Classic and pre-20th century plays

Heracles/ Iphigenia Among the Taurians/ Helen/ Ion/ Cyclops: Of these plays, only 'Heracles' truly belongs in the tragic sphere with its presentation of underserved suffering and divine malignity.

Henry VI is tricked into marrying Margaret - lover of the Earl of Suffolk, who hopes to rule the kingdom through her influence.

After the death of Henry V, the French revolt and threaten to reclaim their country from English rule.

Leaving behind both home and beloved, a young man travels to Milan to meet his closest friend.

Four of Ibsen's most important plays in superb modern translations, part of the new Penguin Ibsen series.

Under the rule of King John, England is forced into war when the French challenge the legitimacy of John's claim to the throne and determine to install his nephew Arthur in his place.

One of the greatest playwrights of Ancient Greece, the works of Euripides (484-406 BC) were revolutionary in their depiction of tragic events caused by flawed humanity, and in their use of the gods as symbols of human nature.

This selection comprises: "e;THE ADMIRABLE BASHVILLE"e; "e;HOW HE LIED TO HER HUSBAND"e; "e;PASSION, POISON AND PETRIFACTION"e; "e;THE GLIMPSE OF REALITY"e; "e;THE DARK LADY OF THE SONNETS"e; "e;OVERRULED"e; "e;THE MUSIC-CURE"e; "e;GREAT CATHERINE"e; "e;THE INCA OF PERUSALEM"e; "e;O'FLAHERTY V.

Shaw's humorous satire of the medical profession.

Shaw s story is rife with such beyond opinions , as an Anglo-Irish Protestant, a Dubliner in London, and a socialist living in the aftermath of the industrial revolution.

From the fifth to the second century BC, innovative comedy drama flourished in Greece and Rome.

This dramatic story recounts Mary, Queen of Scots's remaining days held captive in Fotheringay Castle.

These are Shakespeare's greatest writings on power in all its forms - in love, in war, in politics and in the family.

Collected in this volume are powerful dramas and psychological fiction by the nineteenth-century iconoclast now recognized as a major figure of world literature.

Oscar Wilde's audacious drama of social scandal centres around the revelation of Mrs Arbuthnot's long-concealed secret.

'A supreme theatrical poem that has a language that eats into the soul' Michael Billington, GuardianShakeapeare's blood-soaked drama of murder, madness and the uncanny begins as Macbeth is promised a golden future as ruler of Scotland by supernatural forces.

Shakespeare's immutable history of Henry's victory over the French at Agincourt and the subsequent peace between the two nations is also a study of war and kingship.

One of Bernard Shaw s most glittering comedies, Arms and the Man is a burlesque of Victorian attitudes to heroism, war and empire.

After the restoration of King Charles II to the British throne in 1660, dramatists experienced new freedom in an age that broke from the strict morality of puritan rule and in which elegance and wit became the chief virtues.

Brilliantly adapting Greek New Comedy for Roman audiences, the sublime comedies of Plautus (c.

Considered by Thomas de Quincey to be 'perhaps the most superb work in the language', The Two Noble Kinsmen is set in Athens and was co-written by Shakespeare with John Fletcher.

A unique collection of Shakespeare's soliloquies, each introduced by concise and informative editorial notes.

'The work of Shakespeare is virtually infinite' Jorge Luis BorgesA jealous king, convinced that his wife has been unfaithful and is having another man's baby, imprisons her and puts her on trial.

'All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players' Rosalind, banished by her cruel uncle, travels secretly to the Forest of Arden, where her exiled father holds court.

'The Mona Lisa of literature' T.

'Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war, That this foul deed shall smell above the earth With carrion men, groaning for burial'Fearful that Caesar will become a tyrant, his friends plot to assassinate him in order to save Rome.

The tale of Peachum, thief-taker and informer, conspiring to send the dashing and promiscuous highwayman Macheath to the gallows, became the theatrical sensation of the eighteenth century.

'Shakespeare invented the human as we continue to know it' Harold BloomSet in a city torn apart by feuds and gang warfare, Shakespeare's immortal drama tells the story of star-crossed lovers, rival dynasties and bloody revenge.

'Now is the winter of our discontent Made glorious summer by this sun of York'Shakespeare's final drama of the Wars of the Roses cycle begins as the dust settles on England after bloody civil war, and the bitter hunchback Richard, brother of the king, secretly plots to seize the throne.

'He could mingle sublimity with pathos, bitterness with joy and peace and love' Aldous HuxleyIn one of Shakespeare's most perennially popular comedies a young woman, Hermia, flees ancient Athens with her lover, only to be pursued by her would-be husband and her best friend.

'Shakespeare's play is death-haunted from the start, and its self-glorifying lovers exist in a dream of passion' GuardianA battle-hardened soldier, Antony is one of the three leaders of the Roman world.

'Not all the water in the rough rude sea Can wash the balm off from an anointed king'Richard, a vain, despotic ruler, listens only to his flatterers.

A King and his lords form an austere academy, swearing to have no contact with women for three years.

'Unable to rely on heaven, we look to Shakespeare as a contemporary conscience' Peter ConradCoriolanus, a famed warrior turned politician, is driven from Rome as a traitor when he arrogantly speaks out against popular rule and loses the good will of the starving people.

'The finest, most representative instance of what Shakespeare can do' Harold BloomPrince Hal, the son of King Henry IV, spends his time in idle pleasure with dissolute friends, among them the roguish Sir John Falstaff.

'Language is his power.

'After God, Shakespeare has created most' Alexandre DumasTwo sets of identical twins, separated at sea as babies, find themselves in the same city for the first time as adults.

'I pity the man who cannot enjoy Shakespeare' George Bernard ShawThe beautiful and witty Katherina has sworn never to accept the demands of any would-be husband.

The three plays collected in this volume demonstrate Sheridan's unerring ability to create unrivalled comedy out of ingenious plots, witty repartee, farcical situations and flamboyant characters.

In the seventeenth century, Moli re raised comedy to the pitch of great art and, three centuries later, his plays are still a source of delight.

Strongly influenced by Classical drama, Jean Racine (1639-99) broke away from the grandiose theatricality of baroque drama to create works of intense psychological realism, with characters manipulated by cruel and vengeful gods.

Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) was one of the most influential of all playwrights, the author of deeply moving dramas that explored human fears, desires and ideals.

At a time when the Russian theatre was dominated by formulaic melodramas and farces, Chekhov created a new sort of drama that laid bare the everyday lives, loves and yearnings of ordinary people.

'Yes, you squashed cabbage leaf .

'The most perfect specimen of the dramatic art existing in the world' Percy Bysshe ShelleyShakespeare's bleak and brutal tragedy begins when an ageing king, seeking a successor, rejects the young daughter who loves him and misplaces his trust in her malevolent sisters.

'This is tragedy naked, godless and unredeemed' Kenneth TynanAn embittered Roman general returns from war, having captured the Queen of the Goths and her three sons.

John Fletcher was born in December, 1579 in Rye, Sussex.

John Fletcher was born in December, 1579 in Rye, Sussex.

Heinrich von Kleist stand als "Außenseiter im literarischen Leben seiner Zeit jenseits der etablierten Lager" und der Literaturepochen der Weimarer Klassik und der Romantik.

Second edition featuring a new section by Adam Hansen on recent interpretations of Shakespeare''s play.