Search results for ""NICK HERN BOOKS""

Everyone creates their own coping strategies or rules for living. But what happens when an extended family gathers in the kitchen for a traditional Christmas and they each follow those rules, rigidly? As long-held mechanisms for survival are laid bare, even Mum, who's been preparing this lunch since last January, becomes embroiled. Time-honoured rivalries and resentments will out. Accusations fly, relationships deconstruct, the rules take over. In Sam Holcroft's theatrically playful, dark comedy the instructions are there for all to see, audience included - so there's really no place to hide. Rules for Living premiered at the National Theatre, London, in March 2015.

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A practical guide to creating successful immersive theatre productions, by an experienced theatre-maker and practitioner. Placing the audience at the heart of a production – not as passive bystanders but as active participants – is the impetus behind the hugely varied work of leading immersive theatre companies such as Punchdrunk, OneOhOne and Hobo Theatre. Done well, it can generate powerful, gut-level emotional effects that will long outlast the production itself. Creating Worlds offers a step-by-step breakdown of the entire journey towards making an immersive theatre production, and covers everything you need to consider, including: Deciding what kind of production you want to make, and the ‘mission statement’ for your piece Understanding and anticipating audience behaviour Planning and influencing journeys through the space Balancing interaction with narrative Giving your audience an active role, and navigating the thin line between free will and uncontrolled chaos Managing complex rehearsals, and preparing your cast for the unexpected Extending the audience experience outside of the performance Generating innovative ideas and tactics for marketing your production Throughout the book, Jason Warren draws on his own experiences of creating immersive theatre work in a variety of styles and settings. Also included is a glossary of key terms, and a schedule to help you make the most of your rehearsal period. An essential how-to guide for theatre-makers, artists, students and teachers who want to create their own immersive theatre, Creating Worlds is also a fascinating read for those interested in the inspirations and ideas that fuel the performances they love. ‘The joy of working in this field is that there is so much left to discover… my aim with this book is to help you craft your own beliefs on what makes good immersive theatre – and to create responsive and rich worlds of your own.’ Jason Warren

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An inventive, fast-paced comedy featuring P.G. Wodehouse’s iconic double act. Winner of the 2014 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. When a country house weekend takes a turn for the worse, Bertie Wooster is unwittingly called on to play matchmaker – reconciling the affections of his host’s drippy daughter Madeline Bassett with his newt-fancying acquaintance Gussie Fink-Nottle. If Bertie, ably assisted by the ever-dependable Jeeves, can’t pull off the wedding of the season he’ll be forced to abandon his cherished bachelor status and marry the ghastly girl himself! Based on P.G. Wodehouse’s delightfully bonkers stories, especially The Code of the Woosters, the Goodale Brothers’ dramatisation premiered at the Duke of York's Theatre, West End, in November 2013, prior to a UK tour. Written for a cast of three, who play multiple roles, this adaptation will suit any theatre company or drama group looking for a comic play to perform.

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In The Viewpoints Book, first published in the United States, acclaimed theatre directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau introduce the history, terminology and philosophy of Viewpoints, and offer a step-by-step recipe for using it as both a training tool and a rehearsal technique. Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the post-modern dance world, allowing actors to learn to function spontaneously and intuitively. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, whose ideas have been expanded and developed by Anne Bogart and Tina Landau, adapting them for the use of actors. Over the last twenty years, Viewpoints has ignited the imaginations of actors, directors, designers, choreographers, dramaturgs and writers. It is taught all over the world and used by countless theatre-makers in the rehearsal process to develop flexibility, articulation and strength in movement, and to enrich ensemble playing. An invaluable resource for theatre-makers, as well as for anyone with an interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life. 'Viewpoints is timeless – a system belonging to the natural principles of movement, time and space. It is a philosophy translated into a technique for training performers, building ensemble, and creating movement for the stage' Anne Bogart and Tina Landau

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An arresting and angry look at conflict and its effect on soldiers returning home – to a world they no longer know how to cope with, and a society that doesn't know how to cope with them. Carl doesn't fit in at home. He doesn't fit in anywhere. When he signs up for the Army, he sees it as a way out of his life in Blackpool. But the Army takes him to Afghanistan. And when he comes home, it's not as a war hero but as a changed man. Gareth Farr's play Britannia Waves the Rules won a Judges' Award in the 2011 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting. It premiered at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, in May 2014.

