When Kenneth Tynan described Jimmy Porter in Look Back in Anger as ‘the completest young pup in our literature since Hamlet,’ he signalled a radical change in British theatre. Inspired by the opening of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot at the Arts Theatre in 1955 and the first visit to London of Bertolt Brecht’s Berliner Ensemble in 1956, a new wave of British playwrights, including both Absurdists and Kitchen-sink realists, threatened to erode the complacencies of the old guard. This course will look at the work of some of the key playwrights of the fifties and sixties and the impact their work had on the development of British drama.
Course aim
The aim of the course will be to examine post-war dramatic writing in the UK and to consider the stylistic, social, political and philosophical preoccupations of leading playwrights.
Do I need any particular skills or experience?
- This course is for beginners and improvers
By the end of the course I should be able to:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the key innovations in British theatrical writing during this period
- Analyse plays both as literature and as texts for performance
- Relate play texts and theatrical practices to wider social, cultural and political contexts
- Make informed judgements about the themes and stylistic techniques of individual plays
What else do I need to know?
All material for the course will be provided.
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