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Plays 2: Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness! / The Lying Kind / The Wonderful World of Dissocia / Realism
In the 1990s playwright Anthony Neilson garnered a reputation for hard-hitting, morally disturbing plays that saw him labelled as one of the 'In Yer Face' dramatists who emerged from that decade.
This second volume of plays showcases the comic, surreal and gloriously off-kilter side of his more recent work. Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness! (Theatre Royal, Plymouth, 2002) mixes Victorian melodrama with a catalogue of grotesque comic tales; The Lying Kind (Royal Court, 2002), a black farce set at Christmas involving two hapless policeman who must break news of tragedy to an elderly couple, 'often reduced much of the audience to tears of laughter' ( Financial Times ). Produced originally for the 2004 Edinburgh International Festival, The Wonderful World of Dissocia wowed critics and audiences alike. A hugely original play inspired by Alice in Wonderland , it is both magical and moving and confirmed Neilson as one of the major voices in contemporary British Theatre . Realism premiered at the Edinburgh International Festival in 2006. It follows the life of one man during an ordinary day but veers off to become a deliriously surreal trip inside his wayward imagination. It was described by the Guardian as a 'bold and utterly distinctive all-singing, all-dancing show, like nothing else you'll ever see '.
This second volume of plays showcases the comic, surreal and gloriously off-kilter side of his more recent work. Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness! (Theatre Royal, Plymouth, 2002) mixes Victorian melodrama with a catalogue of grotesque comic tales; The Lying Kind (Royal Court, 2002), a black farce set at Christmas involving two hapless policeman who must break news of tragedy to an elderly couple, 'often reduced much of the audience to tears of laughter' ( Financial Times ). Produced originally for the 2004 Edinburgh International Festival, The Wonderful World of Dissocia wowed critics and audiences alike. A hugely original play inspired by Alice in Wonderland , it is both magical and moving and confirmed Neilson as one of the major voices in contemporary British Theatre . Realism premiered at the Edinburgh International Festival in 2006. It follows the life of one man during an ordinary day but veers off to become a deliriously surreal trip inside his wayward imagination. It was described by the Guardian as a 'bold and utterly distinctive all-singing, all-dancing show, like nothing else you'll ever see '.
- GenresPlays
368 pages, Paperback
First published June 4, 2008
18 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Neilson
28 books4 followersAnthony Neilson (born 1967) is a Scottish playwright and director. He is known for his collabo rative way of writing and workshopping his plays. Much of his work is characterised by the exploration of sex and violence.
Neilson has been cited as a key figure of In-yer-face theatre, a term used to characterise new plays with a confrontational style and sensibility that emerged in British theatre during the 1990s. He has been credited with coining the phrase "in-your-face theatre" but has rejected the label and instead describes his work as “'experiential' theatre”.
Neilson has been cited as a key figure of In-yer-face theatre, a term used to characterise new plays with a confrontational style and sensibility that emerged in British theatre during the 1990s. He has been credited with coining the phrase "in-your-face theatre" but has rejected the label and instead describes his work as “'experiential' theatre”.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 24, 2018
Dissocia by far the best play in this collection. Lying Kind and Realism have their moments but over-reliant on swearing for humour. Edward Gant seemed pointless to me and unnecessarily difficult to stage.
Displaying 1 of 1 review