Time Frames

'I loved this book – it made me see the familiar entirely afresh.' MARK ROSENBLATT

'One of the best books I've read about the art of theatre.' GILES TERERA

'What a roaring, full-throttle adventure this is. A fantastic page-turner. I recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone who’s ever set foot in a theatre – and even more to those who haven’t yet.' JESSICA SWALE

For a century, the story of the changing world was told inside proscenium theatres by a series of remarkable playwrights. In over seventy irreverent, illuminating pen portraits, Dominic Dromgoole takes us on a journey from 1865 to 1965, revealing how these writers used the framed stage to reflect the social upheavals of their times.

We see the emergence of bourgeois individualism through Henrik Ibsen; the combustible myths and energies of Irish nationalism through Lady Augusta Gregory; the Jazz Age through Noël Coward; the birth pangs of existentialism through Jean-Paul Sartre; racial tension and visionary resistance through Lorraine Hansberry.

Brought vividly to life by a generously erudite and experienced theatre director, Time Frames offers a host of fresh insights for theatre lovers and a fascinating new history of an era of tumultuous change.

'If you love play-going and plays, stop what you're doing and read this now.' DAVID ELDRIDGE

'At once a great resource and great fun. The book is a keeper.' JOHN LAHR

'A dazzling new perspective on pretty well everything you ever thought about plays, players and playhouses. If you care about any of these things, you simply have to read it.' SIMON CALLOW