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A powerful, provocative play about international relations and the shifting balance of power between East and West. Winner of the Olivier Award for Best New Play (2014), the Evening Standard Best Play Award (2013), the Critics' Circle Best New Play Award (2014), and the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Tiananmen Square, 1989. As tanks roll through Beijing and soldiers hammer on his hotel door, Joe – a young American photojournalist – captures a piece of history. New York, 2012. Joe is covering a presidential election, marred by debate over cheap labour and the outsourcing of American jobs to Chinese factories. When a cryptic message is left in a Beijing newspaper, Joe is driven to discover the truth behind the unknown hero he captured on film. Who was he? What happened to him? And could he still be alive? A gripping political examination and an engaging personal drama, Chimerica examines the changing fortunes of two countries whose futures will shape the whole world. Lucy Kirkwood's play Chimerica was first performed at the Almeida Theatre, London, in 2013 before transferring to the Harold Pinter Theatre in the West End.

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By turns dark and shimmering, Moth is a fast, funny and heartbreaking story about two young people with nowhere to go. Sebastian is "that kid" at high school. He's weird. He smells. He's obsessed with comics, and talks to himself. But after a catastrophic fallout with his only friend, Claryssa, he wakes up with a moth in a jar by his bed, and a calling to save the souls of all humanity. And so begins the Passion of Sebastian: a journey into a terrifying and starless night. Declan Greene's play Moth was first produced by Arena Theatre and Malthouse Theatre at the CUB Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne, in May 2010. It was premiered in the UK at HighTide Festival and the Bush Theatre, London, in 2013.

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Drama Menu is a brand new concept for planning and delivering dynamic, progressive drama lessons and workshops. Packed with over 150 tried-and-tested theatre games, exercises and improvisation ideas, it’s an essential resource for any drama teacher or workshop leader – guaranteed to deliver delicious drama sessions every time. Simply make a selection from each of the three courses, and your whole drama session will come to life with new-found energy and focus: Appetisers are fast-paced warm-up exercises to energise and enthuse the group; Starters are the intermediary course to challenge the players and encourage creativity; Main Courses provide the central part of the session, culminating in a final performance piece; And a few Desserts are also provided, if you have some space at the end of your session for something sweet. Drama Menu is the recipe book that will relieve the stress of planning lessons and workshops. Now you can get on with what you do best: delivering creative drama sessions that will have your groups hungry for more. Join the online Drama Menu community, browse and share other recommended menus, and download a comprehensive Resource Pack and selection of sound effects, providing everything you need to start playing straight away.

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A blackly comic vision of Dublin infested with demons. 'We go, see the slo-mo ebb and flow; the mill, the babble, the rabble of wobbling waywards, exiled and aimless, unlike us as, purposeful and double-file, like kids on a dare, we head who the fuck knows where?' Three people are ripped from their daily lives and catapulted into a fantastical world of singing serial killers, avenging angels and lovesick demons. Hold tight as the ordinary turns extraordinary in Mark O'Rowe's urban fantasy. Terminus was first performed at the Abbey Theatre Peacock, Dublin, in June 2007. The production transferred to the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in August 2008 as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where it was awarded a Fringe First.

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In 1845, Branwell Bronte returns home in disgrace, plagued by his addictions. As he descends into alcoholism and insanity, bringing chaos to the household, his sisters write - Polly Teale's extraordinary play evokes the real and imagined worlds of the Brontes, as their fictional characters come to haunt their creators. Bronte was originally produced by Shared Experience in 2005. It was revived by the company in 2010, in a co-production with the Watermill Theatre, Newbury, directed by Nancy Meckler.

