The Motive and the Cue (West End edition)

The Motive and the Cue (West End edition)

By Jack Thorne
Paperback $22.95

$22.95

Publication Date: 24th September 2024

Best Play - Evening Standard Awards - 20231964: Richard Burton, the firebrand Welsh actor, newly married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new production of... Read More
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Best Play - Evening Standard Awards - 20231964: Richard Burton, the firebrand Welsh actor, newly married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new production of... Read More
Description

Best Play - Evening Standard Awards - 2023

1964: Richard Burton, the firebrand Welsh actor, newly married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new production of Hamlet under the exacting direction of John Gielgud.

But as rehearsals progress, the collaboration between actor and director soon threatens to unravel. One of them is the most famous movie star in the world; the other, a patrician from an earlier age of theatre. The stage is set for two titans to collide.

Jack Thorne's The Motive and the Cue is a fierce, funny play which offers a glimpse into the politics of a rehearsal room and the relationship between art and celebrity. This edition was published alongside the West End transfer in 2023, following its world premiere at the National Theatre, London, earlier that year. Originally commissioned and co-produced by Neal Street Productions, it was directed by Sam Mendes, and starred Johnny Flynn as Burton, Mark Gatiss as Gielgud and Tuppence Middleton as Taylor. It was named Best Play at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 2023.

Details
  • Price: $22.95
  • Pages: 104
  • Carton Quantity: 20
  • Publisher: Theatre Communications Group
  • Imprint: Nick Hern Books
  • Publication Date: 24th September 2024
  • Trim Size: 5 x 7.75 in
  • ISBN: 9781839043116
  • Format: Paperback
  • BISACs:
    DRAMA / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh
    DRAMA / European / General
Reviews

“Marvelous... a quite wonderful new play... full of compassion, funny, witty and utterly compelling... This play is Thorne and Mendes's own love letter to the stage, full of both intellect and passion, clever and profoundly moving.”— WhatsOnStage

“Enjoyable and hugely adroit.”— Evening Standard

“Witty, deft, and touching... a palpable hit.”— Telegraph

“Magical... deeply affecting... not just a heartfelt plea for the power of theatre, but a moving, often very funny, story about two generations teasing and provoking one another.”— Independent

“Fascinating... a dual of egos in which not just the play, but the two men's sense of their selves is at stake.”—The Stage

“Thrilling... an undeniably magnificent tour de force. Theatre should thank its lucky stars for Thorne. He has reminded us all why we went to the theatre and why we continue to go.”— Broadway World

“Blazingly triumphant... a story about humanity, vulnerability, reconciliation.”— TheatreCat

“Beautifully written... Jack Thorne's dramatization of the events is powerful and entertaining in equal measure.”— The Upcoming

“Stunning... Thorne's gloriously rich script subtly dissects the various relationships of the players, and it's magical to see it all unfold... a brilliant piece of theatre.”— Theatre Weekly

“Part mischievous comedy and part docu-drama... a funny and affectionate love letter from theatre to itself.”—Reviews Hub

Author Bio

Jack Thorne is a playwright and BAFTA-winning screenwriter.

His plays for the stage include: When Winston Went to War with the Wireless (Donmar Warehouse, 2023); The Motive and the Cue (National Theatre and West End, 2023); After Life, an adaptation of a film by Hirokazu Kore-eda (National Theatre, 2021); the end of history... (Royal Court, London, 2019); an adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Old Vic, London, 2017); an adaptation of Büchner's Woyzeck (Old Vic, London, 2017); Junkyard (Headlong, Bristol Old Vic, Rose Theatre Kingston & Theatr Clwyd, 2017); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre, London, 2016); The Solid Life of Sugar Water (Graeae and Theatre Royal Plymouth, 2015); Hope (Royal Court, London, 2015); adaptations of Let the Right One In (National Theatre of Scotland at Dundee Rep, the Royal Court and the Apollo Theatre, London, 2013/14) and Stuart: A Life Backwards (Underbelly, Edinburgh and tour, 2013); Mydidae (Soho, 2012; Trafalgar Studios, 2013); an adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Physicists (Donmar Warehouse, 2012); Bunny (Underbelly, Edinburgh, 2010; Soho, 2011); 2nd May 1997 (Bush, 2009); When You Cure Me (Bush, 2005; Radio 3's Drama on Three, 2006); Fanny and Faggot (Pleasance, Edinburgh, 2004 and 2007; Finborough, 2007; English Theatre of Bruges, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007); and Stacy (Tron, 2006; Arcola, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007).

His television work includes His Dark Materials, Then Barbara Met Alan (with Genevieve Barr), The Eddy, Help, The Accident, Kiri, National Treasure and This is England ’86/’88/’90.

