Search results for ""Author Nick"
Nick Hern Books Leave Taking
‘What doctor know about our illness? Just give you pills to sick you stomach and a doctor certificate. What they know about a black woman soul?’ In North London, Del and Viv are soul-sick. Del doesn’t want to be at home; staying out late – 3 p.m.-the-next-day late – is more her thing. Viv scours her schoolbooks trying to find a trace of herself between their lines. When Enid takes her daughters to the local obeah woman for some traditional Caribbean soul-healing, secrets are spilled. There’s no turning back for Del, Viv and Enid as they negotiate the frictions between their countries and cultures. Two generations. Three incredible women. Winsome Pinnock's play Leave Taking is an epic story of what we leave behind in order to find home. It premiered in 1987, and was revived at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2018, in a production directed by the Bush’s Artistic Director, Madani Younis. Winsome Pinnock has written numerous plays, including Talking in Tongues, for which she won the George Devine and Pearson Best New Play Awards. ‘The godmother of Black British playwrights’ Guardian
£10.99
Nick Hern Books National Youth Theatre Monologues: 75 Speeches for Auditions
An exciting and invaluable collection of audition speeches, all chosen from plays produced by the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain, spanning more than sixty years as one of the world's leading companies for young performers. Featuring seventy-five monologues by acclaimed writers such as Zawe Ashton, Moira Buffini, Carol Ann Duffy, Brian Friel, James Fritz, James Graham, Dennis Kelly, Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Gbolahan Obisesan, Evan Placey, Sarah Solemani and Jack Thorne, the book offers rich and diverse roles ranging from teens to adults. Each audition speech also comes with invaluable supporting material – compiled by NYT Associate Artist Michael Bryher – to help you perform the piece to its maximum effect, including: A detailed description of the play that the speech is originally from Contextual information such as what's just happened in the play, where the monologue takes place, to whom the character is talking, and what their motivations are Things to think about when rehearsing and performing the speech The book also provides extensive advice on choosing a speech, working on it and preparing for auditions, plus tips and first-hand insights into the monologues from current NYT members and alumni who've performed them. An ideal resource for actors auditioning for drama school, the NYT or elsewhere, as well as those preparing for showcases or competitions, National Youth Theatre Monologues offers a wide and diverse range of roles, themes and styles – meaning you’ll be able to find the speech that's just right for you.
£14.99
Nick Hern Books A Christmas Carol
An adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic one of the best-loved stories ever written that rediscovers the social conscience of the timeless tale.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Bodies
‘We should have brought a gift.’ ‘We’ve brought a gift. It’s called twenty-two thousand pounds.’ Purchased from Russia. Developed in India. Delivered to the UK. A global transaction over nine months that offers ‘a lifetime of happiness’ for all involved. Vivienne Franzmann's play Bodies explores the human cost of surrogacy, and what we’ll overlook to get what we want. The play premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, on 5 July 2017, in a production directed by Jude Christian.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Contemporary Duologues: Two Women
THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills As an actor at any level – whether you are doing theatre studies at school, taking part in youth theatre, preparing for drama-school showcases, or attending professional acting workshops – you will often be required to prepare a duologue with a fellow performer. Your success is often based on locating and selecting a fresh, dynamic scene suited to your specific performing skills, as well as your interplay as a duo. Which is where this book comes in. This collection features twenty-five fantastic duologues for two women, almost all written since the year 2000 by some of our most exciting dramatic voices, offering a wide variety of character types and styles of writing. Playwrights featured include Alexi Kaye Campbell, Helen Edmundson, Vivienne Franzmann, Sam Holcroft, Anna Jordan, Chloë Moss, Rona Munro, Lynn Nottage, Evan Placey and Jessica Swale, and the plays themselves were premiered at the very best theatres across the UK including the National Theatre, Manchester Royal Exchange, Shakespeare's Globe, and the Almeida, Bush, Soho, Royal Court and Tricycle Theatres. Drawing on her experience as an actor, director and teacher at several leading drama schools, Trilby James equips each duologue with a thorough introduction including the vital information you need to place the piece in context (the who, what, when, where and why) and suggestions about how to perform the scene to its maximum effect (including the characters' objectives). The collection also features an introduction on the whole process of selecting and preparing a duologue, and how to present it to the greatest effect. The result is the most comprehensive and useful contemporary duologue book of its kind now available. 'Sound practical advice... a source of inspiration for teachers and students alike' Teaching Drama Magazine on The Good Audition Guides
£14.99
Nick Hern Books Year of the Fat Knight (Hardback): The Falstaff Diaries
