Granville Barker Plays 2

Harley Granville Barker's plays are enjoying a revival. This volume contains four plays: "The Marrying of Ann Leete", "The Madras House" - recently performed at the Edinbugh Festival and the Lyric, Hammersmith - "His Majesty" and "Farewell To The Theatre". No one in Barker's generation did more to change British Theatre The Marrying of Ann Leete, is thinly veiled costume drama, using an 18th century tale to reflect on 19th century reality, it follows the story of Ann a "new woman", surrounded by a society of manoeuvres and lies; The Madras House follows the fortunes of the Madras family at the height of Edwardian expansion of London and the reformation of ideas about society and gender roles; His Majesty is the fictional story of the king of a cash-strapped Eastern European country where naive make-believe meets the dark universe of realpolitik; Farewell to the Theatre is a witty commentary on the trials and tribulations of a theatre and its actors.