Acting Edition S. Series

This play takes readers back and forth between the 19th and 20th centuries. Set in a large country house in Derbyshire, a cast of characters from each century play out their respective dramas. The text explores topics such as the nature of truth and time and the difference between the classical and the romantic temperament, and the disruptive influence of sex on our orbits in life.

Hapgood

by Tom Stoppard

Published 1 September 1989

When Kerner's physics research is leaked to the Russians, Hapgood is assigned to track down the double agent.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

by Tom Stoppard

Published May 1967

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is a play which, as it were, takes place in the wings of Hamlet, and finds both humour and poignancy in the situation of the ill-fated attendant lords.

The National Theatre production in April 1967 made Tom Stoppard's reputation virtually overnight. Its wit, stagecraft and verbal verve remain as exhilarating as they were then and the play has become a contemporary classic.

The Real Thing

by Tom Stoppard

Published 22 November 1982

Tom Stoppard's brilliant, award-winning play of surprise and deftly witty comparison was premiered at London's Strand Theatre in 1982 starring Roger Rees and Felicity Kendal and revived in 1999. Henry is a successful playwright married to Charlotte who has the lead role in his latest play about adultery. Her co-star, Max, is married to another actress, Annie, and Annie and Henry are madly in love but is it any more real than the subjects of Henry's play?

The Real Inspector Hound

by Tom Stoppard

Published July 1968

Albert's Bridge

by Tom Stoppard

Published July 1969

Albert has a degree in philosophy and with a job as bridge painter has a new perspective on life up high. Through CPSs and programmed efficiency, he replaces four painters and the bridge is all his. He also has to get married - but that's another story. He's bothered by a reluctant suicide and by 1400 additional painters causing the bridge and Albert's dream to collapse.2 women, 10 men

Dirty Linen

by Tom Stoppard

Published 9 March 1978

Dirty Linen concerns the investigation of a Select Committee into the moral standards of the House of Commons - a somewhat unconventional investigation, rendered not less so by the presence of an ultra-sexy secretary whose clothes have a trick of whisking off in the hands of various members. New-Found-Land is a duologue between two Home Office officials, with a tour-de-force speech on America by one of them.2 women, 8 men

Separate Peace

by Tom Stoppard

Published 1 December 1977

A sly, gentle dig at society's conventions and preconceptions. John Brown arrives at a country nursing home with a case of money expecting hotel-style service. He's a kind of dropout bound to puzzle a profession geared to treating the sick. He's not physically ill and apparently not mentally so. He settles into the routine and cocoon-like security. Everyone speculates as to his identity.4 women, 2 men

Artist Descending a Staircase

by Tom Stoppard

Published 29 October 1973

In 1972 an elderly avant garde artist is murdered, leaving his two friends suspecting each other. To reveal why, successive scenes flashback toward the 1920s and then progress back to 1972. Each of the three was infatuated with Sophie. Before she tragically went blind she fell in love with one of them after viewing his picture in a gallery.1 woman, 6 men

If You're Glad I'll be Frank

by Tom Stoppard

Published 18 October 1976

Frank recognizes the voice of the GPO speaking clock as that of his long-lost wife. Determined to get her back, he forces his way into the inner sanctum of the Authorities to demand her release. Underlying the light-hearted story is a satiric comment on man's servitude to the clock.5 women, 7 men

Night and Day

by Tom Stoppard

Published 30 October 1978

The provocative and funny look at exploitation and corruption, journalistic ethics, freedom of the press and marital infidelity is set in a fictional copper rich African nation. Dick Wagner of The Sunday Globe and a competing freelance journalist arrive at the jungle home of a white mine owner. Soon they are competing for the use of their host's telex, the attentions of his wife and a possible interview with the missing president of Kambawe.1 woman, 7 men

The Boundary

by Tom Stoppard and Clive Exton

Published 1 May 1991

Arriving at the library to continue work on his dictionary, Johnson is horrified to discover that the place has been ransacked. Originally produced for television, this one act play combines wit, wordplay and a touch of comic absurdity.1 woman, 4 men

The Fifteen Minute Hamlet

by Tom Stoppard

Published 1 June 1978

Following his success with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, the author continues his association with Hamlet by taking the most well-known and best-loved lines from Shakespeare's play and condensing them into a hilarious version of the play lasting approximately thirteen minutes. The miraculous feat is followed by an encore which consists of a two-minute version of the play! The vast multitude of characters is played by six actors with hectic doubling, and the action takes place at a shortened version of Elsinore Castle.