Seven Irish Plays, 1946-1964

Seven Irish Plays, 1946-1964 was first published in 1967. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions.Some of the best plays written in Ireland since the end of World War II are published in this collection of seven full-length plays by six different writers. Although all of the playwrights represented are richly talented, their dramatic work is relatively unknown outside of Ireland. Only three of the plays have been previously published, and they were issued only in Ireland and only in acting editions. As Professor Hogan explains, the reason so little has been heard of the new drama of Ireland is more a matter of theatrical economics than of dramatic merit, since most of the international repertoire of modern plays is drawn from the commercial stages of London, Paris, Berlin, and New York, and not from Dublin.The plays published here are The Visiting House by Michael Molloy, Design for a Headstone by Bryan MacMahon, Copperfaced Jack by John O’Donovan, Sharon’s Grave and Many Young Men of Twenty, both by John B. Keane, and The Ice Goddess by James Douglas.In a general introduction the editor traces the history of Irish drama from the turn of the century to the present, discussing the work of numerous writers in addition to this represented in this collection. He also provides a separate introduction for each of the playwrights whose work is included and a glossary of Irish words and phrases which occur frequently in the plays.