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Punk Rock

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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Punk Rock follows William Carlisle and his sixth-form classmates as they prepare for mock A-Levels in a grammar school library. Amid their intelligence and ambition, tensions rise revealing dislocation, disjunction, and latent aggression beneath the surface of teenage life.
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Ideal for students and readers interested in contemporary drama exploring youth, education pressures, and social tensions, particularly within an arts and culture context.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Everything human beings do finishes up bad in the end. Everything good human beings ever make is built on something monstrous. Nothing lasts. We certainly won't . . .

William Carlisle has the world at his feet, but its weight on his shoulders. He is intelligent, articulate and f*ed. In the library of a grammar school, William and his fellow sixth-formers are preparing for their mock A-Levels while navigating the pressures of teenage life. They are educated and aspirational young people, but step-by-step, the dislocation, disjunction and latent aggression is revealed.

Punk Rock premiered at the Lyric Hammersmith on 3 September 2009 in a co-production between Lyric Hammersmith and the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. It is published here as a Student Edition featuring commentary and notes by Catherine Love.

The ancillary material is geared at students and considers:

  • an introduction outlining the play's plot, character, themes, context and performance history
  • the full text of the play
  • a chronology of the playwright's life and work
  • a detailed introductory analysis
  • extensive textual notes
  • questions for further study

Methuen Drama Student Editions are expertly annotated texts of a wide range of plays from the modern and classic repertoires.

This play includes some strong language and violent scenes.

Series: Student Editions

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781474229357

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 20 October 2016

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Methuen Drama

Contributors:

  • Introduction by Catherine Love

Audience: Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 10.0mm

Width: 124.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 191g

Pages: 176

About the Author

Simon Stephens began his theatrical career in the literary department of the Royal Court Theatre, where he ran its Young Writers' Programme. His plays for theatre include Bluebird (Royal Court Theatre, London, 1998, directed by Gordon Anderson); Herons (Royal Court Theatre, 2001); Port (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, 2002); One Minute (Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 2003 and Bush Theatre, London, 2004); Christmas (Bush Theatre, 2004); Country Music (Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, 2004); On the Shore of the Wide World (Royal Exchange Theatre and National Theatre, London, 2005); Motortown (Royal Court Theatre Downstairs, 2006); Pornography (Deutsches Schauspielhaus, Hanover, 2007; Edinburgh Festival/Birmingham Rep, 2008 and Tricycle Theatre, London, 2009); Harper Regan (National Theatre, 2008); Sea Wall (Bush Theatre, 2008/Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 2009); Heaven (Traverse Theatre, 2009); Punk Rock (Lyric Hammersmith, London, and Royal Exchange Theatre, 2009); The Trial of Ubu (Essen Schauspielhaus/Toneelgroep Amsterdam, 2010); A Thousand Stars Explode in the Sky (co-written with David Eldridge and Robert Holman; Lyric Hammersmith, London, 2010); Marine Parade (co-written with Mark Eitzel; Brighton International Festival, 2010); T5 (Traverse Theatre, 2010); Wastwater (Royal Court Theatre Downstairs, 2011); Morning (Lyric Hammersmith, 2012); an adaptation of A Doll's House (Young Vic, 2012); an adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (National Theatre, 2012); Blindsided (Royal Exchange, 2014); and Birdland (Royal Court, 2014). His radio plays include Five Letters Home to Elizabeth (BBC Radio 4, 2001) and Digging (BBC Radio 4, 2003). His screenwriting includes an adaptation of Motortown for Film4 (2009); the two-part serial Dive (with Dominic Savage) for Granada/BBC (2009); and a short film adaptation of Pornography for Channel 4's 'Coming Up' series (2009). Awards include the Pearson Award for Best New Play, 2001, for Port; Olivier Award for Best New Play for On the Shore of the Wide World, 2005; and for Motortown German critics in Theater Heute's annual poll voted him Best Foreign Playwright, 2007. Catherine Love is a PhD researcher at Royal Holloway, University of London. Her research interests include the relationship between text and performance and authorship in theatre and theatrical adaptation. She has written for the journals Theatre Notebook and Contemporary Theatre Review, and is one of the editors of Platform. She is also a freelance arts journalist, theatre critic and editor. Her writing has been published in the Guardian, The Stage, Exeunt, Time Out, WhatsOnStage and Fest Magazine.

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