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A harrowing, intense drama about people-trafficking, set inside a container lorry. A freight container, somewhere in Europe. Inside are five people with one common aim: to reach England and start a new life. Can they trust the agent to get them there? Can they rely on each other? And how far will each of them go to get what they want? Clare Bayley's play The Container was first performed (inside an actual container lorry) at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2007. It won a Fringe First Award for outstanding new writing on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and an Amnesty Freedom of Expression Award.

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Eight compelling monologues offering a state-of-the-nation group portrait for the stage. From Millie, the jolly-hockey-sticks prostitute who mourns the loss of the good old British class system, to Miles, a 7/7 survivor, and Danny, an ex-squaddie who makes friends in morgues, Eight looks at what has happened to a generation that has grown up in a world where everything has become acceptable. Ella Hickson's play Eight was first staged at Bedlam Theatre, Edinburgh, during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, in August 2008. It was awarded a Fringe First Award and the Carol Tambor 'Best of Edinburgh' Award. The production transferred to Performance Space 122, New York, as part of the COIL Festival, in January 2009, and then to Trafalgar Studios, London, in July 2009. In its original performances, each audience voted for four of the eight monologues that they wished to see, resulting in a different line-up at every performance. A ninth unperformed monologue is included in this edition. The monologues are ideal for performance by student and amateur groups; any number and any combination can be performed. They also provide excellent opportunities for actors looking for audition material.

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As part of the ever-growing, increasingly popular Drama Games series, Jessica Swale returns with another dip-in, flick-through, quick-fire resource book, packed with dozens of drama games that can be used in the process of devising theatre. The games will be invaluable to directors and theatre companies at all levels who are creating new pieces of theatre from scratch and need lively, dynamic games to fire the imagination. They will particularly appeal to school, youth theatre and community groups where devising is a growing trend – and a core element of the drama curriculum. Written with clear instructions on How to Play, notes on the Aim of the Game, and illuminating examples from professional productions, the games cover every aspect of the devising process and develop all the skills required: generating ideas, creating characters and scenarios, using stimuli, structuring the piece, and creating an ensemble. Mike Leigh, the most dedicated and celebrated creator of devised work, hails the book in his foreword as 'highly original and massively useful'. 'A remarkable compendium of games and exercises… a lively starting point for rich invention' Mike Leigh, from his Foreword

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Ibsen's provocative play about truth in a society driven by power and money, given a startling contemporary spin in Thomas Ostermeier and Florian Borchmeyer's acclaimed version, here in an English translation by Duncan Macmillan.

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An inspirational book on acting, tackling the fundamental questions that face any actor. By a world-leading theatre director, the founder of Cheek by Jowl.

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'I said no one should ever try to recreate this. This is agony in its purest form.' Five women in Northern California lie outside on chaises longues and philosophise. But can you ever communicate what it feels like to be inside your own body? Annie Baker's play Infinite Life is a surprisingly funny inquiry into the complexity of suffering, and what it means to desire in a body that's failing. It was first produced in a co-production between the National Theatre, London, and Atlantic Theater Company, New York, and performed at both theatres in 2023, directed by James Macdonald.

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When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle's great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. Left to make her own entertainment, Mary stumbles upon a garden, overgrown and locked for years. A forbidden garden. Finding her way inside, with the help of a friendly robin, Mary begins to feel a connection to the house and its inhabitants. Then, one night, in one of the house's many rooms, she hears the sound of crying... Frances Hodgson Burnett's delightful and enduring tale celebrates the power of transformation and healing through nature. Elizabeth Newman's magical adaptation was premiered at Pitlochry Festival Theatre's open-air amphitheatre in 2023, where Newman is Artistic Director. This version will appeal to other professional and amateur companies looking for a much-loved classic that can be easily staged in theatres, outdoor venues – and gardens.

