The Methuen Drama Guide to Contemporary Irish Playwrightsis an authoritative guide to the work of twenty-five playwrights from the last 50 years whose work has helped to shape and define Irish theatre. Written by a team of international scholars, it provides an illuminating survey and analysis of each writer's plays and will be invaluable to anyone interested in, studying or teaching contemporary Irish drama.
The playwrights examined range from John B. Keane, Brian Friel and Tom Murphy, to the crop of writers who emerged in the 1990s and who include Martin McDonagh, Marina Carr, Emma Donoghue and Mark O'Rowe. Each essay features:
a biographical sketch and introduction to the playwright
a discussion of their most important plays
an analysis of their stylistic and thematic traits, the critical reception and their place in the discourses of Irish theatre
a bibliography of texts and critical material
With a total of 190 plays discussed in detail, over half of which were written during the 1990s and 2000s,TheMethuen DramaGuide to Contemporary Irish Playwrightsis unrivalled in its study of recent plays and playwrights.
Professor Martin Middeke is Chair of English Literature at the University of Augsburg, Germany, Visiting Professor at the University of Johannesburg and editor of the publications from the German Society for Contemporary Theatre and Drama in English. Professor Peter Paul Schnierer is Chair of English Literature at the University of Heidelberg, Germany.
INTRODUCTION
1 SEBASTIAN BARRY
Jurgen Wehrmann
2 DERMOT BOLGER
Christina Wald
3 MARINA CARR
Aleks Sierz
4 ANNE DEVLIN
Enrica Cerquoni
5 EMMA DONOGHUE
Catherine Leeney
6 BRIAN FRIEL
Nicholas Grene
7 MARIE JONES
Catrin Siedenbiedal
8 JOHN B. KEANE
Jurgen Kamm