A Dream Play [Paperback]

Caryl Churchill (Adapter), August Strindberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2005

Following the logic of a dream—in which characters merge, locations change in an instant, and a locked door recurs obsessively—Strindberg’s 1902 A Dream Play is a potent mix of Freud plus Alice in Wonderland. Caryl Churchill, perhaps the most fascinating and respected female dramatist in the English-speaking world, has taken on Strindberg’s Dream in this spare and resonant adaptation.

Caryl Churchill’s singular and striking plays include Cloud Nine, Top Girls, Light Shining in Buckinghampshire, Serious Money, The Skriker, Blue Heart, Far Away, and A Number.

August Strindberg (1849–1912) wrote over 60 plays, including Miss Julie, The Father, and The Dance of Death. He is considered Sweden’s greatest author.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Fantasy play in 14 scenes by August Strindberg, published in Swedish as Ett dromspel in 1902 and first produced in 1907. Presented as a dream, this fluid tableau of human foibles is a poignant lament that humans are to be pitied. As the play opens, the daughter of the Vedic god Indra arrives on Earth with the intention of determining if human complaints are justified. She encounters a host of tormented characters and herself is enmeshed in a wrenching marriage. Only the Poet, who has created the dream, seems unaffected by human suffering. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: English, Swedish (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Theatre Communications Group (September 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559362707
• ISBN-13: 978-1559362702
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #497,704 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't Buy, October 8, 2009

By 

Jonas Pettersson "S.J. Pettersson" (Los Angeles, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Dream Play (Paperback)

Absolutely terrible "modern" translation with entire passages omitted. My favorite play of all time; read it (if you can't be bothered to learn Swedish)in the translation (very good but not perfect)by Michael Meyer.

2 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Strindberg's "A Dream Play", March 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Dream Play (Paperback)

One of the gods daughters came to earth to see how earth was. On earth one character is hunting for the love of his life, that has left him. Time passes with out memories. The play over all is a but confusing, the characters are different everythimg that they are mentioned. But in the long run the characters show you how lonely and depressed that they are.