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'We're dying of manners. We're under siege from personal embarrassment. This is not sane. This is not rational. That woman is a monster!' While on holiday, Peter and Debbie befriend Elsa: a lusty, Trump-loving widow from Denver, USA. She's less than woke but kind of wonderful. They agree to stay in touch – because no one ever really does, do they? When Elsa invites herself to stay a few months later, they decide to look her up online. Too late, they learn the truth about Elsa Jean Krakowski. Deadly danger has just boarded a flight to London! But how do you protect all that you love from mortal peril without seeming, well, a bit impolite? Because guess who's coming... to murder! Steven Moffat's play The Unfriend takes a hilarious and satirical look at middle-class England's disastrous instinct always to appear nice. It was first performed at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester, in 2022, before transferring to London's West End – first to the Criterion Theatre, then to Wyndham's – in 2023. Steven Moffat is an award-winning writer whose internationally successful television shows include Doctor Who, Sherlock and Dracula – the latter two co-written with actor and writer Mark Gatiss, who made his stage directorial debut with The Unfriend.

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'Only what is open and searching is active and alive. You, the actor, must learn to find security in insecurity, certainty in uncertainty, to trust that this will lead to discovery and growth.' In What Actors Do, revered theatre director Mike Alfreds explores the wellspring of the actor's craft, tracing a pathway to creative freedom through the thickets of competing methodologies and confusing paradoxes that you will face throughout your training and career. How do you give life to a character that both is and isn't yourself? How can you be childlike and open in your work without becoming childish? How, when you know what's coming next, can you still be spontaneous? Frank, uncompromising and full of sharply focused insights, this book will help you strip away the inhibitions and habitual thinking that can shackle our imaginations. It will show you how to generate truthful performances by trusting your inner creativity and remaining radically open, responsive and present in every moment. Mike Alfreds has been directing plays for more than seventy years. In the 1970s he founded Shared Experience, and has since worked for the National Theatre, Shakespeare's Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company and also extensively abroad. He is hugely respected within the profession, and is the author of two previous books, Different Every Night and Then What Happens? 'If I was allowed to train again to be an actor, but I was only allowed one teacher, it would have to be Mike Alfreds. To me he is a genius when it comes to acting and storytelling' Mark Rylance

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'I'm thirty-six, I'm a comedian, and I'm about to kill my boyfriend.' A permanently single, professionally neurotic stand-up comedian finally meets his Mr Right – and then does everything wrong. Is Mr Right quite what he seems? And just how far will the comedian go to get a laugh? Marcelo Dos Santos's play Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen is a dark and biting one-man show about vulnerability, intimacy, ego and truth. It premiered in the Roundabout at the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, produced by Francesca Moody Productions, directed by Matthew Xia, and starring Samuel Barnett. The play received an Edinburgh Fringe First Award, and Samuel Barnett was named the first winner of The Stage Edinburgh Awards 2022 for his performance.

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Patricia has spent a year recovering from an abusive relationship. But when she bumps into her ex on the street, she accidentally agrees to go to dinner with him that night. Now she's got some big decisions to make. What to wear? What to say? And... whether or not to go? Martha Watson Allpress's Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her) is a play for one actor that was first seen at VAULT Festival 2020, directed by Kaleya Baxe and performed by Angelina Chudi, then at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2021, winning numerous awards and receiving rave reviews. It was revived on a UK tour in 2022, performed by Yasmin Dawes, including a run at Brixton House, London.

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'Dear Miss Tweetwell, the ladder is where I live. For at the top lies reputation and wealth and at the bottom: ignominy and squalor.' When noble heroine Miss Phoebe Virtue receives worrisome news on Instagram that her twin brother Jack may be endangering his reputation in London Town, she decides she must visit herself, and investigate... Set in contemporary, post-pandemic London, full of illicit sex, political hypocrisy and the machinations of a fame-hungry elite, Scandaltown is a comedy for the new Restoration of the theatres. Mike Bartlett's play was first produced by the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, in association with Fictional Company, at the Lyric in April 2022, directed by Artistic Director Rachel O'Riordan. '[Mike Bartlett] is one of the prime movers in a new golden generation of British playwrights' Independent

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The Crump family is adrift. Widowed Godfrey is under the spell of Sweet Father Divine, while his daughters, Ernestine and Ermina, immerse themselves in Hollywood illusions to escape racial prejudice. But things change when free-spirited Aunt Lily shows up.

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A disastrous family reunion is the occasion for a sharp and perceptive look at what has happened to 60s idealists and their children. Kristin Miller is an eminent and successful art historian. As a young mother she followed her politics and vocation, storming Parisian barricades and moving to Florence. Her birthday should be a time for celebration but, when her two sons deliver their versions of the past, everyone must confront the cost of Kristin‘s commitment to her passions. Alexi Kaye Campbell's play Apologia premiered at The Bush Theatre, London, in 2009. It was revived at the Trafalgar Studios, London, in 2017, directed by Jamie Lloyd.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price A rumbustious Elizabethan comedy featuring identity fraud, love triangles and a marriage proposal disguised as a shoe fitting. Thomas Dekker's play The Shoemaker's Holiday was first staged in London in 1599. This edition of the play, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is edited and introduced by Peter J. Smith.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Frank Wedekind's famously banned German play written in 1891 focuses on a group of classmates and explores adolescent sexuality and the emotional consequences if suppressed. This edition of Spring Awakening in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series is an English translation by Julian Forsyth and Margarete Forsyth.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price A Jacobean gore-fest of enforced seduction and ultimate revenge. Written in 1623, two years after The Changeling, Women Beware Women is the second of Thomas Middleton's two great tragedies. It is the story of the corruption of three young people, seduced and destroyed by the lust and treachery of the court of the Duke of Florence. This edition, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is edited and Introduced by Colin Counsell.

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101 great drama games for use in any classroom or workshop setting. Part of the Nick Hern Books Drama Games series. A dip-in, flick-through, quick-fire resource book, packed with 101 lively drama games suitable for players of all ages, with many appropriate for children from age 6 upwards. Whilst aimed primarily at school, youth theatre and community groups, they are equally fun - and instructional - for adults to play in workshop or rehearsal settings. 'An extraordinarily helpful compendium... a valuable help to directors, teachers and workshop leaders' Max Stafford-Clark, from his Foreword

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Euripides' version of the Ancient Greek myth of revenge on a murdering parent. Electra's brother Orestes returns to avenge the murder of his father, Agamemnon, by his mother Clytemnestra. This edition of Electra, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is translated and introduced by Marianne McDonald and J. Michael Walton.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price The Rolls-Royce of English comedies, Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband explores corruption and morality, bringing an act of political sin into the heart of the English home. Ambitious government minister Sir Robert Chiltern seems assured of a smooth ascent to the top. Until Mrs Cheveley appears in London with damning proof of his past financial chicanery. An Ideal Husband was first staged at the Haymarket Theatre, London, in 1895. This edition of An Ideal Husband in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series is edited and introduced by Laurie Wolf.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Ben Jonson's comedy, one of the finest of the Jacobean era. Volpone is a Venetian aristocrat, a loveable rogue who enjoys the cunning pursuit of wealth more than money itself. Pretending to be mortally ill, he watches as his greedy neighbours swarm around him with expensive gifts in the hope of inheriting his fortune. Volpone was premiered by the King's Men at the Globe Theatre, London, in 1606. This edition of Volpone, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is edited by R.B.Parker, and introduced by Colin Counsell.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Chekhov's early tragedy, translated and introduced by Stephen Mulrine. Arkadina, a famous actress, and her lover, a famous novelist, are spending the summer on her country estate, but their glamorous presence proves fatally disruptive to the lives of all those present, especially her son, Konstantin and Nina, the girl he loves. Anton Chekhov's play The Seagull was first staged at the Alexandrinsky Theatre in St Petersburg in October 1896. This translation by Stephen Mulrine, published in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, was first staged by English Touring Theatre in 1997.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Molière's classic farce, Le Malade Imaginaire, in a fresh and performable translation. The 'imaginary invalid' Argan is so obsessed with his health that he fails to notice what is happening around him in his own family. His scheming wife and loving daughter are finally revealed to him in their true light by Argan's brother, who poses as a quack doctor and suggests he feigns death to test their loyalty. This English version of Molière's The Hypochondriac, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is translated and introduced by Martin Sorrell.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price A startling domestic thriller from the seventeenth century, one of the first tragedies ever to be written about ordinary people. Thomas Heywood's play A Woman Killed with Kindness strips bare two women's lives, with forensic realism. It was first performed by Worcester's Men in 1603. This edition, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is edited and introduced by Trevor Griffiths.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price The best known play by one of the most performed French playwrights - a sparkling 18th-century comedy of manners based on the simplest of plot devices, the exchanging places of master and valet, mistress and maidservant. This edition of Pierre Marivaux's play The Game of Love and Chance, in an English translation by Stephen Mulrine, is in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series. It includes an introduction by Stephen Mulrine.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Bored with her sheltered existence, Miss Julie attempts to seduce the footman, but gets far more than she bargained for... August Strindberg's classic naturalistic play Miss Julie was written in 1888, and first performed at Strindberg's experimental theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1889, despite being banned by the censor. This English version, translated and introduced by Kenneth McLeish, is published in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series. The volume also includes Strindberg's Preface.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Should the truth be pursued, whatever the cost? The idealistic son of a wealthy businessman seeks to expose his father's duplicity and to free his childhood friend from the lies on which his happy home life is based. Henrik Ibsen's play The Wild Duck, considered a masterpiece of modern tragicomedy, was premiered in January 1885 at Den Nationale Scene, Bergen, Norway. This English translation by Stephen Mulrine is published in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, with a full introduction.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price A ghoulish and bloody 16th-century tragedy. The ghost of a murdered courtier is promised by Revenge that he will see his murderer killed by his mistress. The two ghostly figures sit down to watch the violent proceedings. Thomas Kyd's play The Spanish Tragedy is credited with establishing a new genre in English theatre, the revenge play or revenge tragedy. This edition of the play in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series includes an introduction by Simon Trussler.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Face, Subtle and Dol Common are three rogues intent on conning the gullible out of their money. Setting up a quack-doctor's practice in Lovewit's house they promise miraculous services that cost their customers dear. Everything goes swimmingly, until Lovewit returns and the three turn against each other. Ben Jonson's classic comedy The Alchemist was first performed by the King's Men in 1610. This edition of the play in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series is edited by Simon Trussler, with an introduction by Colin Counsell.

