Pinter and Stoppard: A Director's View

It can be argued that Harold Pinter (1930 - 2008) and Tom Stoppard (b. 1937) are the central figures of C20th Anglophone playwriting. It is generally assumed, however, that they sit at opposite ends of the aesthetic, theatrical and political spectrum.

This fascinating study shows that - by examining these seemingly divergent contemporaries alongside one another and in the context of the rehearsal room - new insights can be gleaned about their work, surprising connections made and illuminating contrasts unearthed.

Esteemed theatre director Carey Perloff has worked on numerous occasions with both Pinter and Stoppard themselves and has developed an understanding of how to unlock their plays through practical and analytic means in collaboration with the writers. In this book, she:

> includes rules of play about staging their work, which have been taken directly from extensive conversations with Pinter and Stoppard

> draws on rehearsal notes from her times working with them

> explores approaches to casting, design, script analysis and rehearsal technique, among many other aspects, when staging the work of these two writers

> reveals the nature of collaboration between director and playwright, director and actors, director and designers

> includes case studies of some of their major plays in specific productions, including Pinter's The Birthday Party, Old Times, The Homecoming and Celebration, and Stoppard's Indian Ink, Rock 'n' Roll and The Invention of Love

> provides a female perspective of working in a male-dominated industry

> offers an American perspective on the representation on 'Britishness' in these works and how that can be staged, particularly in an American context

The reader will come away from it with a set of tools for approaching the work of Pinter and Stoppard in a performance environment - whether directing, acting, designing or critiquing - and with a way of unlocking the mysteries of the plays for audiences.

30 years after major criticism on both playwrights first emerged, the time has come for a fresh examination of the unique contribution of their work in the twenty-first century.