Neilson Plays: 2: Edward Gant's Amazing Feats of Loneliness!; The Lying Kind; The Wonderful World of Dissocia; Realism

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In the 1990s playwright Anthony Neilson garnered a reputation for hard-hitting, morally disturbing plays that saw him labelled as one of the 'In Yer Face' dramatists who emerged from that decade.This second volume of plays showcases the comic, surreal and gloriously off-kilter side of his more recent work. The Lying Kind (Royal Court, 2002), a black farce set at Christmas involving two hapless policeman who must break news of tragedy to an elderly couple, 'often reduced much of the audience to tears of laughter' (Financial Times). Produced originally for the 2004 Edinburgh International Festival, The Wonderful World of Dissocia wowed critics and audiences alike. A hugely original play inspired by Alice in Wonderland, it is both magical and moving and confirmed Neilson as one of the major voices in contemporary British Theatre. Realism premiered at the Edinburgh International Festival in 2006. It follows the life of one man during an ordinary day but veers off to become a deliriously surreal trip inside his wayward imagination. It was described by the Guardian as a 'bold and utterly distinctive all-singing, all-dancing show, like nothing else you'll ever see'.God in Ruins (RSC, Soho Theatre, 2007) updates Dickens' Scrooge as an alcoholic TV producer who's desperate to talk to his estranged daughter and was described as 'both wildly entertaining and unexpectedly touching' (Daily Telegraph).

Author Bio

Anthony Neilson is an Artistic Associate of National Theatre of Scotland and a creator of pioneering, taboo-breaking new work. He has a new play opening at the Royal Court, London, in June.