Arden Plays

This volume - the first of two featuring John Arden's early plays - contains "Waters of Babylon", "When is a Door not a Door?", "Live Like Pigs", "Serjeant Musgrave's Dance" and "The Happy Haven". "Arden is to me a writer a bit like Shakespeare in approach, in that the writing not only has to convey...the dialogue of characters speaking together, but also has to carry the sense of the social environment and the texture of people's lives." This first volume of Arden's dramatic work contains plays from the late fifties including The Waters of Babylon about political chancer Charles Butterthwaite at large in London; the one act industrial episode When is a Door not a Door; The Happy Haven, a comedy inspired by the painter Cranach about old age and rejuvenation; Live Like Pigs; "an amazing and lyrical play, beautifully poised between farce and tragedy" Michael Coveney and Serjeant Musgrave's Dance; "a spell-binding, mind-challenging drama that touches greatness" Michael Billington."Arden is a giant of modern playwriting. He wrote on an epic scale that few have attained since, the plays tumble into action, and with vivid human response." (Dominic Dromgoole)