Thirty years ago a promising young actor published his account of preparing for and playing the role of Richard III. Antony Sher's Year of the King has since become a classic of theatre literature. In 2014, Sher, now in his sixties, was cast as Falstaff in Gregory Doran's Royal Shakespeare Company production of the two parts of Henry IV. Both the production and Sher's Falstaff were acclaimed by critics and audiences alike, with Sher winning the Critics' Circle Award for Best Shakespearean Performance. Year of the Fat Knight is Antony Sher's account - splendidly supplemented by his own paintings and sketches - of researching, rehearsing and performing one of Shakespeare's best-known and most popular characters. He tells us how he had doubts about playing the part at all, how he sought to reconcile Falstaff's obesity, drunkenness, cowardice and charm, how he wrestled with the fat suit needed to bulk him up, and how he explored the complexities and contradictions of this comic yet often dangerous personality. On the way, Sher paints a uniquely close-up portrait of the RSC at work.Year of the Fat Knight is a terrific read, rich in humour and with a built-in tension as opening night draws relentlessly nearer. It also stands as a celebration of the craft of character acting. All in all, it is destined to rank with Year of the King as one of the most enduring accounts of the creation of a giant Shakespearean role. Praise for Year of the King: 'This is a most wonderfully authentic account of the experience of creating a performance' Sunday Times 'The most exciting actor of his generation and an eloquent writer on the side' Observer Praise for Sher's Falstaff: 'A magnificent, magnetic performance - Sher plays down the fatness to emphasise the knight's upper-class origins. But, just as you start to warm to this Falstaff, you are reminded of his rapacity' Guardian 'It is Sher's irrepressible Falstaff that will linger in the memory - a lord of misrule who's absurd, delightful and in the end deeply sad' Evening Standard
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Pack
A raw, uncompromising drama about bigotry and racism that explores the insidious rise of the British National Party. As a BNP rally gathers momentum on the streets outside, four women meet to play bridge. Struggling to find common ground, they talk about the men they married, their gifted and delinquent children and what their own heritage means. But beliefs and loyalties are tested to the limit when Stephie's fourteen year old son, Jack, is implicated in a brutal racist attack that leaves an eleven year old Pakistani boy close to death. Louise Monaghan's play Pack won the 2012 Papatango New Writing Competition and was first staged at the Finborough Theatre, London, in 2012.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books The Witness
A dark and penetrating thriller of modern morals. Captured in an award-winning shot, Alex was rescued from Rwanda and adopted by the man behind the lens. Years later, she's back from university, returning to the Hampstead home in which she was raised. As a long-hidden secret is exposed, the distance between father and daughter stretches taut. Vivienne Franzmann's play The Witness was first performed at the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, London, in June 2012.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Acting Through Song: Techniques and Exercises for Musical-Theatre Actors
An impassioned and invaluable guide for actors and students of musical theatre. In Acting Through Song, Paul Harvard takes the techniques of modern actor training – including the theories of Stanislavsky, Brecht, Meisner and Laban, amongst others – and applies them to the fundamental component of musical theatre: singing. With dozens of exercises to put these theories into practice, and numerous examples from a broad range of musicals, the result is a comprehensive and rigorous acting course for those training in musical theatre or already performing, whether amateur or professional, to realise their potential – and act better. 'The most methodical, thorough and practical book on the subject that I've ever read.' Daniel Evans, from his Foreword 'If you want to maximise your potential in this tough profession, this is not just a must-read - it's your bible.' Stuart Barr
£15.99
Nick Hern Books Perve
An irreverent and unsettling play that interrogates paranoia, ambiguity and innocence in our highly sexualised world. Gethin has just finished his film course and reckons he's the next Scorsese. His mum is on at him to do her friend's wedding video - before the couple get divorced! But Gethin is interested in a much more daring project - one that will get him into dangerously deep water, question his idealism and turn his life and that of his family upside down. Stacey Gregg's play Perve was first staged at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, in 2011.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Ruined
A passionate, heartfelt play about surviving in a time of civil war, by a leading American dramatist. Winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. A small mining town deep in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In Mama Nadi's bar her rules apply. No arguments, no politics, no guns. When two new girls arrive, tainted with the stigma of their recent past, Mama is forced to reassess her business priorities and personal loyalties. As tales of local atrocities spread and tensions between rebels and government militia rise, the realities of life in civil war provide the ultimate test of the human spirit. Lynn Nottage's play Ruined was first performed at the Goodman Theatre, Chicago, in November 2008. It opened Off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theatre Club in February 2009. The play received its UK premiere at the Almeida Theatre, London, in April 2010. This edition includes lyrics and music from the original production.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Freeing Shakespeare's Voice: The Actor's Guide to Talking the Text
A practical approach to breaking through the barriers of restraint and incomprehension when faced with Shakespeare. Taking many of the techniques explored in her international bestseller Freeing The Natural Voice, in this companion volume Kristin Linklater shows how to apply them to the exploration and speaking of Shakespeare’s language. Beginning with exercises designed to break long-held habits and allow an emotional rather than intellectual relationship to Elizabethan language, she analyses Shakespeare's strategies for creating character, story and meaning through figures of speech, iambic pentameter, rhyme and the alternation of verse and prose. Using copious examples from the plays, Linklater offers her readers the tools to increase understanding and make Shakespeare's words their own.
