After three-quarters of the 105 minutes, we move on to a different level, as pre-exam stress begins to boil over and something a little nastier develops, led by the class bully. The problem is that his behaviour is so far over the top that someone would have stepped in, though by doing so they would have eliminated the explosive final scenes and in doing so removed the purpose of the play. The New Wolsey Young Company performed the play from 3 to 7 December 2013. Tom Chamberlain played William Carlisle and Gemma Raw played Lilly Cahill. The Australian premiere was on 27 July 2012 performed by pantsguys Productions in association with the Australian Theatre for Young People [4] The Nottingham New Theatre produced a production in their 2014 Autumn Season, directed by Bridie Rollins and Lara Tysseling.

This 2009 play has not dated at all. If anything, it is more timely, more plugged into the zeitgeist than ever. Perhaps that is one reason there is another production of it somewhere, every couple of years, including in Spain and France. It is set in an English private school, specifically in the seniors’ library, which no adult – at least in the play – ever enters. The characters are teenagers, but this is not The O.C. or the confected angst of Home & Away.These teenagers are in the midst of their ‘trial’ A-level exams – but that provides just one more pressure on them. The subtext throughout is fear and we see how fear can develop into rage and violence. This is a tender, ferocious and frightening play, all at the same time. There is something seriously wrong with its six main characters. Six miserable people suffering from the condition of being teenagers with its ups and downs, its lights and its shadows. And in their case there are too many shadows. It is not surprising, given Stephens's zest for what he does, that he has been a natural choice for theatres wising to acquire a dramatist. He was resident dramatist at the Royal Court in 2001, a tutor on the Royal Court's Young Writers Programme between 2001 and 2005 and the first resident dramatist at the National. He has also taught in prisons. What has teaching taught him about writing? 'Dramatic narrative needs present tense action,' he says, almost without hesitation. He makes me laugh by describing the common tendency in apprentice playwrights to write about ancient family secrets which are revealed 'four fifths through the play, often in a drunken confessional speech.' This is 'theatrically inert' he says. Another problem is that people see life as 'something that happens to them'. It is the playwright's task, as he sees it, to change the question from 'Why is this happening to me?' to 'Why am I doing this?' It is a lesson that offers a commentary on Stephens's own work which is nothing if not immediate. Patalog Theatre Co. [16] premiered the play in Melbourne for the first time professionally at fortyfivedownstairs in December 2019. The play received wide critical acclaim with critics calling it "A masterful re-working. Unmissable.". [17]

Alert

SS – Money fundamentally defines all the differences. So, the US, where there is no subsidy, leaves theatres more dependent on small casts, simple sets, received conventions, stars and redemptive narratives. German theatre, with substantial subsidy and a history of artistic provocation, leans more into formal and intellectual expression and radicalism. British theatre sits somewhere between Berlin and Broadway. KP – What are your thoughts on structure in scripts? What part does it have to play, and at which point(s) in the writing process? This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.

Manchester School of Theatre produced the play in April 2012, directed by Chris Honer, starring Lucas Smith as William Carlisle. Director Trip Cullman guides his cast to performances that are as intense as all get-out. Particular standouts include the spellbinding Robbins, who effectively silences the bullies through a frightening monologue about the apocalypse; Pullen, who's just plain scary as a guy literally exploding with anger; and the alarmingly calm Smith, a kid who has visions of his classmates as robots and animals as pulsating music by Sonic Youth and The White Stripes play in his head. They all impress; even the irredeemably awful characters reveal shreds of humanity, and the actors embodying them find appealing balances between the cruelty and compassion. I try to be as creative with the structure of my pieces – fundamentally how many scenes there are, and where and when they are set – as I would be with language or image or action. Those are the massive upsides in a thoughtful drama that takes on big issues. However, they come at a cost, as a couple of the characters are too clearly created to make political points while a pivotal scene that sets up the final drama stretched credibility way too far.

Featured In This Story

SS – ‘Should’ is a dangerous word. But I always consider my audiences. I think of the plays as being a conversational gesture. I tailor my conversations to resonate with as much life as possible with the people I am speaking to, and I think of my audiences in the same way. He writes so passionately and soulfully for ordinary people who are in really difficult predicaments. People who are violent, or whatever, can have immense humanity in them as well - Simon writes about that very well." Daniel Mays, actor