Seven Classic Plays

William Shakespeare (1564–1616), English poet and dramatist of the Elizabethan and early Jacobean period, is the most widely known author in all of English literature and often considered the greatest. He was an active member of a theater company for at least twenty years, during which time he wrote many great plays. Plays were not prized as literature at the time, and Shakespeare was not widely read until the middle of the eighteenth century, when a great upsurge of interest in his works began that continues today.

Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870), French novelist and playwright, was one of the most famous and prolific French writers of the nineteenth century, producing some 250 books. He is best known for his historical novels The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, and he was among the first authors to fully exploit the possibilities of the serial novel. He is credited with revitalizing the historical novel in France. His works are riveting, fast-paced adventure tales that blend history and fiction.

George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950), Irish-born playwright, critic, and political activist, began his writing career in London. In addition to writing sixty-three plays, his prodigious output as critic, pamphleteer, and essayist influenced numerous social issues. In 1925, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature and in 1938 an Oscar for the movie version of Pygmalion.

Anton Chekhov (1860–1904), the author of hundreds of short stories and several plays, is regarded by many as both the greatest Russian storyteller and the father of modern drama. He described the Russian life of his time using a deceptively simple technique devoid of obtrusive literary devices, thereby becoming the prominent representative of the late nineteenth-century Russian realist school. His early stream-of-consciousness style strongly influenced the literary world, including writers such as James Joyce.

Euripedes (c. 480–406 BC) was one of the great tragedians of classical Athens. He is identified with theatrical innovations that have profoundly influenced drama in modern times and is credited with pioneering developments that later writers adapted to comedy and romance. He also focused on the inner lives and motives of his characters in a way previously unknown.

Molière, the pen name and stage name of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622–1673), was a French actor, director, and author who is considered to be one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature.

Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) was a major nineteenth-century Norwegian playwright, theater director, and poet. He is often referred to as “the father of prose drama” and is one of the founders of modernism in the theater. His major works include Brand, Peer Gynt, An Enemy of the People, Emperor and Galilean, A Doll’s House, Ghosts, The Wild Duck, and The Master Builder. Several of his plays were considered scandalous to many of his era, when European theater was required to model strict mores of family life and propriety. Ibsen’s work examined the realities that lay behind many façades, revealing much that was disquieting to many contemporaries. It utilized a critical eye and free inquiry into the conditions of life and issues of morality.

Yuri Rasovsky (1944–2012) was the leading writer, producer, and director of audio drama in the United States. Also a distinguished actor, narrator, and critic, his numerous honors include two Peabody Awards, eight Audie Awards, and a Grammy.

John Glover, most famous for his roles as villainous characters on television and in films, has performed many times on stage, winning a Tony Award for his role in Love! Valour! Compassion! He also appeared in the film version.

F. Murray Abraham is an American actor. He became widely known during the 1980s after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Antonio Salieri in the 1984 film Amadeus. He has appeared in many roles, both leading and supporting, in such major films as All the President’s Men and Scarface and the award-winning television series Homeland. He has also acted on Broad and Off-Broadway and won numerous awards for his work in theater, film, television, and audio recordings. He has also received lifetime achievement awards and has been inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.