out of their seats at the same time.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books We are Three Sisters
Poet, playwright and novelist Blake Morrison evokes the lives of the Brontë sisters, with a nod to Chekhov’s Three Sisters. Against the backdrop of a windswept northern village, three remarkable young women live their lives brightly. In Haworth in the 1840s, in a gloomy parsonage, where there are neither curtains nor comforts, Charlotte, Anne and Emily Brontë light up their world with outspoken wit, aspirations, dreams and ideas. And throughout their confined lives intensely lived… they write. With a touch of poetic licence, Morrison shows us the overwhelming humanity, charged emotions and brooding unease which characterise the Brontë household - and that of Chekhov's Three Sisters. Blake Morrison's play We Are Three Sisters was first performed at the Viaduct Theatre, Halifax, in 2011.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Clybourne Park
An acerbically brilliant satire that explores the fault line between race and property. In 1959, Russ and Bev are selling their desirable two-bed for a knock-down price, enabling the first black family to move into the neighbourhood and alarming the cosy white urbanites of Clybourne Park, Chicago. In 2009 the same property is being bought by Lindsey and Steve, a young white couple, whose plan to raze the house and start again is met with a similar response. As the arguments rage and tensions rise, ghosts and racial resentments are once more uncovered... Bruce Norris's play Clybourne Park was first performed at Playwrights Horizons, New York City, in February 2010. The play received its European premiere at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in September 2010, transferring to Wyndham's Theatre in the West End in February 2011. The play received numerous awards, including the London Evening Standard Award for Best Play, the Critics Circle Award for Best New Play, the Olivier Award for Best New Play, the Tony Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
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Nick Hern Books Enda Walsh Plays: One
The first eight astonishing plays by Enda Walsh, 'one of the most dazzling wordsmiths of contemporary theatre' (Guardian). Bursting onto the theatre scene in 1996 with Disco Pigs, Enda Walsh has delivered a sustained fusillade of strikingly original plays ever since. This volume, with a Foreword by the author, contains: The Ginger Ale Boy (1995), Walsh's very first, previously unpublished play, a Cork cabaret about a ventriloquist who loses control. Disco Pigs (1996), his breakthrough play, winner of the 1997 George Devine and Stewart Parker Awards, a play that 'does for Irish kids what Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting did for young Scots' (Daily Telegraph). Misterman (1999, revised in 2012), in which we meet Thomas Magill on his obsessive mission to bring God to the townsfolk of Inishfree. bedbound (2000), his Fringe First Award-winning play, in which a father and daughter are trapped in their own compulsive and claustrophobic story. The Small Things (2005), a 'harrowingly precise and poetic' (Guardian) exploration of language and our need for words to survive. Chatroom (2005), a chilling tale of teenage manipulation that was written for the National Theatre's 2005 Connections season. Also included are two previously unpublished short plays, How These Desperate Men Talk (2004) and Lynndie's Gotta Gun (2005), written during Walsh's time working with European theatremakers.
£17.09
Nick Hern Books Speechless
The true-life drama of the extraordinary bond between two identical twin girls and their struggle to find a voice. Refusing to speak to adults, identical twins June and Jennifer Gibbons communicate in their own private language, their only relationship being their intense and turbulent bond with each other. Inspired by Marjorie Wallace's bestselling book The Silent Twins, Polly Teale and Linda Brogan's powerful play is an astonishing and moving portrayal of the secret world of a very special but ultimately destructive alliance between two sisters. Speechless was first performed by Shared Experience and Sherman Theatre Cymru at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in 2010. It was the winner of an Edinburgh Fringe First Award.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Lilies on the Land
A revealing, funny and wonderfully moving portrait of four women who sign up to join the Women's Land Army during World War II. Based on one hundred and fifty letters and interviews with original Land Girls, along with songs from the period, Lilies on the Land charts the personal journeys of four women who join the Women's Land Army – determined to work endless backbreaking hours on farms across the country in a bid to do their best for the War Effort. But how do these women, all hailing from different walks of life, torn from their families and bereft of all basic home comforts, deal with the hardships of farming life and the pressures of war? Maybe work clothes full of mice and toilet rolls falling from the sky are just what it takes for these girls to get through… Lilies on the Land was devised and first performed by the Lions part in a 2001 touring production. It was revived at the Arts Theatre in the West End in 2010, and then toured in 2011 and 2012. This edition includes notes on staging and performing the play.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books An Attitude for Acting: How to Survive (and Thrive) as an Actor