£15.29
Nick Hern Books The Last Witch
A play about the last woman to be executed for witchcraft in Scotland, The Last Witch explores the psychological rifts that can divide close communities and drive families apart. Dornoch, northern Scotland, 1727. In the claustrophobic heat of summer, a woman's apparent ability to manipulate the power of land and sea stirs suspicion. Janet Horne can cure beasts, call the wind and charm fish out of the sea. Or can she? Her refusal to deny the charge of witchcraft puts her in dangerous opposition to the new sheriff. Her defiance threatens not only her own life but that of her daughter... Rona Munro's play The Last Witch is based on the historical account of Janet Horne, the last woman to be executed for witchcraft in Scotland. The play was commissioned by Edinburgh International Festival and co-produced by the Festival and the Traverse Theatre Company. It opened at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, in August 2009.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books I Caught Crabs in Walberswick
A fast-moving, exhilarating play about teenage hopes, dreams and frustrations in a rural part of England. Wheeler is a high-flying comprehensive kid destined for university, while football-mad Fitz is struggling to cope with his dysfunctional father and his schoolwork. They live in Walberswick, a sleepy Suffolk village known for hosting the British Open Crabbing Championship. Set on a sweltering summer's day on the eve of their last GCSE exam, they are ambushed by Dani, the fittest (and poshest) girl on the beach. So begins a crazy twenty-four hours that will change the lives of the three sixteen-year-olds for ever. Joel Horwood's play I Caught Crabs in Walberswick was first performed at the 2008 HighTide Festival in Suffolk in a co-production with Eastern Angles. The production transferred to the Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh, as part of the 2008 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and then toured the UK before a sell-out run at The Bush Theatre, London, in November 2008.
£8.99
Nick Hern Books Samuel Takes a Break
An extraordinary, genre-blending play about colonialism, identity and the attempt to preserve the past, premiered at The Yard Theatre London in 2024.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Motive and the Cue
1964: Richard Burton, the firebrand Welsh actor, newly married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new production of Hamlet under the exacting direction of John Gielgud. But as rehearsals progress, the collaboration between actor and director soon threatens to unravel. One of them is the most famous movie star in the world; the other, a patrician from an earlier age of theatre. The stage is set for two titans to collide. Jack Thorne's The Motive and the Cue is a fierce, funny play which offers a glimpse into the politics of a rehearsal room and the relationship between art and celebrity. This edition was published alongside the West End transfer in 2023, following its world premiere at the National Theatre, London, earlier that year. Originally commissioned and co-produced by Neal Street Productions, it was directed by Sam Mendes, and starred Johnny Flynn as Burton, Mark Gatiss as Gielgud and Tuppence Middleton as Taylor. It was named Best Play at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 2023.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Clyde's
'It's kind of a ritual, we speak the truth. Then, let go and cook.' In the bustling kitchen of a run-down Pennsylvania truck stop, the formerly incarcerated staff have been given a second chance. Under the tyrannical eye of their boss Clyde, this unlikely team strives to create the perfect sandwich, as they dream of leaving their past mistakes behind for a better life. Lynn Nottage's hilarious and hopeful play Clyde's premiered in 2021 at the Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis, becoming the most-produced play in the United States the following year. It received its European premiere at the Donmar Warehouse, London, in 2023, directed by Lynette Linton, who also directed the British premiere of Nottage's play Sweat at the Donmar. 'Lynn Nottage is remarkable and uniquely exhilarating' Washington Post 'Is there a better living American playwright than Lynn Nottage?' The Wall Street Journal
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Prima Facie: Special Edition
This special edition of the international hit play Prima Facie features the definitive version of the award-winning script, together with colour photos and exclusive additional content, giving you a fascinating behind-the-scenes insight into the making of the production and the issues it explores. In the play, Tessa is a young, brilliant barrister who has worked her way up from working-class origins to the top of her game: defending, cross-examining and winning. But when an unexpected event forces her to confront the patriarchal power of the law – where the burden of proof and morality diverge – she finds herself in a world where emotion and integrity are in conflict with the rules of the game. After acclaimed productions in Australia and winning the Australian Writers' Guild Award for Drama, Prima Facie received its European premiere in a sold-out run at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London's West End in 2022 starring Jodie Comer in her West End debut. It was named Best New Play at both the 2023 Olivier and WhatsOnStage Awards. A filmed version, released in 2022, went on to become the highest-grossing event cinema release ever in the UK. This edition, published alongside Prima Facie's Broadway transfer in 2023, includes contributions from writer Suzie Miller, actor Jodie Comer, director Justin Martin, producer James Bierman and other key members of the creative team, letting you go deeper into the world of the play. There are also essays on the legal context and how the play has become a vehicle for change in attitudes towards the treatment of female victims of sexual assault.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Tambo & Bones
