The Kite Runner

by Matthew Spangler (Adapter)

Based on the novel by Khaled Hosseini

The script for the stage production of Khaled Hosseini's first and internationally bestselling novel, The Kite Runner , as adapted by playwright Matthew Spangler.

The unforgettable, heartbreaking story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father's servant, The Kite Runner is a beautifully crafted novel set in a country that is in the process of being destroyed. Now adapted for the stage, the story is about the power of reading, the price of betrayal, and the possibility of redemption, and is an exploration of the influence of fathers over sons--their love, their sacrifices, their lies.

A sweeping saga of family, love, and friendship told against the devastating backdrop of the history of Afghanistan over the last thirty years, The Kite Runner is an unusual and powerful story that has become a beloved, one-of-a-kind classic.

This adaptation was first performed at Wyndham's Theatre, London, in December 2016.

Genres: Plays, Drama

140 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 6, 2018

About the author

Matthew Spangler is an award-winning playwright and director. His adaptation of Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner received five San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, including Best Original Script and Best Overall Production, and has been produced throughout the United States, Canada, and the UK. Some of his other plays include The Tortilla Curtain, adapted from the novel by T. C. Boyle; Albatross, based on The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which was produced off-Broadway; Together Tea, from the novel by Marjan Kamali; and A Paradise It Seems, based on John Cheever's short stories. He is professor of performance studies at San José State University in California.

Reviews

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

The richness of Hosseini’s characters and world building are almost entirely stripped away to deliver only the hard gut punches of the original plot. It is still affective storytelling given that it is a novel adaptation into a stage play, but I can’t help that too much was left with the director and actors to fill in the gaps that the playwright should have done himself.

Much of what makes The Kite Runner impactful is the relationship between Amir and Hassan, and while the playwright should dedicates its first half to building such a relationship, the second half rushes the relationship’s development and consequences to justify the final moments of the play.

Nonetheless, this is a difficult piece to adapt that the playwright executed fairly well. Though this adaptation focuses only on the plot points that make the story beautiful, it is easy to imagine a dedicated cast coming in and adding muscle to the bone.

[Jana Schleis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written story. Took me a bit to get into but again well written and impactful.

[Meghaa Ghosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Kite Runner Play Script adapted by Mathew Spangler based on the novel by Khalid Hosseini. Khalid Hosseini
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I wanted to start reading play scripts and screenplays. While I Google and don't search anymore when it comes to books I still choose walking into a book store. There is nothing that comes close to the calling of a book or the discovery of one in person walking from aisle to aisle, shelf to shelf, pile to pile. I read this book by Khalid Hosseini years ago and it stayed with me vividly. I also saw the movie and it once again touched the deepest parts of my soul. So when I decided to read a play script and walked into Title Waves for a book to call out, the last thing I expected was to see this one in a lower shelf of an obscure corner. Knowing a story and then reading its play script is such an enriching experience. From the science and art of writing one to the finer nuances of Mathew Spangler mentioning what kind of music, how many beats, the movement of the ensemble, this book has compelled me to visualize the stage and the characters with such vividness. The circle needs to be completed and I hope I get to see this play at some point soon!

[May · Rating 4 out of 5]

holy everything, would love to see this staged 🥺

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard to read a novel turned into a play, especially when the novel is so incredibly rich. Spangler gets most of the key scenes and many of the original lines, but I wonder if this story is too full for a play, even one with as many scenes as this one. I see Spangler's keen efforts at walking the audience (and ensemble) through much of the interpretation, since some of them may not have read the original novel. So, understandably, many of the stage directions and lines are on the nose. It takes away from the reader's experience of it. Of course, he had to make some hard choices re. which key scenes to keep vs. not. There are the obvious hard-hitters -- the absolute necessities to paint the character and story arch, but man. The scene I missed the most was the one of Baba walking with slow dignity to ask for Soraya's father's blessing for his son.

Too much of the development is clipped and quick. Too much relies on single lines of text and some ensemble movements and music. Some of the modern musical suggestions felt a bit disorienting to me, such as "Brown Eyed Girl." I didn't read the Soraya-Amir love story with that tone.

The pivotal heart-wrenching moments lose so much in this adaptation, but I respect Spangler for attempting it. What a challenging task. I imagine it's still a powerful experience to watch it on the stage. Reading it on paper is a quick enterprise -- seeing it on stage for about 2hrs would likely be more emotionally compelling. Still, I look forward to learning from him this summer.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great adaptation of the book. A heartfelt narrative complemented with carefully crafted text, resulting in an emotional spectacle performed on stage. Worth a read if you have seen the film or read the novel, but in my opinion, the play seems to capture the raw essence of the story more thoroughly and is considerably more efficient.

[Oda Jensberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Traumatizingly beautiful. 10/10 would read again <3

[Kellan McDonough · Rating 5 out of 5]

One word: Rhythm.

[Adelaide Felx · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sososososo good. You can feel the guilt in the main characters words and it works so well