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The Nick Hern Books Page to Stage series – highly accessible guides to the world's best-known plays, written by established theatre professionals to show how the plays come to life on the stage. Director Stephen Unwin takes you scene by scene through the action of Ibsen's play A Doll's House, analysing moment by moment what is actually said and done, and how the staging of these moments affects our understanding of them. Also included in this volume: a concise introduction to Ibsen and the historical background of the play; a discussion of the characters and setting; and an exploration of the possibilities for staging, lighting, costumes, props and furniture, and the sound and music. Ideal for anyone studying, teaching or performing A Doll's House, as well as anyone interested in how the play works on stage.

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A Drama Classic: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price A classic Restoration comedy by one of the earliest and most celebrated female playwrights. Arriving in Naples at carnival time, a group of exiled cavaliers determine to enjoy themselves. They are repeatedly tempted and tricked by various prostitutes and their pimps, until their leader, the Rover, is finally forced to give up his wild behaviour when he falls in love with a single-minded, wealthy virgin. Aphra Behn's The Rover was first performed at the Dorset Garden Theatre, London, in March 1677. This edition in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series is edited and introduced by Simon Trussler.

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price One of Henrik Ibsen's most powerful studies of female psychology, The Lady from the Sea introduces the character of Hilde Wangel, who reappears in Ibsen's later play The Master Builder. Ellida Wangel cannot give herself fully to her husband because she is overwhelmed by memories of the past and her attraction to the ocean. Will she suffocate on dry land, or find freedom across the sea? This English version of The Lady from the Sea, in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series, is translated by Kenneth McLeish, with a full introduction by Stephen Mulrine, biography and suggestions for further reading.

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A chilling emotional thriller about two men and a woman bound together by the secrets of surviving a childhood in a Glasgow tenement. Ken is a vacuum cleaner salesman obsessed with the riddance of dirt and dust. Clare got rid of her baby twenty years before. Frank wants to rid himself of the shadow of his violent faith. So, is murder ever justified? In defence of a child? And if you're never caught, do you get away with it, or are you forever in hiding? Linda McLean's play Riddance was first staged at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in 1999. This edition of the play is in the Nick Hern Books Instant Playscript series - designed to reflect the immediacy of the play on the stage. Printed only a few days before opening night, the aim is to give audiences at the theatre and readers all over the world instant access to the best of current new writing as it hits the stage.

