John Marston was born to John and Maria Marston née Guarsi, and baptised on October 7th, 1576 at Wardington, Oxfordshire.Marston entered Brasenose College, Oxford in 1592 and earned his BA in 1594. By 1595, he was in London, living in the Middle Temple. His interests were in poetry and play writing, although his father's will of 1599 hopes that he would not further pursue such vanities.His brief career in literature began with the fashionable genres of erotic epyllion and satire; erotic plays for boy actors to be performed before educated young men and members of the inns of court.In 1598, he published ‘The Metamorphosis of Pigmalion's Image and Certaine Satyres’, a book of poetry. He also published ‘The Scourge of Villanie’, in 1598. ‘Histriomastix’ regarded as his first play was produced 1599. It’s performance kicked off an episode in literary history known as the War of the Theatres; a literary feud between Marston, Jonson and Dekker that lasted until 1602.However, the playwrights were later reconciled; Marston wrote a prefatory poem for Jonson's ‘Sejanus’ in 1605 and dedicated ‘The Malcontent’ to him. Beyond this episode Marston's career continued to gather both strength, assets and followers. In 1603, he became a shareholder in the Children of Blackfriars company. He wrote and produced two plays with the company. The first was ‘The Malcontent’ in 1603, his most famous play. His second was ‘The Dutch Courtesan’, a satire on lust and hypocrisy, in 1604-5.In 1605, he worked with George Chapman and Ben Jonson on ‘Eastward Ho’, a satire of popular taste and the vain imaginings of wealth to be found in the colony of Virginia.Marston took the theatre world by surprise when he gave up writing plays in 1609 at the age of thirty-three. He sold his shares in the company of Blackfriars. His departure from the literary scene may have been because of further offence he gave to the king. The king suspended performances at Blackfriars and had Marston imprisoned.On 24th September 1609 he was made a deacon and them a priest on 24th December 1609. In October 1616, Marston was assigned the living of Christchurch, Hampshire.He died (accounts vary) on either the 24th or 25th June 1634 in London and was buried in the Middle Temple Church. Read more

The compelling, groundbreaking guide to creative writing that reveals how the brain responds to storytelling, based on the wildly popular creative writing class. Stories shape who we are. They drive us to act out our dreams and ambitions and mold our beliefs. Storytelling is an essential part of what makes us human. So, how do master storytellers compel us? In The Science of Storytelling, award-winning writer and acclaimed teacher of creative writing Will Storr applies dazzling psychological research and cutting-edge neuroscience to our myths and archetypes to show how we can write better stories, revealing, among other things, how storytellers—and also our brains—create worlds by being attuned to moments of unexpected change. Will Storr’s superbly chosen examples range from Harry Potter to Jane Austen to Alice Walker, Greek drama to Russian novels to Native American folk tales, King Lear to Breaking Bad to children’s stories. With sections such as “The Dramatic Question,” “Creating a World,” and “Plot, Endings, and Meaning,” as well as a practical, step-by-step appendix dedicated to “The Sacred Flaw Approach,” The Science of Storytelling reveals just what makes stories work, placing it alongside such creative writing classics as John Yorke’s Into the Woods: A Five-Act Journey into Story and Lajos Egri’s The Art of Dramatic Writing.  Enlightening and empowering, The Science of Storytelling is destined to become an invaluable resource for writers of all stripes, whether novelist, screenwriter, playwright, children’s writer, or writer of creative or traditional nonfiction. “If you want to write a novel or a script, read this book. It is clear, compelling, and tightly shaped.” ―Sunday Times (London) Read more

I've been trying to remember a story.Can you help me?A long time ago our ancestors told it to us.I think it has to do with where we belong.In 2015, Mohegan Theater Maker Madeline Sayet travelled to England to pursue a PhD in Shakespeare, but her voyage across the ocean became an unexpected journey of transformation. Riding the spirit wind of her Mohegan ancestors who crossed the Atlantic in the 1700s on diplomatic missions to protect her people, Where We Belong is a search for belonging in a globalized world. It is at once a rich investigation into the impulses that divide and connect us as people, but it is also about a wolf that learns how to become a bird and fly. Read more

“It is a defect of God’s humor that he directs our hearts everywhere but to those who have a right to them.”—Tom Stoppard, ArcadiaIn a large country house in Derbyshire in April 1809 sits Lady Thomasina Coverly, aged thirteen, and her tutor, Septimus Hodge. Through the window may be seen some of the “five hundred acres inclusive of lake” where Capability Brown’s idealized landscape is about to give way to the Gothic style: “everything but vampires,” as the garden historian Hannah Jarvis remarks to Bernard Nightingale when they stand in the same room 180 years later. Bernard has arrived to uncover the scandal which is said to have taken place when Lord Byron stayed at Sidley Park. Tom Stoppard’s masterful play takes us back and forth between the centuries and explores the nature of truth and time, the difference between the Classical and the Romantic temperament, and the disruptive influence of sex on our orbits in life—“the attraction,” as Hannah says, “which Newton left out.” Read more