A 'how to' book for actors who want to develop a 'can do' attitude to their profession in the face of rejection and intense competition. Feeling despondent about the acting profession? Been out of work for longer than you care to remember? Starting to resent the injustices of the job and the success of other actors? If so, An Attitude for Acting will inspire you to break out of the cycle of despondency and start to view yourself as a creative and autonomous individual who is valuable and employable. The book focuses on: • Maintaining a healthy attitude • Dealing with negative emotions • Keeping productive and motivated • Developing self-belief and getting the support you need • Turning discouragement into activity and opportunity • Coping with nerves • Preparing for auditions • Being included and not feeling left out • Building a value system that includes trust, responsibility, flexibility, creativity, adaptability and courage The book, by theatre director/teacher Andrew Tidmarsh and executive coach/neuroscientist Dr Tara Swart, contains a series of intensely 'hands-on' exercises – some for practising alone, others for doing with friends or colleagues. These techniques will enable you to free yourself from potential states of inertia and hopelessness, and prevent any feelings of worthlessness becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. Instead, you will develop a self-confident, 'can-do' mentality that will help you shape the career you want. Whether you've just completed your training and want to start your career with confidence or you’ve been acting a while and are having difficulty planning the next stage, this book will help you on your path to surviving – and thriving – as an actor.
£14.99
Nick Hern Books random
An urgent play about the senseless killing of a black schoolboy, from one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary British playwriting. 'Death never used to be for the young. You get up. You go bout your business. You expect to come back.' debbie tucker green's play random was first performed at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, London, in March 2008, directed by Sacha Wares and performed by Nadine Marshall. A television adaptation for Channel 4, directed by debbie tucker green and starring Nadine Marshall alongside an expanded cast, was first broadcast in August 2011. It went on to win a BAFTA for Best Single Drama.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Me, As A Penguin
A charmingly offbeat, surreal comedy of knitting, penguins and Battenberg. Stitch is hitting the gay scene of Hull. Or at least dipping his toe in the water, while staying with his heavily pregnant sister Liz and her shabby sofa-loving partner Mark. But why won't Stitch let anyone into the bathroom even though Liz is dying for a pee? And who is the man in the giant penguin costume? Tom Wells' play Me, As A Penguin premiered at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds in 2009 as part of their new-writing season, Northern Exposure. It subsequently went on a regional tour including a run at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2010. This volume also includes two monologues by Tom Wells, About a Goth and Notes for First Time Astronauts.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Little Gem
Love, sex, birth, death and salsa classes. Three generations of women. One extraordinary year. Amber has fierce bad indigestion and the sambucas aren't getting rid of it. Lorraine attacks a customer and her boss wants her to see a psychiatrist. Kay's got an itch 'down there' that Gem can't scratch. And if all that wasn't bad enough, Little Gem makes his presence felt and – well – life is never the same again. Elaine Murphy's play Little Gem was first staged by Guna Nua and Civic Theatre, Tallaght, in 2008, then at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in 2009. It won the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award, the BBC Northern Ireland Drama Award in Association with the Stewart Parker Trust, and the Fishamble Award for Best New Irish Writing.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Speaking in Tongues
A powerful study of infidelity and interwoven lives, filmed as the award-winning Lantana. A woman disappears. Four marriages become entangled in a web of love, deceit, sex and death. Who will survive? Nine parallel lives – interlocked by four infidelities, one missing person and a mysterious stiletto – are woven through a fragmented series of confessionals and interrogations that gradually reveal a darker side of human nature. Andrew Bovell's play Speaking in Tongues was first performed in August 1996 in a production by Griffin Theatre Company at The Stables, Sydney, Australia. It was later adapted by Bovell into the screenplay for the feature film Lantana (2001). The play was first performed in the UK at Hampstead Theatre, London, in June 2000, and was revived at the Duke of York's Theatre in the West End in September 2009.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Fixer
An unsettling, intelligent and savagely funny play about oil geopolitics and the price of human life. An attack on a pipeline in Northern Nigeria. Journalists and PR consultants rush to the scene. Everyone wants control of the story - and they're prepared to pay. For the reporters, this could be the exclusive that makes their careers. For Chuks, their fixer, the stakes are even higher. Lydia Adetunji's play Fixer premiered at the Oval House Theatre, London, in 2011, as part of the 'London via Lagos' new writing festival.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Overspill
