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Tony Harrison

TONY HARRISON

  (1937 - )
Nationality:    British
email:    n/a     Website:    n/a

Faber & Faber Ltd, Bloomsbury House, 74-77 Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DA
Requests and queries by email are preferred: gapermissions@faber.co.uk

Tony Harrison was born in Leeds in 1937. His volumes of poetry include the Loiners (winner of the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize in 1972), Continuous, v. (broadcast on Channel 4 in 1987 and winner of the Royal Television Society award), a Cold Coming (Gulf War poems written for the Guardian), the Gaze of the Gorgon (winner of the Whitbread Prize for Poetry) and Laureate's Block. He has also contributed a number of poems to Volume 5 of the Penguin Modern Poets series. Recognised as Britain's leading Theatre and film poet, Tony Harrison has written extensively for the National Theatre, the New York Metropolitan Opera, the BBC, Channel 4, and for unique ancient spaces in Greece and austriA. His version of aeschylus's Oresteia, written for the National Theatre, won the european Poetry Translation Prize in 1982. among his many television films are Black Daisies for the Bride, which won the Prix Italia in 1994, the Shadow of Hiroshima, commissioned for the fiftieth anniversary of the destruction of Hiroshima in 1995, and Prometheus.

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

         Aiken Mata         Bartered Bride, The         Black Daisies For the Bride         Bow Down         Clytemnestra         Doomsday         Fram         Globe Mysteries, The         Hecuba         Kaisers Of Karnuntum, The         Labourers Of Herakles, The         Lysistrata - the Common Chorus         Medea: Sex War         Message, The         Misanthrope, The         Mysteries, The         Nativity, The         Oresteia, The         Passion, The         Phaedra Britannica         Poetry Or Bust         Prince's Play, The (Le Roi's Amuse)         Recruiting Officer, The         Refugee         Square Rounds         Trackers Of Oxyrhynchus, The         V         Voices Of Exile         Yan Tan Tethera

Aiken Mata

Aiken Mata
-

Notes:
Original Playwright - Aristophanes (Lysistrata); Written in collaboration with James Simmons

1st Produced:
Zaria, Nigeria    Mar 1964

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Oxford University Press, Ibadan, 1966   B009FBHD3C

Music:
-

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Genre:
adaptation

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Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Bartered Bride, The

Bartered Bride, The
Wives and husbands side by side, make their peace and toast the bride, the bartered bride

Notes:
Original Czech libretto by Karel Sabina, music by Bedrich Smetana, Translated by Tony Harrison

1st Produced:
Metropolitan Opera, New York    1978

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Schirmer, New York, 1978   B002UABKJI

Music:
-

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  6            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Black Daisies For the Bride

Synopsis:
about the effect of Alzheimer's disease on the memory

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    -

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber and Faber (12 July 1993)   978-0571171293

Music:
-

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Genre:
verse documentary

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Bow Down

Synopsis:
from the ancient and traditional ballad of the Two Sisters which exists in numerous versions throughout Northern Britain, Scandinavia and America

Notes:
music Harrison Birtwistle

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Rex Collings Ltd (5 July 1977)   978-0860360674

Music:
-

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Genre:
Dramatic Verse

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

Further Reference:
-

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Clytemnestra

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Quaker Meeting House - Ed.    1998

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

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Genre:
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Doomsday

Doomsday
traces the final part of the Bible from the Resurrection to the Last Judgement

Notes:
from the York Mystery Plays

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Contained in "Tony Harrison Plays One - the Mystery Plays" published by Faber 1999   978-0571197071

Music:
-

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  17            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Fram

Fram
This epic sweep of a play takes us from a contemporary Westminster abbey to the arctic ship Fram - or Forward - specially built by the famous Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen who, with his suicidal companion, Johansen, makes a bid on foot for the North Pole in the 1890s. Though incompatible, they share a bear fur sleeping-bag through the long winter. Nansen, still haunted by Johansen's ghost, is appointed to the League of Nations. as a figurehead of Russian famine relief in 1922, he conducts the first celebrity campaign, searching for means, however shocking, to make people care. Reliance on devices like the photograph and slide will lead, I rather fear, to linguistic suicide. We must keep on challenging language to engage with all we suffer from in this new modern age.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber & Faber (10 April 2008)   978-0571241699

