Publisher: Good Press
By Zona Gale is a collection of evocative poems that delve into the intricacies of the human heart and the world around us. Gale's verses are a blend of introspection and observation, capturing moments of beauty, sorrow, and wonder. Her lyrical style and keen insights make this a memorable read for poetry lovers and those seeking solace in words.
LibriVox volunteers bring you 15 recordings of Where the Bee Sucks by William Shakespeare. This was the Weekly Poetry project for April 8, 2012.Where the Bee Sucks is a song performed by Ariel, an airy spirit, in Shakespeare's The Tempest. The Tempest has proved more popular as a subject for composers than most of Shakespeare's plays. Scholar Julie Sanders ascribes this to the "perceived 'musicality' or lyricism" of the play. Thomas Arne, best known for the patriotic song Rule, Britannia!, set this piece to music. (Summary by Wikipedia)Show book
Ben thinks his family might be better off without him, but his wife Cat has read her stars: 'Today a very special person will appear from out the blue.' Their daughter Loops is getting ready for a date. It's her first one, and she has everything crossed. An ethereal family drama, Joe White's debut play Mayfly explores rebirth in the aftermath of tragedy. It premiered at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, in April 2018.Show book
Antony and Cleopatra is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607. It was first printed in the First Folio of 1623. The plot is based on Thomas North's translation of Plutarch's Life of Marcus Antonius and follows the relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony from the time of the Parthian War to Cleopatra's suicide. The major antagonist is Octavius Caesar, one of Antony's fellow triumviri and the future first emperor of Rome. The tragedy is a Roman play characterized by swift, panoramic shifts in geographical locations and in registers, alternating between sensual, imaginative Alexandria and the more pragmatic, austere Rome.Show book
Two plays, both set in contemporary inner-city London, showcasing the remarkable poetic and theatrical imagination of writer/performer Arinzé Kene. Little Baby Jesus is a lyrical triptych of three intertwining, colliding monologues about the life-changing moments when three young people 'grew up'. Joanne is dipped in rudeness, rolled in attitude and is fighting to keep her life afloat. Sensitive and mature he may be, yet Kehinde struggles with an obsession for mixed-race girls as he eyes his place on the social ladder. Rugrat is the class clown and playground loudmouth, and just wants to make it past GCSEs. Estate Walls is the story of Obi, a young writer who dreams of leaving his estate, but with bad boys Myles and Cain for best friends, there are bound to be setbacks… Both plays premiered at Ovalhouse Theatre in south London, directed by Ché Walker, with Estate Walls winning Arinzé the Most Promising Playwright at the Offies (Off West Theatre Awards) in 2011. Little Baby Jesus was revived at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, in 2019, directed by winner of the JMK Young Director Award Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu. 'An intense, visceral and vivid portrayal of the often-brutal reality of growing up. It feels starkly authentic and cruel, whilst at times is wildly funny and is all the more appealing for it' - Broadway World on Little Baby Jesus 'A huge groundswell of hormones, mistakes, loneliness and searching. You feel, emotionally, like you know the story and care about these three teenagers and that is why Arinzé Kene is brilliant' - Time Out on Little Baby Jesus 'The great joy of the play springs from Kene's sharp-eyed, witty observations and the lyricism of his descriptive writing... moves from hysterically funny to tear-jerkingly moving in an instant, with comedy, harsh reality and allegory fitting together seamlessly... rides the highs and lows of the years of teenage discovery and arrives assuredly at a life affirming destination' - The Reviews Hub on Little Baby Jesus 'Here is a play that will be racing through you, making you laugh and think, long after you've left the theatre... a genre-defying theatrical hybrid – a thrilling combination of performance poetry, standup comedy and good old-fashioned storytelling' - Guardian on Little Baby Jesus 'Skips majestically between the epic and urban in a story that would feel as comfortable set against a Grecian palace as it does the grimy city wall of its title... Kene's eclectic dialogue is a pleasure to listen to, jumping from poetic to pithy and back again with remarkable ease' - Theatre Workbook on Estate Walls 'Witty and intelligent... deftly captures and magnifies the poetry of everyday conversation on an estate' - Soul Culture on Estate WallsShow book
Sephy and Callum sit together on a beach. They are in love. It is forbidden. Sephy is a Cross and Callum is a Nought. Between Noughts and Crosses there are racial and social divides. A segregated society teeters on a volatile knife-edge. As violence breaks out, Sephy and Callum draw closer, but this is a romance that will lead them into terrible danger. This gripping Romeo and Juliet story by acclaimed writer Malorie Blackman is a captivating drama of love, revolution and what it means to grow up in a divided world. Sabrina Mahfouz's stage adaptation first toured the UK in 2019 and won the Excellence in Touring category at the UK Theatre Awards. It was commissioned and presented by Pilot Theatre in co-production with Derby Theatre, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Mercury Theatre Colchester and York Theatre Royal. 'Malorie Blackman's bestseller leaps off the stage in a fine new adaptation' Observer 'A searing insight into the injustices of the world… Mahfouz's adaptation highlights some deep truths and sharp parallels with the here and now' The StageShow book
The Beauty Within Shadow is narrated by Henry Normal.Written between August 2019 and June 2020, these poems are concerned with the balancing of darkness and light in our everyday lives, the search for an understanding of pain and sorrow, and the processing of other thoughts we’d usually avoid by filling our days with mindless distractions."Shove up National Treasures. We need to make room for Henry Normal." - Radio Times"The Alan Bennett of poetry" - The Scotsman"Distinctly funny" - Time Out"Witty and uncannily accurate with his observations." - The Stage"Dovetails bittersweet poetry with a sublimely observant wit." - The GuardianHenry Normal is a writer, poet, TV and film producer, founder of the Manchester Poetry Festival (now the Manchester Literature Festival) and co-founder of the Nottingham Poetry Festival. In June 2017 he was honoured with a special BAFTA for services to television.Henry co-wrote and script edited the multi-award-winning Mrs Merton Show and the spin-off series Mrs Merton and Malcolm. He also co-created and co-wrote the first series of The Royle Family. With Steve Coogan, he co-wrote the BAFTA-winning Paul and Pauline Calf Video Diaries, Coogan’s Run, Tony Ferrino, Doctor Terrible, all of Steve’s live tours and the film The Parole Officer.Setting up Baby Cow Productions Ltd in 1999, Henry Executive Produced all, and script edited many, of the shows of its seventeen-and-a-half-year output during his tenure as MD. Highlights of the Baby Cow output during this time include Oscar-nominated Philomena, I Believe in Miracles, Gavin and Stacey, Moone Boy, The Mighty Boosh, Marion and Geoff, Red Dwarf, Uncle, Nighty Night, Hunderby, Camping and Alan Partridge.Since retiring in April 2016, Henry has written and performed six BBC Radio 4 shows, A Normal Family, A Normal Life, A Normal Love, A Normal Imagination, A Normal Nature and A Normal Universe, combining comedy, poetry and stories about bringing up his autistic son.Show book