A poetic, explosive thriller about three young men on a night out that ends in violence. In Bromley every Friday night, same time and place, Potts, Baron and Finch get ready for their weekly dose of booze, birds and burgers. But their night out takes a dramatic and terrifying twist when an explosion rocks the town centre, and a suspicious population points the finger at them. 'Overspill is set in Bromley, but it could be set in any town anywhere in the UK. There are hundreds of Bromleys in Britain… These are the towns that millions of us grow up in.' - Ali Taylor Ali Taylor's play Overspill was the winner of Metamorphosis 08, a competition organised by Bromley's theatre, The Churchill. It was first performed at The Churchill in June 2008, transferring to Soho Theatre, London, in October 2008.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Stage Management: The Essential Handbook
The highly successful 'Bible for any stage manager', now in a revised and updated edition. The stage manager is at the core of every successful theatre production: organising, managing and running rehearsals and performances; researching and procuring the props and furniture; and providing a creative information flow between the production and design departments. This handbook is for students, graduates and all those who aspire to stage management, whether amateur or professional, on a large or small scale. Complete with charts and helpful checklists, it takes the reader through a typical production, week by week. Other useful topics covered are: Team dynamics and job roles Theatre unions Health and Safety legislation The job market Stage management tech Production templates Management techniques and interpersonal skills As well as updated information and resources throughout, this new edition includes two brand new chapters: case studies of professional stage managers and producers working in the field, and an essay on creativity in stage management. 'A comprehensive guide for the aspiring stage manager' Alan Ayckbourn
£15.29
Nick Hern Books Secrets
An adaptation for the stage of Jacqueline Wilson's popular novel. India and Treasure come from very different backgrounds but soon become the best of friends. Together they escape from their problems by writing diaries, inspired by their heroine, Anne Frank. But when secrets start jumping off the page and into real life, Treasure and India find themselves in deep trouble. First staged at Polka Children's Theatre in 2008, this adaptation of Secrets is suitable for young actors as well as young audiences. The adapter, Vicky Ireland, has provided production notes to indicate how the play can be staged even with minimal resources - plus a lot of ingenuity!
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Shakespeare Monologues for Women
THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills Each Good Audition Guide contains a range of fresh monologues, all prefaced with a summary of the vital information you need to place the piece in context and to perform it to maximum effect in your own unique way. Each volume also carries a user-friendly introduction on the whole process of auditioning. Shakespeare Monologues for Women contains 50 monologues drawn from across the Shakespeare canon. Each speech is prefaced with an easy-to-use guide to Who is speaking, Where, When and To Whom, What has just happened in the play and What are the character's objectives. In fact, everything the actor needs to know before embarking on the audition! Shakespeare Monologues for Women is edited by director, teacher and academic Luke Dixon. 'Sound practical advice for anyone attending an audition' Teaching Drama Magazine on the Good Audition Guides
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Sandpaper on Sunburn
The personal becomes political in a funny and fascinating play exploring identity and family. Premiered at the Dublin Theatre Festival in September 2024.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Steel
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Through the Mud
The story of two generations of women activists in the struggle for Black liberation in America. From the Fringe First-winning creator of the hit show Black is the Color of My Voice.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books My Mothers Funeral The Show
A play exploring the inequalities we face around death, and the cost of turning your loved ones into art. Premiered by Paines Plough in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Shout
A funny, moving drama about anxiety, celebrating difference, and finding your voice as a teenager. Part of the 2024 National Theatre Connections Festival.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Surrender
A gripping play about a woman trying to survive in a punishing and dysfunctional penal system that has separated her from her daughter. Premiered at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Slave Play
A play that rips apart history to shed new light on the nexus of race, gender, and sexuality in twenty-first-century America. New edition published alongside the West End production in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Other Boleyn Girl
A racy and riveting drama of intrigue at the Tudor court, based on Philippa Gregory's internationally bestselling novel.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Peanut Butter Blueberries