'So funny -- Nabokov meets Spinal Tap.' - Stephen Merchant'Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.' - Tim Key'Absolutely miraculous.' - Jesse Eisenberg'A brain-swirlingly funny quest.' - Robert PopperRichard Ayoade's fictional quest to rescue Harauld Hughes - the almost mythical mid-century playwright - from obscurity. The gifted filmmaker, corduroy activist and amateur dentist, Richard Ayoade, first chanced upon a copy of The Two-Hander Trilogy by Harauld Hughes in a second-hand bookshop. At first startled by his uncanny resemblance to the author's photo, he opened the volume and was electrified. Terse, aggressive, and elliptical, what was true of Ayoade was also true of Hughes's writing, which encompassed stage, screen, and some of the shortest poems ever published. Ayoade embarked on a documentary, The Unfinished Harauld Hughes, to understand the unfathomable collapse of Hughes's final film O Bedlam! O Bedlam!, taking us deep inside the mind of the most furious British writer since the Boer War. This is the story of the story of that quest. Read more

The most celebrated plays of ancient Athens—Sophocles’s seven surviving works—in vivid and dynamic new translations. ANTIGONE, translated by award-winning poet Robert Bagg, is one of seven plays Harper Perennial has published as beautifully designed, stand-alone editions.Powerfully portraying the clash between civic and familial duty—between morality and obedience —Antigone brings the Oedipus Cycle to a conclusion with the story of the tragic hero's eldest daughter Antigone, who courts her own death by defying the edict of Thebes's new ruler, her uncle Kreon, which forbids giving her dishonored brother a proper burial. This is Sophocles, vibrant and alive, for a new generation. Read more

Embark on a captivating journey through the works of William Shakespeare with "Shakespeare in Brief." This indispensable companion offers a fresh and accessible approach to exploring the timeless plays that have captured the hearts and minds of audiences for centuries. This edition has been updated with enhanced accuracy and corrected errors.Key Features:1. Succinct Synopses: Each play is distilled into a clear and concise synopsis, allowing you to grasp the core elements of the story quickly.2. Character Connections: Uncover the intricate web of relationships between Shakespeare's iconic characters and gain a deeper understanding of their roles within each play.3. Thematic Threads: Follow the overarching themes that weave through Shakespeare's works, from the complexities of the human condition to the power dynamics that shape society.4. Engaging Insights: "Shakespeare in Brief" offers thought-provoking insights that will enrich your appreciation of Shakespeare's literary genius, regardless of your previous knowledge or experience.Why You Need "Shakespeare in Brief":* Exam and Performance Prep: An essential resource for students and actors alike, providing a quick and efficient way to review key aspects of each play.* Enhanced Enjoyment: Deepen your understanding and enjoyment of Shakespeare's works by exploring the nuances and subtleties that make them so enduring.* Continuing Relevance: Discover how Shakespeare's themes and characters continue to resonate with modern audiences, proving their timeless nature.Unlock the doors to Shakespeare's extraordinary world with "Shakespeare in Brief." Whether you're a student seeking to excel in your studies, an actor preparing for a role, or simply a lover of great literature, this guide is your compass to navigating the rich tapestry of Shakespeare's masterpieces.Don't wait to embark on this enlightening literary adventure. Get your copy of "Shakespeare in Brief" today and experience Shakespeare like never before! Read more

*Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play* *A Broadway production starring Richard Griffiths and Daniel Radcliffe* An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, Equus is Peter Shaffer's exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion.​Alan Strang is a disturbed youth whose dangerous obsession with horses leads him to commit an unspeakable act of violence. As psychiatrist Martin Dysart struggles to understand the motivation for Alan's brutality, he is increasingly drawn into Alan's web and eventually forced to question his own sanity. “Remarkable...a psychiatric detective story of infinite skill” (The New York Times) Equus is a timeless classic and a cornerstone of contemporary drama that delves into the darkest recesses of human existence. Read more

