Sixteen-year-old Kelly has never known her Dad. Turns out he's from Iraq, which her mum never mentioned, and he's brought an ancient Mesopotamian vase as some kind of present. But Kelly doesn't want a vase. She wants her dad to stay and get to know her. It's not the reunion either of them expected and for Kelly, it's the beginning of an epic and dangerous journey. Mike Bartlett has been described as 'One of the most exciting new talents to emerge in recent times'. (The Stage). His first play My Child was called 'Brutal, thrilling, unmissable' (Evening Standard) and 'the theatrical equivalent of a firecracker'. (Metro).
It's Cabaret, we've got our heads down and we're dancing and drinking as fast as we can. The enemy is on its way, but this time it doesn't have guns and gas it has storms and earthquakes, fire and brimstone.... You were the glimmer. At the end of the tunnel. And you went out. Earthquakes in London is a fast and furious metropolitan crash of people, scenes and decades, as three sisters attempt to navigate their dislocated lives and loves, while their dysfunctional father, a brilliant scientist, predicts global catastrophe. The play deals, through amplified theatricality, with a range of contemporary issues from population growth to climate change. An all-pervasive fear of the future and a guilty pleasure in the excesses of the present drive Mike Bartlett's epic rollercoaster of a play from 1968 to 2525 and back again. Earthquakes in London first published in 2010 and has subsequently become a much-produced and widely studied drama text. It is published here as a Student Edition alongside commentary and notes by Bridget Escolme. The ancillary material is geared at students and includes: - an introduction outlining the play's plot, character, themes context and performance history - the full text of the play - a chronology of the playwright's life and work - extensive textual notes - questions for further study - an interview with the playwright
1967. Kenneth and Sandra know the world is changing. And they want some of it. Love, Love, Love takes on the baby boomer generation as it retires, and finds it full of trouble. Smoking, drinking, affectionate and paranoid, one couple journeys forty-years from initial burst to full bloom. The play follows their idealistic teenage years in the 1960s to their stint as a married family unit before finally divorced and, although disintegrated, free from acrimony. Their children, on the other hand, bitterly rail against their parents' irresponsibility and their relaxed, laissez-faire attitude. This play by Olivier award-winning writer Mike Bartlett questions whether the baby boomer generation is to blame for the debt-ridden and adrift generation of their children, now adults but far from stable and settled.
A real man is strong. A real man is driven. A real man provides. A father finds himself being phased out of his son's life. Denied access to his only child, he goes to extraordinary lengths to hold on to him. My Child throws us into a violent world where good intentions count for very little, and offers an incisive, honest look at what it means to be a good parent. Premiered at the Royal Court Theatre Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, this is a remarkably powerful and affecting work from a writer hailed by The Stage as 'one of the most exciting new talents to emerge in recent times'.
If I don't want to tell anyone, it's up to me, right? Lucy knows James has avoided the battle. Mark knows Amanda has fought for her life. But speaking the truth could bring everything crashing down. What happens if we live a life of not talking? Olivier award-winning writer Mike Bartlett's gripping and lyrical first play unlocks a culture of silence and gives voice to the human casualties when things are easier done than said. This edition was published to coincide with a new production at the Arcola Theatre and features an introduction by the author.
THE STORY: The Queen is dead: After a lifetime of waiting, the prince ascends the throne. A future of power. But how to rule? Mike Bartlett’s controversial play explores the people beneath the crowns, the unwritten rules of our democracy, and the conscience of Britain’s most famous family.
But that's what this is, isn't it? The ultimate bitch fight. When John takes a break from his boyfriend, his accidentally meets the girl of his dreams. Filled with guilt and indecision, he decides there is only one way to straighten this out . . . Mike Bartlett's metrosexual play about love and longing provides us with questions of who we are and who we want to be. John's refusal to fix his identity disturbs and disrupts the lives of those around him in this contemporary tale of sex without nudity and struggle without violence. Mike Bartlett's punchy story takes a playful, candid look at one man's sexuality and the difficulties that arise when you realise you have a choice. Cock premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on 13 November 2009. It is published here in the Modern Classics series, featuring an introduction by Mark O'Thomas.
This vicious comedy is an allegorical deathmatch between business colleagues—full of bizarre power plays and one-upmanship—wherein one of three employees is allegedly going to be fired. The odds against our protagonist are stacked from the outset: rumple-faced sad-sack Thomas never quite gets his footing against opponents Tony, a shark in wolf's clothing, and Isobel, a snaky number with a talent for undermining. In savvy fashion, Mike Bartlett's BULL caters to our baser instincts.
Come in. Sit down. How are you? Emma's been seeing Darren. She thinks she's in love. Her boss thinks she's in breach of contract. The situation needs to be resolved. An ink-black comedy from Mike Bartlett about work and play, which invites the audience to a meeting at the centre of the Royal Court building.
What will become of us? Four people, the sole survivors of a shipwreck, crawl out of the sea. Two of them are masters, and two of them are servants; and all four are about to discover what life feels like when the boot is on the other foot. Marivaux's potent mix of laughter, emotion and theatrical game-playing makes him one of the most surprising and most modern of all classic playwrights. Neil Bartlett has adapted this brilliant comedy of role-swapping and redemption, which premiered at the Lyric Hammersmith in April 2002. Cast size: 4
