Written in 1836, Woyzeck is often considered to be the first truly
modern play.
The story of a soldier driven mad by inhuman military discipline and
acute social deprivation is told in splintered dialogue and jagged
episodes, which are as shocking and telling today as they were when
first performed, almost a century after the author's death, in Munich
1913.
This edition contains introductory commentary and notes by Laura Martin
from the University of Glasgow.
METHUEN DRAMA STUDENT EDITIONS are expertly annotated texts of a wide
range of plays from the modern and classic repertoires. A well as the
complete text of the play itself, this volume contains:
- A chronology of the play and the playwright's life and work
- an introductory discussion of the social, political, cultural and
economic context in which the play was originally conceived and
created
- a succinct overview of the creation processes followed and subsequent
performance history of the piece
- an analysis of, and commentary on, some of the major themes and
specific issues addressed by the text
- a bibliography of suggested primary and secondary materials for
further study.