'In today's world, errybody got a story. It's overwhelming. How! The humanity! O! Everywhere, someone appealing to yo sense of… empathy.' Tambo and Bones are stuck in a minstrel show. It's hard to know what's real when you're stuck in a minstrel show. Their escape plan: get out, get rich, get even. A daring theatrical exploration of the intersection of race, capitalism and performance, Dave Harris's play Tambo & Bones laughs through our past, blows the roof off our present, and imagines an explosive future for our world and for theatre. Tambo & Bones was commended in the 2019 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting, and was first performed in a co-production between Playwrights Horizons, New York City, and Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles, in 2022. It was first produced in the UK in 2023 by Theatre Royal Stratford East, London, and Actors Touring Company, directed by Matthew Xia.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books James IV: Queen of the Fight
'You're a wonder. You're a window into a wide world.' Scotland, 1504, seen fresh through the eyes of new arrivals Ellen and Anne, two Moorish women who were expected to take their place at a royal court… but not this one. Both women now have to fight to find and keep a place in the dazzling, dangerous world of the Scottish court of James IV. It's a world where war is never far away, words of love and promises of peace are not what they seem, and where poets might turn out to be more dangerous than any assassin. Rona Munro continues her journey through an uncharted period of Scottish history with James IV: Queen of the Fight, which was first presented in 2022 by Raw Material and Capital Theatres in association with National Theatre of Scotland, and directed by Laurie Sansom. It follows the spectacular success of Munro's plays about James I, II and III, which were first performed by National Theatre of Scotland, transferred to the National Theatre, London, and were named Best New Play at the Evening Standard Awards.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Mary
'She made some very poor decisions. You tried to warn her. You love her yet, and that's a credit to you, but you need to think about what's best for Scotland...' It's 1567. James Melville is an intelligent, charismatic and skilled diplomat – and also one of the most loyal servants of Mary Stuart, the troubled Queen of Scots. It's a time of political turmoil, and the shocking crimes he has witnessed have shaken him. Now he needs to decide who's guilty, who's innocent, and who is too dangerous to accuse. Change is coming, but at what price? Mary is an explosive political thriller, and part of Rona Munro's breathtaking theatrical exploration of Scottish history. It is the sixth instalment of The James Plays Cycle which began with James I, II and III, performed by National Theatre of Scotland, including a run at the National Theatre in London, and which won the Evening Standard and Writers' Guild of Great Britain Awards in 2014, and James IV, co-produced by Raw Material and Capital Theatres in association with National Theatre of Scotland, in 2022. Mary received its world premiere at Hampstead Theatre, London, also in 2022, directed by Roxana Silbert.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Here
'There's somethin' about this house. Somethin' here. Somethin' in the walls. Its bones. Like DNA.' A family packs into a small house with a tangled history. Matt is here, yearning to reach someone he's lost. His cousin Jess is here, too; she just wants to feel something. Anything. And Aunt Monica and Jeff are still here, just about. Together, ferocious and funny, they laugh, they scrap, they remember. Tonight these four people, inextricably bound yet so far apart, will finally confront the old decisions that haunt them. How does a family make a future, when everything that holds it together lies in the past? Clive Judd's play Here is a tender, funny and utterly truthful story about family and feeling. It was premiered by Papatango at Southwark Playhouse, London, in November 2022 after winning the Papatango New Writing Prize, whose previous discoveries have gone on to win Olivier, Critics' Circle and OffWestEnd Awards and be performed worldwide.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Lava
A small asteroid has hit the capital city. Thousands have been displaced. And in a town far away, a young man called Vin is finding it hard to talk. The only person who seems to notice is Rach, who resolves to find out what's troubling him and help him find his voice again. But when Rach's family take in an articulate and charismatic survivor of the asteroid incident, Vin's silence is no longer her first priority. How does it feel when the suffering of others seems more legitimate than our own? James Fritz's Lava is a timely play about grief and the power of expression, rocking with raw emotion and sharp humour. It premiered at Nottingham Playhouse in 2018, in a co-production with Fifth Word who commissioned the play. It was revived on tour in 2022, including a run at Soho Theatre, London.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?)