A tender and bittersweet love story that explores how to love when the weight of the world is on your shoulders. First performed at Kiln Theatre, London, in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Red Pitch
A fast-paced and sharp-edged play telling a coming-of-age story about three young footballers, exploring the impact of gentrification and regeneration on London's communities. Winner of the 2022 George Devine Award.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Gunter
The hit play about deception, witchcraft and football, winner of a Fringe First at the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe, then at the Royal Court Theatre, London.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Legend of Ned Ludd
A powerful and innovative play about work, automation and capitalism's impact, premiered at the Liverpool Everyman in 2024.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Peak Stuff
'I like having things. I like having lots of things. It reminds me that I'm... Y'know? A person.' Alice is done with fast fashion. Ben can't stop buying trainers. And Charlie just wants to sell out… one organ at a time. Billie Collins's play Peak Stuff is a fast-paced, funny, fearless deep-dive into consumer culture. In an age of retail therapy, climate crisis and click and collect - how does our 'stuff' define us? And have we reached peak stuff? The play was commissioned by ThickSkin and Lawrence Batley Theatre, was a winner of the New Play Commission Scheme, and was first presented on tour of the UK in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Peter Pan
'All children grow up, except one.' Chasing his runaway shadow, a mischievous young boy who will never grow up crash lands through an open window and meets a headstrong young girl who is desperate to be an adult. With a sprinkle of fairy dust, they take flight on a whirlwind voyage over pirate ships, through mermaid lagoons and into the heart of Neverland. Adapted from J.M. Barrie's perennial favourite, this enchanting new version by Evan Placey, with songs by Vikki Stone, premiered in 2023 at Rose Theatre, Kingston upon Thames, directed by Lucy Morrell. It was commissioned by the Rose to be performed by twenty members of the Rose Youth Theatre alongside four professional adult actors. It offers rich opportunities for other theatre companies who want to keep their audiences hooked with a magical, musical classic. 50% of royalties from the sale of this book and amateur performance licences are donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital, London.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Metamorphosis
Gregor Samsa wakes up each morning, quietly leaves the house to take the same train, and works to pay off the family debt. But that world explodes one morning, when Gregor awakes to find himself changed. To those around him he is dangerous, untouchable vermin. Worse than that, he is a burden. Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka's shocking tale of cruelty and kindness, has been a literary landmark since it was first published in 1915. Lemn Sissay's thrilling stage adaptation is a visceral and vital depiction of humans struggling within a system that crushes them under its heel. It was commissioned and first produced in 2023 by Frantic Assembly, in a co-production with Theatre Royal Plymouth, Curve, MAST Mayflower Studios and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, and was directed by Scott Graham.
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Nick Hern Books James Fritz Plays: One
A playwright known for dazzling structural inventiveness combined with emotional intelligence and wit, James Fritz is a unique voice in British theatre. His work, reflected in these six plays covering the first decade of his career, confronts the fault lines in our culture with thrilling imagination, an unflinching moral seriousness and a warm, compassionate sense of humour. Four Minutes Twelve Seconds (Hampstead Theatre, 2014; Trafalgar Studios, 2015; winner of the Critics' Circle Award for Most Promising Playwright) is a 'morally terrifying drama' (Evening Standard) that unpicks the trust between parents and their teenage offspring in an age of selfies and sexting. Ross & Rachel (Edinburgh Fringe, 2015; Off-Broadway, 2016) is a 'dialogue for one' that takes an incisive look at the myths of modern love. 'Shockingly good... a virtuosic piece of writing, playful, post-modern and devastatingly serious, all at once' Time Out Parliament Square (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, and Bush Theatre, London, 2017; winner of the Judges' Award, Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting) is a searingly powerful exploration of what one individual can do to effect change. 'There are few playwrights working in Britain today whose work is as slick and unsettling as James Fritz's' Exeunt Lava (Nottingham Playhouse/Fifth Word, 2018; revived 2022) is a funny, tender and moving story about friendship and reconnection in the aftermath of catastrophe. 'Compassionate, warm and funny... Fritz's plays find reservoirs of humour in places you wouldn't expect' The Stage Skyscraper Lullaby (Audible Original, 2022) is a powerful drama, first written as an audio play, about two parents trying to come to terms with the disappearance of their toddler, a haunting examination of the ways we cope with tragedy, complicity and remorse. Also included is a previously unpublished short play, twins (Arcola Theatre, 2015), as well as a playful and illuminating introduction written by the author.