His films include The Swimmers (with Sally El Hosaini), Enola Holmes, Radioactive, The Aeronauts and Wonder.

He was the recipient of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2022.

Best Play - Evening Standard Awards - 2023

1964: Richard Burton, the firebrand Welsh actor, newly married to movie star Elizabeth Taylor, is to play the title role in an experimental new production of Hamlet under the exacting direction of John Gielgud.

But as rehearsals progress, the collaboration between actor and director soon threatens to unravel. One of them is the most famous movie star in the world; the other, a patrician from an earlier age of theatre. The stage is set for two titans to collide.

Jack Thorne's The Motive and the Cue is a fierce, funny play which offers a glimpse into the politics of a rehearsal room and the relationship between art and celebrity. This edition was published alongside the West End transfer in 2023, following its world premiere at the National Theatre, London, earlier that year. Originally commissioned and co-produced by Neal Street Productions, it was directed by Sam Mendes, and starred Johnny Flynn as Burton, Mark Gatiss as Gielgud and Tuppence Middleton as Taylor. It was named Best Play at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 2023.

  • Price: $22.95
  • Pages: 104
  • Carton Quantity: 20
  • Publisher: Theatre Communications Group
  • Imprint: Nick Hern Books
  • Publication Date: 24th September 2024
  • Trim Size: 5 x 7.75 in
  • ISBN: 9781839043116
  • Format: Paperback
  • BISACs:
    DRAMA / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh
    DRAMA / European / General

“Marvelous... a quite wonderful new play... full of compassion, funny, witty and utterly compelling... This play is Thorne and Mendes's own love letter to the stage, full of both intellect and passion, clever and profoundly moving.”— WhatsOnStage

“Enjoyable and hugely adroit.”— Evening Standard

“Witty, deft, and touching... a palpable hit.”— Telegraph

“Magical... deeply affecting... not just a heartfelt plea for the power of theatre, but a moving, often very funny, story about two generations teasing and provoking one another.”— Independent

“Fascinating... a dual of egos in which not just the play, but the two men's sense of their selves is at stake.”—The Stage

“Thrilling... an undeniably magnificent tour de force. Theatre should thank its lucky stars for Thorne. He has reminded us all why we went to the theatre and why we continue to go.”— Broadway World

“Blazingly triumphant... a story about humanity, vulnerability, reconciliation.”— TheatreCat

“Beautifully written... Jack Thorne's dramatization of the events is powerful and entertaining in equal measure.”— The Upcoming

“Stunning... Thorne's gloriously rich script subtly dissects the various relationships of the players, and it's magical to see it all unfold... a brilliant piece of theatre.”— Theatre Weekly

“Part mischievous comedy and part docu-drama... a funny and affectionate love letter from theatre to itself.”—Reviews Hub

Jack Thorne is a playwright and BAFTA-winning screenwriter.

His plays for the stage include: When Winston Went to War with the Wireless (Donmar Warehouse, 2023); The Motive and the Cue (National Theatre and West End, 2023); After Life, an adaptation of a film by Hirokazu Kore-eda (National Theatre, 2021); the end of history... (Royal Court, London, 2019); an adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Old Vic, London, 2017); an adaptation of Büchner's Woyzeck (Old Vic, London, 2017); Junkyard (Headlong, Bristol Old Vic, Rose Theatre Kingston & Theatr Clwyd, 2017); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre, London, 2016); The Solid Life of Sugar Water (Graeae and Theatre Royal Plymouth, 2015); Hope (Royal Court, London, 2015); adaptations of Let the Right One In (National Theatre of Scotland at Dundee Rep, the Royal Court and the Apollo Theatre, London, 2013/14) and Stuart: A Life Backwards (Underbelly, Edinburgh and tour, 2013); Mydidae (Soho, 2012; Trafalgar Studios, 2013); an adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Physicists (Donmar Warehouse, 2012); Bunny (Underbelly, Edinburgh, 2010; Soho, 2011); 2nd May 1997 (Bush, 2009); When You Cure Me (Bush, 2005; Radio 3's Drama on Three, 2006); Fanny and Faggot (Pleasance, Edinburgh, 2004 and 2007; Finborough, 2007; English Theatre of Bruges, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007); and Stacy (Tron, 2006; Arcola, 2007; Trafalgar Studios, 2007).

His television work includes His Dark Materials, Then Barbara Met Alan (with Genevieve Barr), The Eddy, Help, The Accident, Kiri, National Treasure and This is England ’86/’88/’90.

His films include The Swimmers (with Sally El Hosaini), Enola Holmes, Radioactive, The Aeronauts and Wonder.

He was the recipient of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2022.