Oppenheimer

(Paperback)

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Description

1939: fascism spreads across Europe, Franco marches on Barcelona and two German chemists discover the processes of atomic fission. In Berkeley, California, theoretical physicists recognise the horrendous potential of this new science: a weapon that draws its power from the very building blocks of the universe. Struggling to cast off his radical past and thrust into a position of power and authority, the charismatic J Robert Oppenheimer races to win the 'battle of the laboratories' and create a weapon so devastating that it would bring about an end not just to the Second World War but to all war. Tom Morton-Smith's new play takes us into the heart of the Manhattan Project, revealing the personal cost of making history.

Reviews

'Time and again in this triumphantly assured drama - there are phrases that leap out and draw you into the wonder, and the horror, of mankind's journey to a brave new world of potential total annihilation.' 5*s - Telegraph 'where [Arthur] Miller drew a blank, writer Tom Morton-Smith succeeds in presenting the complex character of Oppenheimer'. - Stratford Observer 'an engaging and informative night at the theatre' 5*s - London Theatre 1; 'Those who bewail the dumbing down of the west End should get an eyeful of this...Playwright Tom Morton-Smith takes us confidently yet fluidly through the dizzying trajectory of US physicist J Robert Oppenheimer from professor to head of the Manhattan Project... Outstanding.' Evening Standard; 'Tom Morton-Smith's exceptional new play gives an inkling of how Oppenheimer could have been so hell-bent on his original course, as well as of the personal sacrifices, betrayals and moral justifications that got him there. It's an intense, and densely themed production, but also one delivered with ebullient energy, charting the way in which "blood has washed away the chalk dust" of scientific invention.There are echoes of The Imitation Game, too, in its depiction of a group of academics (in one case mathematicians, the other physicists) brought together for a war effort, resulting in a cauldron of differing personalities, egos and political leanings, their private lives tossed around in the urgent rush to win the war.' The Arts Desk

Author Bio

Tom Morton-Smith is a playwright based in the South East of England. He studied Drama at the University of East Anglia, and trained as an actor at LAMDA. He has had readings at the Old Vic, the Hampstead Theatre, the Soho Theatre, the Royal Court, the Trafalgar Studios, the Liverpool Everyman, the Southwark Playhouse, the Arcola and Shakespeare's Globe. In 2006 he was nominated by the Hampstead Theatre to be one of The 50, a writers' group put together by the BBC and the Royal Court to nurture playwriting talent. He was also selected to be part of Paines Plough's Future Perfect group, 2006. Tom was writer-in-residence with Paines Plough 2007/08. His debut play, Salt Meets Wound, opened at Theatre503 in May 2007.