People, Places and Things by Duncan Macmillan
"Macmillan doesn’t shy away from difficult questions about addiction and recovery and, rightly, doesn’t answer them ... this is a bold, timely and searching play" - Financial Times Emma was having the time of her life. Now she’s in rehab. Her first step is to admit that she has a problem. But the problem isn’t with Emma, it’s with everything else. She needs to tell the truth. But she’s smart enough to know that there’s no such thing. When intoxication feels like the only way to survive the modern world, how can she ever sober up? People, Places & Things premiered at the National Theatre in 2015 before transferring to London’s West End and St. Ann’s Warehouse in New York. Published for the first time in Methuen Drama's Modern Classics series, this edition features a brand new introduction by Naomi Obeng.
Duncan Macmillan is not the first dramatist to tackle addictionWhat gives his new play exceptional vibrancy, though, is its decision to draw parallels between rehab and theatrical process, and to present the action from the addict’s point of view...a vivid tale * Guardian *
Generous-spirited, with a strong streak of irreverent, darkly humane humour, the play...has a thoughtful, shifting ambivalence that suits a problem where the solutions can only ever be provisional and the amends inadequate * Independent *
Macmillan doesn’t shy away from difficult questions about addiction and recovery and, rightly, doesn’t answer them. Is Emma messed up because of her past, the state of the world or the purposelessness of life? Or is she self-absorbed, self-pitying and deceitful? Is the spiritual aspect to Alcoholics Anonymous problematic? And, if it works, does that matter? He is plain about the hard grind of recovery, for everyone involved. And he touches on broader questions about the pros and cons of role-play — in theatre, in therapy and in life...this is a bold, timely and searching play * Financial Times *
Generous-spirited, with a strong streak of irreverent, darkly humane humour, the play...has a thoughtful, shifting ambivalence that suits a problem where the solutions can only ever be provisional and the amends inadequate * Independent *
Macmillan doesn’t shy away from difficult questions about addiction and recovery and, rightly, doesn’t answer them. Is Emma messed up because of her past, the state of the world or the purposelessness of life? Or is she self-absorbed, self-pitying and deceitful? Is the spiritual aspect to Alcoholics Anonymous problematic? And, if it works, does that matter? He is plain about the hard grind of recovery, for everyone involved. And he touches on broader questions about the pros and cons of role-play — in theatre, in therapy and in life...this is a bold, timely and searching play * Financial Times *
Duncan Macmillan is Professor Emeritus of the History of Scottish Art and former Curator of the Talbot Rice Gallery in the University of Edinburgh. Art critic of The Scotsman he is also the author of Painting in Scotland: the Golden Age (1986), Scottish Art 1460-1990 (1990, Scottish Book of the Year in 1991, enlarged edition in 2000, Scottish Art 1460-2000) and Scottish Art in the 20th Century (1994, Scottish Arts Council Book Award). He has written several monographs on Scottish and European artists and has published on Elizabeth Blackadder and F.C.B. Cadell with Lund Humphries.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781350200593 |
| ISBN 10 | 135020059X |
| Title | People, Places and Things |
| Author | Duncan Macmillan |
| Series | Modern Classics |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Methuen Drama |
| Year published | 2021-09-23 |
| Number of pages | 152 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |