Plays 1: Not Talking / My Child / Artefacts / Contractions / Cock

by Mike Bartlett

This first collection of Mike Bartlett's plays showcases the adroit expertise and flair of a writer known for laser-sharp political comment, tight dialectics and needlingly real characters.

My Child is a gut-wrenching exploration of the lengths a father will go to to have access to his child. The play creates 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.

Contractions is an ink-black comedy about work and 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.

Artefacts depicts a father-daughter reunion which, after 16 years, crosses between the world of a British teenager and an Iraqi expert in antiquity, and is complicated by the ambivalent gift of a precious Mespotamian vase.

Cock is a punchy play which takes a playful, candid look at one man's sexuality and the difficulties that arise when you realise you have a choice.

Genres: Plays

368 pages

First published March 15, 2012

About the author

Michael Bartlett is a British playwright. Mike Bartlett was born on 7 October 1980 in Abingdon, Oxford, England. He attended Abingdon School, then studied English and Theatre Studies at the University of Leeds. In October 2013, Mike won Best New Play at The National Theatre Awards for his play Bull, beating plays from both Alan Ayckbourn and Tom Wells.

(source)

Reviews

[jay daniells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not talking ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My child ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Artefacts ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Contractions ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Cock ⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bartlett is an intriguing playwright, and I enjoyed reading these together. He gives precise instructions about how the lines are to come out, including a legend at the beginning of the play that describes what he means by his punctuation and formatting; it's quite effective. Very insightful on a variety of relationship dysfunctions.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

NOT TALKING: 4
MY CHILD: 4
ARTEFACTS: 3
CONTRACTIONS: 4
COCK: 5