Fraser Grace

It's good to see you're alive. Good to know not all the ghosts in the streets are enemies... 1921. Russia. Winter. When Nikita returns home from the brutal civil war, he attempts to start a new life with his drunken father Mikhail and his new wife Lyuba, the feisty young girl he remembers from his school days. When Nikita fails to consummate his marriage – all the while aware that he is being haunted by a mysterious figure – escape is the only solution he can find. He finally emerges in a new town further along the Potudan River, only to be accused of an ambiguous crime against the Soviet State... Based on a short story by the Russian writer Andrey Platonov (1899-1951), Bliss is a kaleidoscope of hopes, dreams and realities, as the survivors of years of devastating war and political revolution search for their 'bliss' in post-war Soviet Russia. They quickly learn that a society needs time to recover from catastrophe, and that the future is only built by those who manage to accept their past. This edition of Bliss was published alongside the world premiere at the Finborough Theatre, London in May 2022.

Bliss

Somalia Seaton

Fall of the Kingdom, Rise of the Foot Soldier by Somalia Seaton - a racially-motivated attack on a student forces her teacher to confront the uncomfortable truth lurking beneath the community. Fraser Grace's Always Orange, set in the aftermath of the London terrorist attacks, looking at how to be human in a world always on the edge. The Making Mischief Festival features work from some of today's most exciting playwrights who are challenging and questioning our society. The Festival runs from 27 July to 27 August from The Other Place Studio Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon.

Two Radical New Plays

RSC Making Mischief

The water's here, just like us, but soon it'll be flowing past fresh flowers and new grass, and all the way out to the sea. Based on a short story by the brilliant but often overlooked Russian writer Andrey Platonov (1899-1951), Bliss is the tragi-comic tale of a young couple trying to build a life against the odds in the aftermath of the Russian civil war. As ex-soldier Nikita struggles to overcome what we now might recognise as PTSD, the play opens up into a colourful and strangely heart-warming kaleidoscope of stories, song, laughter and magic, as the survivors of years of devastating war and political revolution all strive to comprehend how society can recover from catastrophe, how real love has both passionate and practical faces, and how the future is only built by those who manage to survive their past. This boisterous play is published in Methuen Drama's Lost Plays series, celebrating new plays that had productions postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak and the global shutdown of theatre spaces.

Clare Bayley

Packed with advice and inspiration from prize-winning playwrights, this is a complete companion to writing for the stage.

A Writers' and Artists' Companion

Playwriting

"Is it possible for God to do wrong? To be wrong...? And if God is wrong, what then? Beauty, comedy, horror and tragedy collide in this gripping and powerful new play. Award-winning writer Fraser Grace re-spins the classical biblical tale of King David to devastating moral effect.

Fraser Grace

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