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The Revengers' Comedies A hugely entertaining pitch that recalls the old movies to which it frequently pays homage - Strangers on a Train, Rebecca, Kind Hearts and Coronets - and expands after intermission to reveal an immensely disturbing vision of contemporary middle-class England poisoned by the rise of economic ruthlessness and the collapse of ethics. New York Times Things We Do for Love Lloyds Private Banking Playwright of the Year Award One of his best, his most shockingly and uproariously funny: a cruel and hilarious masterpiece of tragic comedy and comic tragedy. Sunday Times House & Garden The triumph of his ingenuity lies in the fact that you have to see both plays . . . A second time round, in whichever order you take them, characters will deepen, while those you know become the background. It is a superb Ayckbourn joke that a comedy about non-communication should depend on the sharpest communication skills. Sunday Times
With an Introduction by the author. 'The prolific master of suburban mayhem has still got his mojo.' Evening Standard Time of My Life'One of Mr. Ayckbourn's most virtuosic experiments in postmodern narrative.' Wall Street Journal Neighbourhood Watch'Ayckbourn's tartly topical, pitch-black comedy, a startling evocation of the panic induced by nightmarish notions of "broken Britain"... An arresting, nastily comic cautionary tale.' The Times Arrivals and Departures'Ayckbourn's genius lies in his ability to write what you might call 'sad comedies,' uproariously funny farces that are at second glance deeply serious, at times despairing portraits of modern middle-class life and its discontents. On...
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This book explores the range of Ayckbourn's work, covering light comedy, farce, theatrical cartoon, musicals and plays for children. It defines the early influences and the developing themes, concentrating on the playwright's technical skills and his challenges to Aristotelian unities.
Snake in the Grass A terrific piece - brilliant, bizarre and yet totally believable . . . In fact, it's more than classic; it's close to the top of its class. Yorkshire Post If I Were You A blissfully funny comedy that's also filled with sadness, a devilishly simple theatrical idea that spins out all kinds of complex truths about human nature. Daily Telegraph Life and Beth A wise, humane, funny play about the inevitability of death and the continuity of life. Guardian My Wonderful Day A transformation happens as magical as the most magnificent pantomime transformation anyone could ever imagine . . . the playwright dissolves the paraphernalia of our adult selves and uncovers that space inside each of us that is still the child we once were. Observer Life of Riley As perceptive as ever . . . Ayckbourn has once again achieved a satisfyingly rich, tragi-comic complexity. Daily Telegraph
A student edition of five one-act plays by Britain's most popular playwright. Ayckbourn's series of plays for 4-5 actors typify his black comedies of human behaviour. First produced in 1976, the plays are alternately naturalistic, stylised and farcical, but underlying each is the problem of loneliness. The Mother Figure shows a mother unable to escape from baby talk; in The Drinking Companion an absentee husband attempts seduction without success; in Between Mouthfuls, a waiter oversees a fraught dinner encounter. A garden party gets out of hand in Gosforth's Fete whilst A Talk in the Park is a revue style curtain call piece for the five actors. Whether the comedies concern marital conflict, infidelity or motherhood and take place on a park bench or at a village fete, the characters are familiar and their cries for help instantly recognisable. "Principally he is respected as a radical re-inventor of form" Dominic Dromgoole
Plays One: A Chorus of Disapproval A Small Family Business Henceforward... Man of the Moment Alan Ayckbourn introduces his first volume of collected work that contains his morality plays from the 1980s.
With over sixty plays written and premièred at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough before going on to play in the West End or the Royal National Theatre, London, or Broadway, Alan Ayckbourn's expertise in writing and directing plays is unsurpassed. For the first time, here in The Crafty Art of Playmaking, he shares all his tricks of the trade. From helpful hints on writing (Where do you start? How do you continue? What is comedy and how do you write it? What is tragedy and how does it work?), to tips on directing (working with actors and technicians, when to listen to the other experts, how to cope with rehearsals), the book provides a complete primer for the tyro and a refresher for the more experienced. Written in an accessible and highly entertaining style, with anecdotes galore to illustrate the how, when, where and why, it's worth the cover price for the jokes alone. 'A marvellously useful and enjoyably good-humoured book' Daily Telegraph
Do you belong to an amateur theatre group wanting to 'do an Ayckbourn'? Are you the Artistic Director of a professional theatre seeking to slot an Ayckbourn into next season? Are you a fan of Ayckbourn's work and would love a handy reference book? A Pocket Guide to Alan Ayckbourn's Plays will tell you all you need to know and more: All plays in chronological order with an alphabetical index A complete listing of male and female characters in each play A plot breakdown for each play Useful hints on production Details of where to apply for permission to perform Details of where to get the music where applicable Publication details An introduction to his life and work Alan Ayckbourn has written over 60 plays for adults and more than a dozen for children. Even his most ardent fan is unlikely to know them all. This handy guide will give you all the information you need to decide which is the right one for you to produce. Or if you simply want a reference book to recall your favourite plays or read about the ones you've missed, then this is the book for you.