When Rob was twelve, they attempted a full-blown Disney parade in their house for their Grandma. As Rob donned wigs and played Mary Poppins, Ariel, Mickey Mouse and Belle, their Dad doubled as Stage Manager, Sound Technician and Goofy. Unfortunately, Dad missed all his cues and pushed all the floats in the wrong direction. Mum mistook Aladdin for Ursula. The costumes went awry. And Ariel's bubble gun didn't work properly. Grandma had a nice time, though. My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?) is the joyous, chaotic, autobiographical story of actor, writer and social-media sensation Rob Madge as they set out to recreate that parade – and this time, nobody, no, nobody is gonna rain on it. It was first performed at London's Turbine Theatre in June 2021, directed by Luke Sheppard, with music by Pippa Cleary – and starring Rob Madge as Rob Madge. It was a critical and commercial hit at the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and later that year transferred to the Garrick Theatre in London, to make the West End that little bit more queer. The play won Best Off-West End Production at the 2022 WhatsOnStage Awards, the Theatre Award at the 2023 Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards and was nominated for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play at the 2023 Olivier Awards. Rob Madge was joint winner of Best Creative West End Debut at the 2023 Stage Debut Awards. This revised edition features the complete text of the play as performed in Edinburgh and the West End, including links to and transcriptions of the video footage, colour photographs and extra bonus content from the RDM* Productions Archive. It concludes with an afterword by Mum and Dad about the joys to be found in championing the creativity of children – and why playing Tinker Bell, with a smile, might be the best thing you can do for your kids, and for yourselves. * Robert Dennis Madge
£10.99
Nick Hern Books trade & generations: two plays
Two plays from the acclaimed playwright debbie tucker green. trade is a short play dealing with the controversial topic of female sex tourism. Three black women on a Caribbean island: a hip young thing from London, an older tourist and a resident native. One subject. Two worlds. Three points of view. trade was first performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of the 2005 New Work Festival in the Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, in October 2005. (An earlier version of the play was performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of the 2004 New Work Festival at The Other Place, Stratford-upon-Avon, in October 2004, and Soho Theatre, London, in March 2005). generations is a 30-minute drama about three generations of a black South African family who contest their relative culinary skills. But food isn't the only topic and the family numbers are declining... generations was first seen as a Platform performance at the National Theatre, London, on 30 June 2005. The play was revived at the Young Vic, London, in March 2007, in a production directed by Sacha Wares.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3)
An epic dramatic trilogy set during the American Civil War, by one of America's leading playwrights. America, 1862, during the Civil War. Hero, a slave, is promised his freedom if he joins his master in the ranks of the Confederacy against the Union. In a nation at war with itself, he must fight against those striving to abolish slavery. The family he leaves behind debates whether to escape or await his return, and they fear that, for Hero, freedom is an empty promise that may come at a great cost. Suzan-Lori Parks' Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3) received its UK premiere in the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 2016, directed by Jo Bonney. The trilogy premiered at The Public Theater, New York, in 2014, was a finalist for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and won the Edward M Kennedy Prize for Drama Inspired by American History.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Backstairs Billy
'One can't help where one is born. Or one's station, of course. The trick to happiness is to be content where one is. Or so I am told.' 1979. Clarence House, London. The Queen Mother's receptions are in full swing and the champagne is flowing. Guiding the proceedings is William 'Billy' Tallon, page of the backstairs, keeper of the keys, holder of the royal corgis – and the royal secrets. Outside the palace walls, unemployment, inflation and industrial action are bringing Britain to its knees, and the country is on the verge of changing seismically under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. These two worlds are about to collide, with dizzying consequences for everyone... Backstairs Billy examines the fifty-year relationship between the Queen Mother and her most loyal, most outrageous servant, who joined her household at the age of fifteen. Marcelo Dos Santos's irreverent comedy was first produced by the Michael Grandage Company at the Duke of York's Theatre, London, in 2023, directed by Grandage and starring Penelope Wilton and Luke Evans.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books "Daddy": A Melodrama
Franklin, a young black artist on the eve of his first show, meets Andre, an older white art collector, and before long their feverish connection develops into an unbreakable bond. But when Franklin's mother, Zora, decides that her son is in peril, she enters into a battle of wills with Andre over the soul of the man they both call 'baby'. Basquiats and Birkins, gospel and pop, fantasy and reality: all collide around a Bel Air swimming pool in this deeply surreal exploration of intimacy and identity. "Daddy" is Jeremy O. Harris's blistering melodrama, first performed in New York City in 2019, and at the Almeida Theatre, London, in 2022, directed by Danya Taymor.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Andromache
Drama Classics: The World's Great Plays at a Great Little Price The story of Andromache, widow of the Trojan hero Hector. Some years after the fall of Troy, Andromache is living as a slave to Neoptolemus, by whom she has a child. When Neoptolemus' fiercely jealous young wife, Hermione, finds she is unable to conceive, she threatens to murder Andromache, and the struggle between the two women turns quickly into a bitter feud. This edition of Euripides' Andromache, in the Drama Classics series, is translated and introduced by Marianne McDonald and J. Michael Walton.
