Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt Brecht

Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt Brecht

This Student Edition of Brecht's anti-war masterpiece features an extensive introduction and commentary that includes a plot summary, discussion of the context, themes, characters, style and language as well as questions for further study and notes on words and phrases in the text. It is the perfect edition for students of theatre and literature.In this chronicle of the Thirty Years War of the seventeenth century, Mother Courage follows the armies back and forth across Europe, selling provisions and liquor from her canteen wagon. As the action of the play progresses between the years 1624 and 1646 she loses her children to the war but remains indomitable, refusing to part with her livelihood - the wagon. The play is one of the most celebrated examples of Epic Theatre and of Brecht's use of alienation effect to focus attention on the issues of the play above the individual characters. It remains regarded as one of the greatest plays of the twentieth century and one of the great anti-war plays of all time. The Berlin production of 1949, with Helene Weigel as Mother Courage, marked the foundation of the Berliner Ensemble. This volume contains expert notes on the author's life and work, historical and political background to the play, photographs from stage productions and a glossary of difficult words and phrases. The play is translated by Brecht scholar John Willett who did more than anyone else to make Brecht's work available in the English language.

'Brecht's tragedy of war is brought up to date with a bang' : 'Tony Kushner's sparky new translation' Michael Billington, The Guardian, 2709.09 'Tony Kushner's wry, witty translation' : 'Epic theatre in every sense of the term' Fiona Mountford, Evening Standard, 28.09.09

A major dramatist of the twentieth century, Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) was the founder of one of the most influential theatre companies, the Berliner Ensemble, and the creator of some of the landmark plays of the twentieth century: The Threepenny Opera, Life of Galileo, Mother Courage and The Caucasian Chalk Circle. His plays and dramatic theory are central to the study of modern theatre.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780413492708
ISBN 10	0413492702
Title	Mother Courage and Her Children
Author	Bertolt Brecht
Series	Student Editions
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Year published	1983-06-09
Number of pages	152
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable