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Peter Brook

PETER BROOK

  (1925 - )
Nationality:    British
email:    n/a     Website:    n/a

Literary Agent:    n/a

Peter Stephen Paul Brook CH, CBE (born 21 March 1925) is an English theatre and film director who has been based in France since the early 1970s

Research:    working papers held by The V&A, London

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below is a list of Peter Brook's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

         11 Or 12         Battlefield         Conference of the Birds, The         Love Is My Sin         Mahabharata         Man Who, The         Present, The         Suit, The         Tierno Bokar         US         Valley of Astonishment, The
11 Or 12

Synopsis:
In this transfer from Paris translated into english, two innocent numbers become a metaphor for sectarian warfare in a West African tale that at times takes on an almost biblical quality. as our narrator amadou, played by Tunji Lucas, says at the start, in this 90 minute long performance, a bead becomes a bomb, as reason is overridden by blind faith. He is the disciple of wise teacher and priestly sage, Makram J. Khoury as Tierno Bokar, an old man who believes in peace and honour, at whatever cost to himself. as always with Peter Brook, the staging is simple: little more than a couple of red mats, some sand and a few barren trees occupy the large stage, together with a multi-national seven strong acting ensemble and composer Toshi Tsuchitori playing an assortment of primitive instruments from a cross-legged crouch. This leaves much to the viewer's imagination and there is ample scope to fill in the gaps with one's own perceptions and experience in a story told largely in parables. the gist is that through confusion, the traditional 11 repetitions of a Muslim holy prayer become 12. Two factions soon arise, increasingly belligerently supporting the old and new ways respectively. as if this wasn't enough to cause discord in a poor community, the French colonialists inflame the situation by taking sides. In all of this turmoil, it takes a brave man to follow his own principles heedless of the dangers of doing so and that man is Tierno Bokar. the symbolism of this play has great resonance in a world more than half a century on but still torn asunder by religious fundamentalism and intolerance. It seems even more meaningful and moving when one discovers that what seems like a cleverly constructed story is based on real lives.
- Philip Fisher, British theatre Guide

Notes:
adapted from the works of Amadou Hampate Ba by Marie-Helene estienne And Peter Brook

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Co-commissioned by barbicanbite10, London; C.I.C.T. / Theatre des Bouffes du Nord, Paris; Grotowski Institute, Wroclaw

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Battlefield

Synopsis:
Destruction never approaches weapon in hand. It comes slyly, on tiptoe, making you see bad in good and good in bad. The internationally renowned team of Peter Brook, Marie-Helene Estienne and Jean-Claude Carriere together revisit the great Indian epic The Mahabharata30 years after Brook's legendary production took world theatre by storm. The devastation of war is tearing the Bharata family apart. The new king must unravel a mystery: how can he live with himself in the face of the devastation and massacres that he has caused. An immense canvas in miniature, this central section of the ancient text is timeless and contemporary, asking how we can find inner peace in a world riven with conflict.

Notes:
Based on the Mahabharata and the play by Jean-Claude Carriere, adapted by Peter Brook and Marie-Helene Estienne

1st Produced:

Organisations:
A C.I.C.T. / Theātre des Bouffes du Nord production

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
epic text

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Conference of the Birds, The

Synopsis:
Farid Uddi Attar's 4,500-line poem describes the journey undertaken by the birds of the world to seek their King, the mythical Simorgha beautiful and benevolent bird of Persian myth. To find him, the birds must travel over a vast stretch of deserts and valleys. In this journey laced with riddles and parables, the birds explore deep spiritual questions, reflecting the individual's search for God.

Notes:
Peter Brook and Jean-Claude Carriere adapted the poem into a play titled La Conference des oiseaux (the Conference of the Birds), which they published in 1979. Brook toured the play around rural Africa before presenting two extremely successful productions to Western audiencesone in New York City at La MaMa, e.T.C. and one in Paris

1st Produced:
Africa     1979

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
published 1979   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  9            Female:  6            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Love Is My Sin

Synopsis:
Love Is My Sin, the sonnets of William Shakespeare adapted by Peter Brook. It features twenty nine sonnets chosen by Brook.

Notes:
Original Playwright - Shakespeare

1st Produced:
Theatre Des Bouffes Du Nord, Paris    

Organisations:
C.I.C.T. / Theatre des Bouffes du Nord

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Mahabharata

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
Original Playwright - Jean-Claude Carriere

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Translation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Man Who, The

Man Who, The
Using Oliver Sacks'' neurological study 'the Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat' as its inspiration, 'the Man Who' offers a series of doctor/patient scenarios that examine our attempts to understand the workings of the brain

Notes:
Written by Marie-Helene Estienne and Peter Brook. Based on the book "The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat" by Oliver Sachs

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Present, The

Synopsis:
An older woman tells a younger woman not to be afraid and then leaves the room. A man arrives the younger woman's ex-husband. He is surprised to be invited but as it is her birthday he has brought her a present. They talk and it looks like they are re-kindling their love. The older woman comes back - she is a psychiatrist and the whole thing has been part of the younger woman's treatment

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Dramatic Publishing Company 1963   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Suit, The

Synopsis:
In the dusty heat of a 1950s South African township, a young worker returns home to find his wife in bed with her lover. the lover escapes, leaving behind his suit. the only revenge the husband takes is to instruct his wife to treat the suit as an honoured guest. But how long can she endure this cruel and pitiless sentence?

Notes:
a musical play by Peter Brook And Marie-Helene estienne, After the original story by Can themba, Adapted for the stage by Barney Simon And Mothobi Mutloatse

1st Produced:

Organisations:
a CICT/ Theatre des Bouffes du Nord production a Young Vic/ Napoli Festival/ Les Theatres de la Ville du Luxembourg/ Theatre de la Place - Liege co-production

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
musical play

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  1            Other:  musicians

Further Reference:

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Tierno Bokar

Synopsis:
set in colonialist Mali of the 1930s, it is about the eponymous Sufi teacher who finds himself caught up in a bitter doctrinal dispute about a particular prayer: communities divide over whether it should be said 11 or 12 times. - Michael Billington, Guardian.

Notes:
text by Marie-Helene estienne from the book by Amadou Hampate Ba

1st Produced:
Warwick Arts Centre     2005

Organisations:
Theatre des Bouffes du Nord

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
theatrical Research

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  9 actors

Further Reference:

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US

Synopsis:
America and Vietnam, anti war protest

Notes:
Music by Richard Peastee; lyrics by Adrian Mitchell; original text by Denis Cannan (aka Tell Me Lies; Adaptors of documentary material: Michael Kustow And Michael Scott; directed by Peter Brook. Majot contribution from Charles Wood. Developed with works

1st Produced:
Roundhouse, London     1966

Organisations:

1st Published:
Playscripts 9, London: Calder And Boyars (1968). Also Indianapolis:Bobbs-Merrill, 1968. Published As Lell Me Lies   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  Large Cast

Further Reference:
-

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Valley of Astonishment, The

Synopsis:
Imagine a world where every sound has a colour. Where every colour has a taste. Where the number 8 is a fat lady. This breathtaking new play explores the fascinating experiences of real people who see the world in a radically different light. The Valley of Astonishment is a kaleidoscopic journey into the wonders of the human brain, inspired by years of neurological research, true stories and Farid Attar's epic mystical poem The Conference of the Birds.

Notes:
written by Peter Brook and Marie-Helene Estienne

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
piece

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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