The Methuen Drama Student Edition of Twelve Angry Men is the first critical edition of Reginald Rose's play, providing the play text alongside commentary and notes geared towards student readers. In New York, 1954, a man is dead and the life of another is at stake. A 'guilty' verdict seems a foregone conclusion, but one member of the jury has the will to probe more deeply into the evidence and the courage to confront the ignorance and prejudice of some of his fellow jurors. The conflict that follows is fierce and passionate, cutting straight to the heart of the issues of civil liberties and social justice. Ideal for the student reader, the accompanying pedagogical notes include elements such as an author chronology; plot summary; suggested further reading; explanatory endnotes; and questions for further study. The introduction discusses in detail the play's origins as a 1954 American television play, Rose's re-working of the piece for the stage, and Lumet's 1957 film version, identifying textual variations between these versions and discussing later significant productions. The commentary also situates the play in relation to the genre of courtroom drama, as a milestone in the development of televised drama, and as an engagement with questions of American individualism and democracy. Together, this provides students with an edition that situates the play in its contemporary social and dramatic contexts, while encouraging reflection on its wider thematic implications.

In Basket Case, dependable Miranda and her ex-husband, the smoothly charming and wholly unreliable Guy are thrown together when their faithful old family pet takes a turn for the worse. Reunited over the dog basket, Guy and Miranda find they haven't 'moved on' quite as they'd imagined. When they are joined by family friend James, who rarely sees a stick without getting the wrong end of it, and Martin, the vet and a long time admirer of Miranda, the scene is set for some startling home-truths as this rapid-fire foursome mines laughter and touching observations in equal measure.

"Come to A Raisin in the Sun as you would to any classic. It speaks to us today as it did almost half a century ago." Bonnie Greer In south side Chicago, Walter Lee, a Black chauffeur, dreams of a better life, and hopes to use his father's life insurance money to open a liquor store. His mother, who rejects the liquor business, uses some of the money to secure a proper house for the family. Mr Lindner, a representative of the all-white neighbourhood, tries to buy them out. Walter sinks the rest of the money into his business scheme, only to have it stolen by one of his partners. In despair Walter contacts Lindner, and almost begs to buy them out, but with the help of his wife, Walter finally finds a way to assert his dignity. A Raisin in the Sun was the first play written by a Black woman to be produced on Broadway and won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. Hansberry was the youngest and the first Black writer to receive this award. Deeply committed to the Black struggle for equality and human rights, Lorraine Hansberry's brilliant career as a writer was cut short by her death when she was only 34. This new, updated edition in Methuen Drama's Modern Classics series includes the full, definitive text and a brand new introduction by Soyica Diggs Colbert.

WORLD PREMIERE - October 5th 2011 at the Orange Tree Theatre, RichmondGenre: Comedy. We all want to be happy. We all know what it feels like. But what if it keeps slipping through our fingers? Paul is a former happiness guru. As a young man he wrote self-help books and appeared on the television as 'Mr Happy'. But now his marriage has failed and his career as a serious novelist is faltering, while his ex-wife has remarried a wealthy advertising executive to the dismay of their troubled teenage daughter. Paul is now concerned about the state of his health, the size of his mortgage and the monthly payments on his iPhone. Mr Happy is not happy. But surely if anyone can unlock the secret of perpetual happiness, he must be the man?

This brand new one-man comedy takes us on a journey to a stand-up comedian's firstever public performance to fulfil a lifelong dream. My Dog's Got No Nose is a thought-provoking insight into the world of the comic.

A play set in contemporary London where the Feigel family harbours an asylum-seeker and grapples with the morality of the law and protecting ones’ family.

Rosa and Ben Feigel are a cosmopolitan progressive, dynamic, inter-racial North London couple. Rosa is the daughter of black South African exiles, Ben is of Jewish decent - the son of a man who escaped to the UK on Kindertransport. Their adored teenage son Oliver - full of political conviction, which his parents have encouraged - has hidden his closest friend, Imran, an asylum-seeking teenager from an unnamed country, in their home. When Ben and Rosa find out, they realise they are faced with just two options: turn the child over to the authorities knowing that he will be sent back to a dangerous country, or help him to hide and endanger themselves.

A bitter argument erupts between the Feigels about the morality of the law, the limits of empathy, what we will do to protect those we love, and what we might sacrifice for strangers. Hold Still is a vivid, deeply aff ecting portrait of a long-term marriage, and a family shaped by intergenerational trauma.

Hypothermia is set in 1940, in a German hospital for hereditary and incurable diseases. A doctor (Erich) and his assistant (Lisa) discover their patients, who had been sent on to other doctors for further treatment, had really been the victims of the testing of various torture (and often death) methods. It poses the question 'now that you know, what will you do?'

A delightful new holiday series featuring five classic Christmas tales in luxurious hardcover editions
Truly stunning book design has become a Penguin Classics tradition. We now introduce a new must-have, collectible series featuring beautiful hardcover editions of some of the best-loved and bestselling Christmas titles of all time. Available in lovely holiday-themed packages, the series includes "A Christmas Carol "by Charles Dickens, " A Merry Christmas "by Louisa May Alcott, "Christmas at Thompson Hall" by Anthony Trollope, "The Night Before Christmas "by Nikolai Gogol, and "The Nutcracker" by E. T. A. Hoffman--treasured Christmas tales that make perfect stocking stuffers for readers of all ages.