Music:
-

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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

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  8            Female:  4            Other:  stowaways

Further Reference:

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Globe Mysteries, The

Synopsis:
This energetic and electric new version of the Mystery Plays celebrates the re-working of some of the most exhilarating biblical episodes and medieval stories. the Globe Mysteries is a heart-warming celebration of humanity, storytelling and street theatre. This cornerstone of english Drama is brought to life in an expansive series of stories accompanied by lavish costumes, vibrant music, song and dance, bringing a rich theatricality to Southwark this summer.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

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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

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Genre:
Dramatisation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Hecuba

Hecuba
Hecuba is a prisoner of the Greeks who have sacked her home town of Troy and killed most of her family. Now the Greek warlord Odysseus wants to sacrifice her daughter Polyxena to appease the ghost of achilles. and then she discovers that her son Polydorus, whom she thought to be alive, is dead, too

Notes:
Original Playwright - euripides

1st Produced:

Organisations:

1st Published:
Faber and Faber, London (April 7, 2005)   978-0571227914

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
Translation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  large cast

Further Reference:

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Kaisers Of Karnuntum, The

Kaisers Of Karnuntum, The
has the bloody Commodus, a Roman Emperor (180-192 AD) and son of the philosopher Marcus Aurelius, returning to the former Roman frontier town.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Roman amphitheatre of Petronell/Carnuntum in Austria    02 Jun 1995

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "Plays 3" Faber, London, (10 Jun 1996)   978-0571179664

Music:
-

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Genre:
site specific play

Parts:
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Labourers Of Herakles, The

Labourers Of Herakles, The
The Labourers of Herakles , used a chorus of nine cement mixers

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
an excavated site intended for the new theatre of the European Cultural Centre of Delphi, Greece - See more at: http://www.faber.co.uk/catalog/tony-harrison-plays-3/9780571179664#sthash.QeANWP9J.dpuf    23 Aug 1995

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "Plays 3" Faber, London, (10 Jun 1996)   978-0571179664

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

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Genre:
site specific play

Parts:
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Further Reference:
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Lysistrata - the Common Chorus

Lysistrata - the Common Chorus
A play set at Greenham in the days when the women's Peace Camp was at its most active. Like the original text - Aristophanes' "Lysistrata" - the play is about war and peace, the relations between men and women and the differences between the sexes, while its location and time is specific.

Notes:
Original Playwright - Aristophanes

1st Produced:
-    1992

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber & Faber (2 July 1992)   978-0571147236

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

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  6            Female:  7            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Medea: Sex War

Synopsis:
classic tale of Medea and her love for Jason

Notes:
Original Playwright - euripides

1st Produced:
Metropolitan Opera, New York    1991

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in Dramatic Verse 1973-1985", Bloodaxe, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1985   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  5            Female:  2            Other:  extras

Further Reference:

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Message, The

Synopsis:
Messengers abound in human history, all the way from Hermes to CNN. We rely on them to tell us the truth, but should we?

Notes:
adapted by Nigel Charnock

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
Piece

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Misanthrope, The

Synopsis:
transposition of action to the 'reign' of Charles de Gaulle, Period 1966

Notes:
Original Playwright - Moliere

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Rex Collings, London, 1973   978-0785928720

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

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  8            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Mysteries, The

Synopsis:
the collection of short scenes begin with Lucifer being thrown from heaven and ends with the birth of Christ. audience members can interact with the ensemble whilst being surrounded by sheep, horses and the stars.