“Immensely haunting… The first of many great things about Martyna Majok’s Cost of Living… is the way it slams the door on uplifting stereotypes… Ms. Majok has engineered her plot to lead naturally to moments of intense and complicated pungency… If you don’t find yourself in someone in Cost of Living, you’re not looking.” —Jesse Green, New York TimesWinner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Cost of Living deftly challenges the typical perceptions of those living with disabilities and delves deep into the ways class, race, nationality, and wealth can create gulfs between people, even as they long for the ability to connect. Eddie, an unemployed truck driver, and his estranged ex-wife, Ani, find themselves unexpectedly reunited after a terrible accident leaves her quadriplegic. John, a brilliant PhD student with cerebral palsy, hires Jess, a first-generation recent graduate who has fallen on desperate times, as his new aide. Read more

Plagued by debt, tormented by writer’s block and in desperate need of a new hit, promising new playwright Will Shakespeare finds his muse in the form of passionate young noblewoman Viola De Lesseps. Their forbidden love soon draws everyone, including Queen Elizabeth, into the drama, and inspires Will to write the greatest love story of all time: Romeo and Juliet. Based on the Oscar-winning screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, Shakespeare in Love has been deftly adapted for the stage by Lee Hall and has been playing to rave reviews and a sold-out theatre at the Noël Coward in London. The London production is directed by Declan Donnellan and designed by Nick Ormerod, the driving force behind the world-renowned theatre company, Cheek by Jowl. A Broadway transfer is planned for Spring 2015. Read more

This third collection by Brian Friel contains two original works: Performances, which considers the relationship between the private life and public work of the composer Leos Janácek; and The Home Place, set in Ballybeg, Donegal, at the dawn of Home Rule. There are three masterful plays based on stories by Chekhov; and Friel's exquisite versions of Three Sisters and Uncle Vanya, of Ibsen's Hedda Gabler and of Turgenev's A Month in the Country.Performances 'A minor work the way Thomas Mann's Death in Venice or Beckett's Endgame is a minor work. Deceptively brisk and light in tone but taut and gravely pregnant with meaning... for Friel, life creates its own symbolism and poetry, and so it does in this play.' Sunday TimesThe Home Place 'A rich, allusive, densely layered play, which has echoes of Friel's masterly Translations while reminding one that he has spent much of his recent life adapting and translating Chekhov... Friel hauntingly conveys the pathos of exile and the delusion of ownership.' GuardianHedda Gabler 'Across the gulf of the 20th century one great playwright is talking to another... neither a simple translation nor, as the official title has it, or a 'new version', but something altogether larger.' The Irish Times Read more

From the master of Story, Dialogue, and Character, ACTION offers writers the keys to propulsive storytelling.  ACTION explores the ways that a modern-day writer can successfully tell an action story that not only stands apart, but wins the war on clichés. Teaming up with the former co-host of The Story Toolkit, Bassim El-Wakil, legendary story lecturer Robert McKee guides writers to award-winning originality by deconstructing the action genre, illuminating the challenges, and, more importantly, demonstrating how to master the demands of plot with surprising beats of innovation and ingenuity.Topics include: Understanding the Four Core Elements of ActionCreating the Action CastHook, Hold, Pay Off: Design in ActionThe Action MacguffinAction Set PiecesThe Sixteen Action SubgenresA must-add to the McKee storytelling library, ACTION illustrates the principles of narrative drive with precision and clarity by referencing the most popular action movies of our time including: Die Hard, The Star Wars Saga, Dark Knight, The Matrix, and Avengers: Endgame. Read more

During the Hellenistic Age, the great tragedian Euripides became a cornerstone of ancient literary education, his plays exhibiting an iconoclastic, rationalising attitude toward both religious belief and the ancient myths that formed the traditional subject matter of Greek drama. Read more

