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Birdland
Everything can be quantified. All worth can be quantified. Artistic worth. Human worth. Material worth. Everything. Some food is simply better than other food. Isn't it? Some clothes are better than other clothes. Aren't they?
The last week of a massive international tour and rock star Paul is at the height of his fame. Everybody knows his name. Whatever he wants he can have. He can screw anybody he wants to. He can buy anything he desires. He can eat anything. Drink anything. Smoke anything. Go anywhere. As the inevitability of the end of the road looms closer and a return home becomes a reality, for Paul the music is starting to jar.
Birdland received its world premiere at the Royal Court Theatre Downstairs on 3 April 2014.
The last week of a massive international tour and rock star Paul is at the height of his fame. Everybody knows his name. Whatever he wants he can have. He can screw anybody he wants to. He can buy anything he desires. He can eat anything. Drink anything. Smoke anything. Go anywhere. As the inevitability of the end of the road looms closer and a return home becomes a reality, for Paul the music is starting to jar.
Birdland received its world premiere at the Royal Court Theatre Downstairs on 3 April 2014.
144 pages, Paperback
First published April 24, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 28, 2017
Birdland is a clever and very darkly funny play about fame and money, written with fast-paced dialogue and an all-consuming main character. Paul is a rock star near the end of a huge tour, riding high on his success and buying only the best to celebrate. Everybody knows his name and he can get whatever he wants. However, as the tour draws to a close, Paul finds things taking a bad turn, with arguments, death, and the proof that he might really be set apart from everyone not only due to his fame, but also his personality.
I saw the play performed at the Royal Court a few years ago and the audience reactions were fascinating - people were gasping and intaking breath as Paul said the wrong thing at the wrong time, and the awkwardness of the laughter was apparent. It is a powerful play that hurtles through the descent from the top, drawing the audience in through Paul's reaction to fans watching him. When read, this element is not so apparent, but the uncomfortable dialogue still makes the unnerving atmosphere that the play has when performed. It is a great play for thinking about fame and how people interact with each other.
I saw the play performed at the Royal Court a few years ago and the audience reactions were fascinating - people were gasping and intaking breath as Paul said the wrong thing at the wrong time, and the awkwardness of the laughter was apparent. It is a powerful play that hurtles through the descent from the top, drawing the audience in through Paul's reaction to fans watching him. When read, this element is not so apparent, but the uncomfortable dialogue still makes the unnerving atmosphere that the play has when performed. It is a great play for thinking about fame and how people interact with each other.
May 8, 2025
Paul is a maniac. He is such a flawed person, which I absolutely love reading about. Just the things he says make it so clear how insecure he really is.
I’ve read up to scene 12, so far Paul has mostly met up with women who he thinks his money makes him suave to, when really the money is probably the only reason they’re there. The main climactic through line is that after Marnie, the girlfriend of Johnny (Paul’s band mate) secretly slept with Paul, she killed herself because he said he was going to tell Johnny. He thought it was the right thing to do, and denies his involvement in the actual suicide, but it makes it difficult because of course Paul has a lot of power from his name and money alone, but also that led Marnie to do something that also wasn’t a good thing to do, and has consequences.
Hard to really pinpoint where the heroes lie in a play that is so full of the corrupted eye of money and fame-fuelled Paul.
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God, if Paul isn’t the most insufferable person ever. His genuine hateful nature is really villainous, which makes it very interesting to be almost on the same side of him as a reader. I’m sure on stage a lot of the moments here would have more life, but reading through this play as I commuted through London and visited libraries was a TRIP. Definitely one to remember, even if more for the experience than the actual play context.
After my first note on the play, about halfway through, Paul began to be more and more affected by the death of Marnie (and in turn, his reputation) weighing on him, climaxing into a child rape scandal with a 14 year old girl and the realisation that he owes the record company a whole load of money. In the play’s final scene, Paul is visited my Marnie, the dead one. She ends up leaving him alone on the stage, in deep regret and anguish.
I don’t think I’ll go back to this play, even to see it, much. I don’t have much interest in seeing it after having read it, and I don’t think I’ll be able to get any speeches from it. However, watching such strong fame/money-induced corruption start to crumble before your very eyes is definitely impactful.
So far, having read 2 of his plays, Stephens definitely writes of dark subject matter but in a very “flawed human” way that makes each page flow into the next. I hope to gain a strong attachment to one of his plays at some point, enough to want to see it in person.
I’ve read up to scene 12, so far Paul has mostly met up with women who he thinks his money makes him suave to, when really the money is probably the only reason they’re there. The main climactic through line is that after Marnie, the girlfriend of Johnny (Paul’s band mate) secretly slept with Paul, she killed herself because he said he was going to tell Johnny. He thought it was the right thing to do, and denies his involvement in the actual suicide, but it makes it difficult because of course Paul has a lot of power from his name and money alone, but also that led Marnie to do something that also wasn’t a good thing to do, and has consequences.
Hard to really pinpoint where the heroes lie in a play that is so full of the corrupted eye of money and fame-fuelled Paul.
-
God, if Paul isn’t the most insufferable person ever. His genuine hateful nature is really villainous, which makes it very interesting to be almost on the same side of him as a reader. I’m sure on stage a lot of the moments here would have more life, but reading through this play as I commuted through London and visited libraries was a TRIP. Definitely one to remember, even if more for the experience than the actual play context.
After my first note on the play, about halfway through, Paul began to be more and more affected by the death of Marnie (and in turn, his reputation) weighing on him, climaxing into a child rape scandal with a 14 year old girl and the realisation that he owes the record company a whole load of money. In the play’s final scene, Paul is visited my Marnie, the dead one. She ends up leaving him alone on the stage, in deep regret and anguish.
I don’t think I’ll go back to this play, even to see it, much. I don’t have much interest in seeing it after having read it, and I don’t think I’ll be able to get any speeches from it. However, watching such strong fame/money-induced corruption start to crumble before your very eyes is definitely impactful.
So far, having read 2 of his plays, Stephens definitely writes of dark subject matter but in a very “flawed human” way that makes each page flow into the next. I hope to gain a strong attachment to one of his plays at some point, enough to want to see it in person.
January 22, 2018
My immediate thoughts: What the hell did I just read?
June 5, 2025
Great play!
July 17, 2014
I saw the play before I read the book so this review may not be for those who are reading the book first time as I haven't read the book alone, it was accompanied by me knowing what the characters were doing on stage and the connections portrayed by the actors between the characters. Saying this, this book is incredible! It's quick, clever and addresses a lot of issues in society and with fame. I loved the jokes and the intelligent statements and the character progressions so much! I attempted to write an essay on Birdland as a whole but found I had too much to say and not enough time to write it! Birdland is brilliant.
May 15, 2014
I want to see the play again now!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews