Changing Stages

In 1997 Richard Eyre was invited to write and present a series of programmes for the BBC about the history of the British theatre in the twentieth century. He decided to write this book first and then base his TV series upon it. Together with Nicholas Wright, an associate director of the Royal National Theatre during Eyre's ten-year directorship, he has written what the two describe as 'a partial, personal and unscholarly view of the century's theatre'. Passionate, opinionated and in the firm belief that the greatest asset to the British theatre is the English language, this book explores the work of a fascinating range of playwrights, from Shakespeare - 'the DNA of British theatre', used as nationalistic pageants, star vehicles and contemporary metaphors, mirroring changes in society throughout the 20th century - to Wilde, Synge, Beckett, Brecht, Pinter, Stoppard and Rogers & Hammerstein. It covers production from before the First World War to the 21st century, demonstrating the continuing relevance and purpose of theatre in an electronic age.