Luigi Pirandello was born on 28th June 1867 into an upper-class family in a small village in Sicily.In 1880, the family moved to Palermo and there he completed high school. He then registered at the University of Palermo, at that time the centre of what became the Fasci Siciliani movement. Although not an active member Pirandello had close friendships with many of its leading ideologists. Pirandello then completed his university studies in Rome and Bonn, receiving his Doctorate in March, 1891.His time in Rome had provided him with the opportunity to visit its many theatres. "Oh the dramatic theatre! I will conquer it. I cannot enter into one without experiencing a strange sensation, an excitement of the blood through all my veins..."1894 brought marriage, at his father's suggestion, to a shy, withdrawn girl: Mara Antonietta Portulano.The marriage encouraged his studies and writings and produced three children. In 1895, the first part of the ‘Dialoghi tra Il Gran Me e Il Piccolo Me’ was published.In 1903 the flooding of the sulphur mines in which his father had invested the family capital and Antonietta's dowry, brought financial catastrophe. Antonietta on hearing the news had her mental balance profoundly and irremediably shaken. While watching over his mentally ill wife at night (after the day spent at work) he wrote ‘Il Fu Mattia Pascal’ (The Late Mattia Pascal). It was an immediate and resounding success. In 1909, Pirandello began his collaboration with the prestigious Corriere della Sera. Whilst his fame as a writer was increasing his private life was poisoned by the suspicion and jealousy of Antonietta who now turned physically violent.By 1917 his theatrical works were beginning to take centre stage: ‘Così è (se vi pare)’ (Right you are (if you think so)) and ‘Il Piacere dell'onestà’ (The Pleasure Of Honesty). In 1919 Pirandello had Antonietta placed in an asylum. She never left the asylum.In 1921, in Rome his play, ‘Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore’, (Six Characters in Search of an Author) was staged. It was a failure. However, when presented in Milan it was a great success. Pirandello's international reputation was set when it was performed in London and New York.In 1925, Pirandello, with Mussolini’s help, assumed the artistic direction and ownership of the Teatro d'Arte di Roma. He now described himself both as ‘a Fascist because I am Italian’ and ‘I'm apolitical, I'm only a man in the world...’ He later had several conflicts with fascist leaders and would fall under close surveillance by the secret fascist police OVRA.In 1934 he won the Nobel Prize but asked that medal be melted down for Italy’s occupation of Abyssinia Campaign to which he had given his support. Pirandello's canon stretches across novels, hundreds of short stories, poetry volumes, essays and some 40 plays. His tragic farces are often cited as forerunners of the Theatre of the Absurd.Luigi Pirandello died on 10th December 1936 at his home at Via Bosio, Rome, Italy. Read more

1 Female.One actress plays three women drawn together in the grim aftermath of a high school shooting - the mother of the shooter (staph infection), one of the shooter's victims (early release), and the mother of that victim (keynote speaker). It is a deep exploration of the lives of three women that, according to SEE Magazine "... will leave you wringing your hands in helpless empathy." Read more

“Stoppard is the master comedian of ideas in the English language.”—NewsweekCulled from nearly twenty years of the playwright’s career, The Real Inspector Hound and Other Plays is a showcase for Tom Stoppard’s dazzling range and virtuosic talent, and essential reading for fans of modern drama. The plays in this collection reveal Stoppard’s sense of fun, his sense of theater, his sense of the absurd, and his gifts for parody and satire. Read more

At a time when the Russian theatre was dominated by formulaic melodramas and farces, Chekhov created a new sort of drama that laid bare the everyday lives, loves and yearnings of ordinary people. Ivanov depicts a man stifled by inactivity and lost idealism, and The Seagull contrasts a young man's selfish romanticism with the stoicism of a woman cruelly abandoned by her lover. With 'the scenes from country life' of Uncle Vanya, his first fully mature play, Chekhov developed his own unique dramatic world, neither tragedy nor comedy. In Three Sisters the Prozorov sisters endlessly dream of going to Moscow to escape the monotony of provincial life, while his comedy The Cherry Orchard portrays characters futilely clinging to the past as their land is sold from underneath them. Read more

“Smart, funny and utterly engrossing…This unexpectedly rich sequel reminds us that houses tremble and sometimes fall when doors slam, and that there are living people within, who may be wounded or lost…Mr. Hnath has a deft hand for combining incongruous elements to illuminating ends.” —Ben Brantley, New York TimesIt has been fifteen years since Nora Helmer slammed the door on her stifling domestic life, when a knock comes at that same door. It is Nora, and she has returned with an urgent request. What will her sudden return mean to those she left behind? Lucas Hnath’s funny, probing, and bold play is both a continuation of Ibsen’s complex exploration of traditional gender roles, as well as a sharp contemporary take on the struggles inherent in all human relationships across time. Read more

All cats are alike in the dark.At the height of the Cold War, disillusioned British spy Alec Leamas is persuaded to stay out 'in the cold' for one last risky operation against the powerful leader of the East German Secret Service.But Leamas has committed a cardinal error: he's fallen in love. After a lifetime of deception and betrayal, can there be room for humanity in the ruthlessly manipulative world of international espionage?The first ever John le Carré novel to be adapted for the stage, this award-winning 1963 thriller has been hailed as a modern masterpiece. Leading playwright David Eldridge creates this gripping theatrical version.This edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at Chichester Festival Theatre in August 2024. Read more

The long-awaited third volume of Robert McKee’s trilogy on the art of fiction.  Following up his perennially bestselling writers' guide Story and his inspiring exploration of the art of verbal action in Dialogue, the most sought-after expert in the storytelling brings his insights to the creation of compelling characters and the design of their casts. CHARACTER explores the design of a character universe: The dimensionality, complexity and arcing of a protagonist, the invention of orbiting major characters, all encircled by a cast of service and supporting roles.  Read more