£5.71
Nick Hern Books Dear Evan Hansen: The Complete Book and Lyrics
A new edition of the hugely successful musical by Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, published alongside its West End premiere and featuring exclusive content. A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he's always wanted: a chance to belong. Both deeply personal and profoundly contemporary, Dear Evan Hansen is a groundbreaking musical about truth, fiction, and the price we're willing to pay for the possibility to connect. The production opened in Washington DC in 2015, off-Broadway in 2016, and on Broadway later that year, before winning six Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Book and Best Score, and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. This official West End edition is published alongside the production's transfer to London's Noël Coward Theatre in 2019. It features the complete book and lyrics of the show, plus exclusive bonus content and colour photographs of the West End production. 'Dear Evan Hansen lodges in your head long after you've seen it or heard it or read it. It feels like a pure expression from young writers at a crossroad of coming to terms with who they are and what they want to say about the world' James Lapine, from his Foreword
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Swallows and Amazons
Arthur Ransome's famous and much-loved children's classic is brought thrillingly to life in Helen Edmundson's wonderfully theatrical adaptation, with 'delightfully catchy and often witty' (Telegraph) songs by Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy When John, Susan, Titty and Roger are granted their wish to set sail on their beloved boat Swallow, they know it will be the summer holiday of a lifetime. But their adventure truly begins when they encounter Nancy and Peggy, the self-proclaimed Amazon Pirates, and the dastardly Captain Flint. This adaptation was first performed at the Bristol Old Vic in 2010. It had its West End premiere in 2011.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books The Railway Children
Mike Kenny's imaginative stage adaptation of E. Nesbit's much-loved children's classic. Famously filmed, this story of a prosperous Edwardian family - mother and three children - forced into near-penury in the rural north of England captures the anxieties and exhilarations of childhood with great tenderness and insight. As Mike Kenny says of his remarkably faithful adaptation, 'You don't need a real train to perform this play… the most powerful prop is the imagination of the audience, the most effective tool the skill of the actors.' So this version of The Railway Children, which offers three plum roles for young performers, is eminently suitable for schools, youth theatres and drama groups - anywhere, in fact, where the cry of 'Daddy! My Daddy!' is likely to provoke a tear. Mike Kenny's version of The Railway Children was first staged at the National Railway Museum in York in 2008, before receiving a major production at Waterloo Station in London in 2010.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books A Dream Play
Caryl Churchill's spare and resonant version of Strindberg's enigmatic masterpiece. Written in 1901, a mysterious amalgam of Freud, Alice in Wonderland and Strindberg's own private symbolism, A Dream Play follows the logic of a dream: A young woman comes from another world to see if life is really as difficult as people make it out to be. Characters merge into each other, locations change in an instant and a locked door becomes an obsessive recurrent image. As Strindberg wrote in his preface, he wanted 'to imitate the disjointed yet seemingly logical shape of a dream. Everything can happen, everything is possible and probable. Time and place do not exist.' This version of A Dream Play, from a literal translation by Charlotte Barslund, is by leading playwright Caryl Churchill. It was first performed in the Cottesloe auditorium of the National Theatre, London, in February 2005, in a production directed by Katie Mitchell, with additional material by Katie Mitchell and the company. Also included is an introduction by Caryl Churchill.
£11.99
Nick Hern Books Push Up
A savage satire on the rapacious nature of office lives and lusts - the British debut from a writer whose work has been seen in prestigious theatres all over Germany. Everyone wants to get to the executive suite. Everyone wants the Delhi job. Everyone wants sex, everyone wants love. So, they push for it. Roland Schimmelpfennig's play Push Up was first performed at the Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz, Berlin, in November 2001. It was premiered in this English translation by Maja Zade at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in February 2002.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books The Last King of Scotland
‘He is the sickness and you maintain that sickness.’ Idi Amin is the self-declared President of Uganda. When Scottish medic Nicholas Garrigan becomes his personal physician, he is catapulted into Amin's inner circle. A useful asset for the British Secret Service, is Garrigan the man on the inside, or does he have blood on his hands too? Giles Foden's multi-award-winning novel The Last King of Scotland is an electrifying thriller about corruption and complicity. This stage adaptation by Steve Waters premiered at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, in September 2019, directed by Gbolahan Obisesan.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books Crime and Punishment
An exciting, fresh and accessible adaptation of Dostoyevsky's masterful novel. Starving, destitute student Raskolnikov is surrounded by the harsh injustices of the world: the grime of poverty and prostitution, unscrupulous pawnbrokers chasing debts, and a sister about to marry someone she doesn't love to keep her family alive. His guilt is unbearable. Only Sonya, a downtrodden prostitute, can offer any chance of redemption. As Raskolnikov enters a dangerous cat and mouse game with the examining magistrate, a psychological thriller unfolds that probes how far humanity might go when driven by disillusionment and whether any crime can be justified by a higher purpose. Chris Hannan's adaptation of Crime and Punishment was first performed at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, in 2013, followed by a UK tour.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Anna Karenina