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The Nick Hern Books RSC Classics - a series of rarely performed plays from the 16th and 17th centuries, published alongside their resurrection by the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon and the West End. Eastward Ho! is a collaboratively written City Comedy by Ben Jonson, John Marston and George Chapman, which sees true love and virtue triumphing over social-climbing, deception and trickery. Teeming with energy and larger than life characters, Eastward Ho! sees Touchstone, a London goldsmith, preparing to marry off his two daughters. Touchstone's two apprentices lead the wooing until the rakish fop Sir Petronel Flash arrives on the scene. Eastward Ho! was first performed at the Blackfriars Theatre, London, in 1605. This edition of the play is edited with an introduction by Helen Ostovich and preface by Gregory Doran. The plays in the RSC Classics series reflect the diversity of styles, themes and subjects of the Elizabethan and Jacobean stage, and include a 'new' addition to the Shakespeare canon.

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‘They did not understand, you see, that what is stitched with a needle is not always innocent… Needles are dangerous.’ The year is 1569, and in a cold, stone room in a Staffordshire castle, a group of women sew elaborate tapestries. Rich or poor, at home or held against their will, four women’s lives intersect on the point of a needle. Embroidery is their escape, their sanity, and their expression: of love, loss, artistry and power. For these women’s stitches have the power to change not just their own lives, but the course of English history. Inspired by the tapestries created when Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I, The Glove Thief by Beth Flintoff is part of Platform, an initiative from Tonic Theatre in partnership with Nick Hern Books. Aimed at addressing gender imbalance in theatre, Platform comprises big-cast plays with predominantly or all-female casts, written specifically for performance by young actors.

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‘We can’t change things here, that’s the whole point, no one listens to us or cares, the only way we’re gonna change things is by going somewhere else, starting afresh.’ A group of disillusioned young women have disappeared. On a platform out at sea, they have formed The Community – a new type of society and a better way of living. But how can you change the world if you’ve taken yourself out of it? This Changes Everything by Joel Horwood is part of Platform, an initiative from Tonic Theatre in partnership with Nick Hern Books aimed at addressing gender imbalance and inequality in theatre. Platform comprises big-cast plays with predominantly or all-female casts, written specifically for performance by school, college and youth-theatre groups. ‘Drama is an important tool for building confidence and empowering young people. Platform will give girls opportunity to access these benefits as much as their male counterparts.’ - Moira Buffini

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Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price Middleton and Rowley's masterpiece, a tale of murder, lust, seduction and blackmail in the seventeenth century. Alsemero has fallen in love with the beautiful Beatrice after a chance meeting in a church – but Beatrice has already been promised to another man. Unable to marry the man she loves, she employs the hated De Flores, her father's servant, to murder the man her father bids her marry. As payment, De Flores demands Beatrice. And then things get worse... Thomas Middleton and William Rowley's play The Changeling was mostly likely first performed in 1622. This edition of the play in the Nick Hern Books Drama Classics series is edited and introduced by Trevor Griffiths. Set Text >> The Changeling is a set text for AQA Drama and Theatre Studies A/AS Level, AQA English Literature A/AS Level, OCR English Literature A/AS Level and WJEC English Literature A/AS Level.

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Mona is a young woman on the edge. All she sees is the Earth falling apart, but no one really seems to care. Amidst the chaos of competing and contradictory voices, she sets off on a kaleidoscopic journey to find solutions for the planet – and the truth about her family – in the hope that everything might start to make sense again. Lizzie Nunnery's Heavy Weather is a powerful, timely play featuring songs, about one girl's journey through a world teetering on the brink. The play is part of Platform, an initiative from Tonic Theatre in partnership with Nick Hern Books. Aimed at achieving greater gender equality in theatre, Platform comprises big-cast plays with predominantly, or all, female casts, written specifically for performance by young actors.

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