£17.99
Nick Hern Books The Flea
'We'll start with the flea, because that's as good a place as any...' July 1889, London. A flea bites a rat. A rat spooks a horse. A horse kicks a man. As the chain reaction continues, a boy and his mother find themselves swept up in a national scandal that will reshape both their lives – and the country. James Fritz's play The Flea is a retelling of the Cleveland Street Scandal that shook England – from the streets of Bermondsey to the halls of Buckingham Palace – and features a flea, a horse, a detective, a queen, a pimp, a god, and Charlie, the telegraph boy who knelt before the Crown. This anarchic and affecting play was first performed at The Yard Theatre, London, in October 2023, directed by Artistic Director Jay Miller. 'There are few playwrights working in Britain today whose work is as slick and unsettling as James Fritz's' Exeunt 'Fritz's work pairs structural playfulness with emotional intelligence and inky wit... his plays are contained and compassionate, and frequently find reservoirs of humour in places you wouldn't expect' The Stage
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Octopolis
'There were three people in my marriage… Three people and twelve legs.' Professor George Grey is world-renowned for her pioneering research into octopus intelligence. Recently bereaved, her closest relationship these days is with her research subject: Frances, who resides in a large, purpose-built tank in George's campus accommodation. But when ambitious anthropologist Harry enters her life, his breathtaking new theory threatens to tear her world apart in more ways than one… A play for two actors – and one octopus – Octopolis by Marek Horn is a fascinating and funny exploration of love, grief and what makes us human. It premiered at Hampstead Theatre, London, in September 2023, directed by Ed Madden.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Thrown
'We can be strong. We can be loud. We can be brutal. And if it makes people uncomfortable? Good.' Five wildly different women gather in the muddy fields of the Highland Games circuit to compete in the obscure art of Backhold Wrestling. Can bold beginners Imogen, Chantelle, Jo, Pamela and Helen transform themselves into a team and win the championship? Or will their differences sabotage them, and send them face-planting into the mud? The pearls are off, influencer videos posted and 'Gucci' bags from the Barras Market set aside. This is it. Hold on tight. A poignant, dynamic exploration of belonging and identity, Nat McCleary's play Thrown opened in 2023 at Victoria Hall, Dunblane, directed by Johnny McKnight, before embarking on a Scottish tour which culminated in a run at the Traverse Theatre, as part of the Edinburgh International Festival.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Suspicions of Mr Whicher
Summer 1860, an elegant country house, a young boy is found dead in an outside privy. All clues point towards the murderer being a member of the grieving household. Called to the scene is the most celebrated detective of his day, Jonathan Whicher from Scotland Yard. But this case challenges him in ways he's never been challenged before. Over twenty years later, still haunted by the case, Whicher visits the murderer. As they replay the past, they start to question the nature of truth, the desire for certainty and the possibility of redemption. This compelling stage adaptation of Kate Summerscale's gripping bestseller opened at The Watermill Theatre, Newbury, in May 2023. This ensemble piece provides rich opportunities for companies looking to intrigue their audiences with a fresh take on a dark Victorian mystery.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Misandrist
'Maybe it's in the air. Maybe it's the weather. Maybe it's the pace of life. Maybe it's breathing in that black soot everyday on the tube. Maybe it's commuting. Maybe it's the cultural consciousness. Maybe it's being a millennial. Maybe it's the climate crisis. Maybe it's the patriarchy.' When 'intimidating' Rachel and eternal 'nice guy' Nick meet at an awkward work Christmas party, what was meant to be a one-night-stand becomes a sexual odyssey of self-discovery… and mutual destruction. Adrift, isolated and insecure, they scramble for new ways to connect. Can some playful, passionate pegging provide a pathway through the pitfalls of modern relationships and present the possibility of a deeper bond? A penetrating comedy about the search for sexual knowledge, true love and top-notch Tupperware, Lisa Carroll's play The Misandrist was first produced by Metal Rabbit Productions at the Arcola Theatre, London, in May 2023.
£10.99