Helen Edmundson's celebrated and 'exemplary' (The Times) adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's enduring classic is a vibrant and deeply moving meditation on the nature of love. Anna is beautiful and admired but empty – until a chance meeting throws her into emotional turmoil and a scandalous affair. Contrasting with this tale of destructive love is the story of Levin, an idealistic man striving to find meaning in life – and a self-portrait of Tolstoy himself. Helen Edmundson's stage adaptation of Anna Karenina was first performed by Shared Experience at the Theatre Royal, Winchester, in January 1992 at the start of a nationwide tour. The production went on to win the Time Out Award for Outstanding Theatrical Event of 1992. This edition of the play was published alongside a revival at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2011.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Holding the Man
Based on the award-winning memoir by Timothy Conigrave, and adapted for the stage by acclaimed playwright Tommy Murphy, Holding the Man tells a remarkable true-life love story that speaks across generations, sexualities and cultures. The course of teenage love rarely runs smooth, but it is a white-water adventure if you are secretly gay in an all-male school in 1970s Melbourne with a crush on the captain of the football team. Against the odds, Tim and John develop a relationship that, for fifteen years, survives everything life throws at it – the separations, the discriminations, the temptations, the jealousies and the losses – until the only problem that love can't solve turns up to part them. Tommy Murphy's play Holding the Man was first performed in Sydney, Australia, in 2006. It had its UK premiere at the Trafalgar Studios in the West End in 2010. ‘Tommy Murphy is a bewitching playwright of startling originality’ - Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton, Artistic Directors of Sydney Theatre Company
£11.52
Nick Hern Books Jane Eyre
'I must have action! And if I cannot find it, I will make it.' Jane Eyre may be poor, obscure, plain and little, but she has heart and soul – and plenty of it. Chris Bush's witty and fleet-footed adaptation lays bare the beating heart of Charlotte Brontë's classic novel, whilst staying true to its revolutionary spirit. With actor-musicians, playful doubling, and a plethora of nineteenth-century pop hits, it was first produced at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, and the New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme, in 2022, directed by Zoë Waterman. 'One of the UK’s most exciting young playwrights' The Stage 'A writer of great wit and empathy' The Times
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Making Your Solo Show: The Compact Guide
This clear, accessible guide to creating and putting on a solo show is packed with inspiring, practical advice for writers, actors, directors, and anyone who wants to know how solo shows are actually made. Written by two theatremakers with a wealth of experience in the field, it leads you through the whole process – from finding a subject you're passionate about, to developing your ideas and getting the script written, through to rewrites, rehearsals and getting your show on stage. It tackles key questions such as: What makes a 'good' solo show? How do I engage the audience? How should directors and writer-performers work together? And what's the best way of approaching a producer? There's also invaluable advice on looking after yourself, coping with anxieties, dealing with reviews, and taking your show to the Edinburgh Fringe. With practical exercises throughout to help you put everything into action, this book is an indispensable toolkit for making your solo show a reality. Lisa Carroll is a playwright, screenwriter and comedian, whose plays have been staged at Soho Theatre, the Arcola Theatre, and the Abbey Theatre, Dublin. Milly Thomas is an actor and writer whose plays have been staged at Theatre503, the Edinburgh Fringe, Soho Theatre, the West End's Trafalgar Studios and New York Theatre Workshop. Together, Lisa and Milly have taught regular solo-show workshops, including for training and creative organisation The Mono Box. The Compact Guides are pocket-sized introductions for actors and theatremakers, each tackling a key topic in a clear and comprehensive way. Written by industry professionals with extensive hands-on experience of their subject, they provide you with maximum information in minimum time.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books The House of Bernarda Alba
García Lorca's drama about the shattering effects of emotional repression on a family of cloistered daughters, in a version by playwright Rona Munro for the critically acclaimed Shared Experience Theatre Company. When Bernarda's husband dies, she locks all the doors and windows. She tells her grown-up daughers to sew and be silent. 'There are eight years of mourning ahead of us. While it lasts not even the wind will get into this house.' But locks can't hold back the growing tide of desire... Rona Munro's version of The House of Bernarda Alba was first staged by Shared Experience Theatre Company at Salisbury Playhouse in March 1999 before a UK tour.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Drama Games for Exploring Shakespeare
