The Theatre of David Greig

Description

David Greig has been described as 'one of the most interesting and adventurous British dramatists of his generation' (Daily Telegraph) and 'one of the most intellectually stimulating dramatists around' (Guardian). Since he began writing for theatre in the early nineties, his work has been both copious and remarkably varied, defying neat generalisations or attempts to pigeon-hole his work. Besides his original plays, he has adapated classics, is co-founder of the Suspect Culture Theatre Group and is currently Dramaturge for the National Theatre of Scotland. This Critical Companion provides an analytical survey of his work, from his early plays such as and The Architect through to more recent works Damascus, Dunsinane and ; it also considers the plays produced with Suspect Culture and his work for young audiences. As such it is the first book to provide a critical account of the full variety of his work and will appeal to students and fans of contemporary British theatre. Clare Wallace provides a detailed analysis of a broad selection of plays and their productions, reviews current discourses about his work and offers a framework for enquiry. The Companion features an interview with David Greig and a further three essays by leading academics offering a variety of critical perspectives. Title Page Copyright Page Contents Acknowledgements Introduction David Greig: In and Out of Context Chapter 1 Suspect Culture ‘The Possibilities for Alternative Theatre’ Psychogeographies and Utopias: One Way Street, Airport and Candide 2000 Anti-Narratives of Self: Timeless, Mainstream and Casanova Postmodern Politics? Lament and Futurology Chapter 2 Lssson Plays Towards an ‘Epic, Presentational, Storytelling Style’ Stories of War: Petra and Dr Korczak’s Example After Idealism: Stalinland, Europe, The Architect Vulnerabilities and Communities: Yellow Moon, Monster in the Hall, Fragile World Politics in Miniature: Kyoto and Letter of Last Resort Naked Rambling: Dalgety and Beyond Chapter 3 Scotland Of, About, Despite – Imagining Scotland Olympian Heights: Caledonia Dreaming ‘Just History’: Victoria Bird Watching: Outlying Islands ‘Change is Possible’: Midsummer (A Play with Songs) Out of the Woods? Dunsinane Karaoke Ceilidh: The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart National Costumes Chapter 4 Globalization States of Ambivalence ‘The Veins and Arteries of Commerce’: The Speculator Satellite Signals: The Cosmonaut’s Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union Global Village – San Diego Lost and Found: Pyrenees Homecoming: Brewers Fayre Chapter 5 East/West Contact Zones and Cosmopolitanism First Attempts: Not About Pomegranates and Ramallah Power Play: The American Pilot Intercultural Miscommunication and Damascus ‘Foreign Imaginings’ and The Miniskirts of Kabul New Directions: ‘One Day in Spring’ Chapter 6 Perspectives Writing and the Rule of Opposites: David Greig in Conversation ‘Geographies of the Imagination’ in David Greig’s Theatre: Mobility, Globalization and European Identities Place, Mobility, and Globalization Travellers and Strangers: San Diego and The Cosmonaut’s Message Feeling European: Europe and One-Way Street The Battlefield of Imagination and the ‘Anywhere’ of Theatre ‘Who’s Scotland?’: David Greig, Identity and Scottish Nationhood The Matter of Scotland Caledonia Dreaming (1997): Sean Connery’s my Sensei Victoria/Outlying Islands: The Highland Archetype The Fabric of Scotland. Dunsinane Directors’ Cuts Conclusion Progressions and Accretions: Organic, Chaotic and Collaborative Chronology Notes Further Reading Plays and Scripts Adaptations Suspect Culture Articles and Other Publications Greig: General Profiles and Criticism General Studies of Contemporary British and Scottish Drama Other Texts Cited Useful Websites Newspaper Profiles, Reviews and Interviews Notes on Contributors Index