Notes:
-

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

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Nativity, The

Nativity, The
begins with the Creation and ends with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem

Notes:
from the York Mystery Plays

1st Produced:
London    1980

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Contained in "Tony Harrison Plays One - the Mystery Plays" published by Faber 1999   978-0571197071

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

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  17            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Oresteia, The

Oresteia, The
a trilogy of plays concerning the bloody domestic aftermath of the Trojan War

Notes:
Original Playwright - Aeschylus. Music by Harrison Birtwhistle. Trilogy comprises : Agamemnon, Libation Bearers, eumenides

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Rex Collings, London, (Nov 1981)   978-0860361787

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  8            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Passion, The

Passion, The
takes the story from the baptism of Jesus to the Crucifixion

Notes:
from the York Mystery Plays

1st Produced:
National, London    1977

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Rex Collings, London, 1977
Contained in "Tony Harrison Plays One - the Mystery Plays" published by Faber 1999   978-0571197071

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

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  17            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Phaedra Britannica

Phaedra Britannica
ingenious transposition to 19th century Raj India, with the ancient and vengeful Gods of India taking over

Notes:
Original Playwright - Jean Racine

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Bellew Publishing Co Ltd (1975)   978-0901720757

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

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Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  5            Female:  4            Other:  extras

Further Reference:
-

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Poetry Or Bust

Poetry Or Bust
about the Airedale poet John Nicholson (1790-1843) and was devised for the former wool-combing shed at Salts Mill, Saltaire, not a hundred yards from where Nicholson drowned.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Salt Mill, Saltaire    Sep 2003

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in "Plays 3" Faber, London, (10 Jun 1996)   978-0571179664

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

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Genre:
site specific play

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Prince's Play, The (Le Roi's Amuse)

Prince's Play, The (Le Roi's Amuse)
Tony Harrison's radical reassessment of French Classical Drama continues with Victor Hugo's Le Roi s'amuse. the play was banned after only one performance in 1832 and became better known later as the basis for Rigoletto.

Notes:
from Victor Hugo, Le Roi S'amuse / the Prince's Play Tony Harrison. 1996

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber and Faber, London, 1996   978-0571179657

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

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Genre:
Verse Drama

Parts:
Male:  17            Female:  7            Other:  extras

Further Reference:

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Recruiting Officer, The

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

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

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Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Refugee

Synopsis:
Lasting fifty minutes, this moving musical event takes you through the experiences of refugees from fourteen different countries, captured in poetry and song.

Notes:
music by Richard Blackford; lyrics by Tony harrison

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

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Genre:
choral work

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Square Rounds

Square Rounds
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber & Faber; First Edition edition (21 Oct 1992)   978-0571168682

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

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:

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Trackers Of Oxyrhynchus, The

Synopsis:
A mythical romp

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Quarry, West Yorks    1988

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Faber & Faber (19 Mar 1990)   978-0571154968

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
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Genre:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  1            Other:  extras

Further Reference:

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V

V
Tony Harrison's vitriolic epic poem is a modern classic, renowned for its uncompromising mix of brutal and beautiful imagery. V is Harrison's real life response to the desecration of his parents grave by football fans.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Northern Stage (previously known as Newcastle Haymarket Playhouse)    14 Oct 1999

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Bloodaxe Books Ltd   978-0906427972

Music:
-

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Genre:
epic poem

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Voices Of Exile

Synopsis:
This choral work explores the experiences of refugees from fourteen different countries in poetry and song. It is a moving, emotional evening but ultimately full of hope and joy.

Notes:
music by Richard Blackford; lyrics by Tony Harrison

1st Produced:
Lighthouse (previously known as Poole Arts Centre), Poole, Dorset    17 Nov 2001

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

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Genre:
choral work

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Yan Tan Tethera

Synopsis:
this is the sound folk hear in the valley when the church has its bell and the Bad'un that plagued them been packed back to hell'

Notes:
music Harrison Birtwistle

1st Produced:
BBC TV    1983

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in Dramatic Verse 1973-1985", Bloodaxe, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1985   -

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

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Genre:
screenplay

Parts:
Male:  7            Female:  1            Other:  chorus

Further Reference:
-

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