This dip-in, flick-through, quick-fire resource book, part of the bestselling Drama Games series, offers dozens of games to help bring Shakespeare's plays to life in the classroom or rehearsal room – making them fun and accessible to actors, students, directors and teachers. Inspired by the work of leading cultural education charity Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation, this book offers a wide range of activities to tackle every aspect of the plays, including: Warm-ups and General Games to establish an atmosphere of focus, connection, support and fun – all the conditions you need for a successful session Story and World-building to explore the events, environments and societies of Shakespeare's plays Introducing Shakespeare's Language to break down the text and allow participants to uncover the meaning through play and creative discovery Activating Shakespeare's Language to liberate actors from the script through movement and voice-work Character to help develop compelling, believable performances by investigating motivations and relationships, circumstances and emotions Staging to help empower every member of the ensemble in moments that might be challenging to stage – such as big movement sequences, fights and battles and intimate love scenes Whatever your reason for exploring Shakespeare – whether you're directing a production, teaching a set text, or introducing his work to young people for the first time – this essential resource will give you the tools you need to demystify the language, take ownership of the plays, and find a connection to the words that resonates in our own time. 'This wonderful book will be an invaluable resource for anyone approaching the teaching or directing of Shakespeare, whether novice or veteran' Paterson Joseph, from his Foreword
£12.99
Nick Hern Books Little Women
'I have to write. That's what I am. My sister Meg is beautiful, my sister Beth is good, my sister Amy is, well, she is what she is, but I'm the writer of the family. What shall I do?' Christmas Eve, 1862. With their father away on the frontline of the American Civil War, the four March sisters – Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy – journey into adulthood, each determined to pursue a life on their own terms. But growing up means contending with love and loss, as well as the myriad twists of fortune that shape a life. Published in 1868, Louisa May Alcott's Little Women was an immediate critical and commercial success, and remains one of the best-loved novels of all time. This joyful and spirited adaptation was first produced at Pitlochry Festival Theatre and Watford Palace Theatre in 2022, directed by Brigid Larmour. An earlier version was staged at the Gate Theatre, Dublin, in 2011. It provides rich opportunities for any amateur company looking for an uplifting version of a classic story that's guaranteed to delight audiences.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Driftwood
'I should've seen him. Felt him. Walking across the sand. His antlers, twisting, reaching up to the moon. But the Mariner didn't come. The Mariner didn't come.' Mark and Tiny go for walks along the beach at Seaton Carew, County Durham. Their dad is dying, and their town is crumbling. Family rifts and political divides try to pull them apart, and a figure made of driftwood stalks the shore at night. Tim Foley's Driftwood is an intoxicating and mystical play about love, belonging and the tides within us. It was premiered in 2023 by Pentabus and ThickSkin on a tour of the UK, co-directed by Neil Bettles and Elle While.
£10.99
Nick Hern Books Fragile!
A darkly humorous play about the people behind the tabloid stories of migrant workers and sex-trafficking in today's Europe. The first play in English by an award-winning writer who is well-known in her native Croatia. London 2007: an aspiring actress from Croatia, a Serbian stand-up comedian, a Bulgarian mafioso, a Norwegian journalist, a sex-trafficking victim... Big city, big dreams, big fall. Tena Štivičić's play Fragile! was first performed at the Arcola Theatre, London, in September 2007.
£12.99
Nick Hern Books The Pull of Negative Gravity
Shocking and beautiful, a powerful play about the impact of a soldier's injury in a foreign conflict on his family back home. Wounded in the war in Iraq, a young farmer-turned-soldier returns home with injuries that have extraordinary consequences. Lust, temptation, sibling rivalry and the pressures of the past combine with the struggle to maintain a rural existence. Jonathan Lichtenstein's play The Pull of Negative Gravity was first staged at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, as part of the 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It received a Fringe First Award.
£9.99
Nick Hern Books We Happy Few
A comedy drama about an all-female theatre company touring Britain during the darkest days of World War Two, written by the well-known actress and premiered in the West End. While the men are fighting Hitler and the bombs are falling on London, a 'girls only' theatre company sets out in a battered 1920s Rolls-Royce to bring Shakespeare to a culture-starved Britain. Imogen Stubbs' play We Happy Few was inspired by the real-life Osiris Players, whose travelling productions during the War inspired many to take up the profession - Judi Dench to name but one. We Happy Few was premiered at the Gielgud Theatre in the West End in June 2004 in a production directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Juliet Stevenson and Patsy Palmer. An earlier version of the play was performed in 2003 at Malvern Theatres.
£13.99
Nick Hern Books The Actor and the Target
A revised and updated edition of Declan Donnellan's bestselling book, a fresh and radical approach to acting by a world-famous director. 'Cuts open every generalisation about acting and draws out gleamingly fresh specifics' Peter Brook 'Explains Donnellan's highly practical system and sheds unique light on one of the greatest directors of acting in our time' Le Monde 'Hugely practical and never gets lost in theory' El Pais 'A gripping read, as acute about the psychology of lying as it is about the art of acting' Guardian 'Rooted in modern theatre, modern psychology and, above all, modern reality' Izvestia 'Unpretentious, straightforward, and pierced with acute insight' Kommersant
£15.29