Contemporary Black British Playwrights

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Contexts

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

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   2. Beyond Identity Politics: Black British Playwrights on the Mainstream

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 3-17

3. Playwrights, Plays, Themes

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 19-19

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   2. Street Life: Black Masculinity and Youth Violence in Roy Williams’ ‘Urban’ Plays

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 21-41

   3. Past and Present: Legacies of Slavery in Kwame Kwei-Armah’s National Theatre Triptych

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 42-68

   4. Breaking the Silence: Women’s Solidarity in debbie tucker green’s Abuse and Trauma Plays

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 69-94

   5. Playing the Game: Race Relations, Racism and Nation in Roy Williams’ Sports Plays

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 95-120

   6. Around the World: African and Caribbean Human Rights in debbie tucker green’s Global Plays

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 121-154

   7. A Slice-of-Life: British-African Social Comedy in Bola Agbaje’s Council Estate Plays

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 155-172

   8. State-of-the-Nation? Contemporary Black British Playwrights at the Tricycle Theatre

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 173-203

4. Conclusions

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 205-205

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   2. Social Issues and Social Debates: Snapshots, Headlines, Conclusions

      • Lynette Goddard

      Pages 207-215

5. Back Matter

   Pages 216-255

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This book examines the socio-political and theatrical conditions that heralded the shift from the margins to the mainstream for black British Writers, through analysis of the social issues portrayed in plays by Kwame Kwei-Armah, debbie tucker green, Roy Williams, and Bola Agbaje.

• comedy
• identity
• theatre

“Goddard (Royal Holloway, Univ. of London, UK) explores contemporary black British theater through close analyses of work by Kwame Kwei-Armah, debbie tucker green, Roy Williams, and Bola Agbaje. … Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers.” (T. F. DeFrantz, Choice, Vol. 53 (8), April, 2016)

“A major strength is undoubtedly that they systematically provide insightful and pertinent contextualising chapters that map out the changing concerns of black Britain as well as the broader historical, political, theoretical and cultural terrain of the period under scrutiny. … Scrupulously researched and clearly written, these studies will serve as key resources for students, teachers, scholars, practitioners and non-academic audiences alike.” (Cyrielle Garson, Journal of Contemporary Drama in English, Vol 6 (2), November, 2018)

"Dr Lynette Goddard's excellent book is an important contribution to the study of post-millennial black British theatre, lucidly written and accessible both to scholars and general readers. She explores in detail plays by leading contemporary black dramatists, including Roy Williams, Kwame Kwei-Armah, debbie tucker green and Bola Agbaje. However, the plays are not simply discussed as isolated dramatic texts but also as significant expressions of the current state of Britain as a multiracial society." - Dr D Keith Peacock, Emeritus Research Scholar, University of Hull, UK

Lynette Goddard is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Drama and Theatre, Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. As well as several journal articles and book chapters on contemporary black British playwriting, her publications include writing Staging Black Feminisms: Identity, Politics, Performance (Palgrave, 2007), co-editing Modern and Contemporary Black British Drama (Palgrave, 2014), and selecting and introducing The Methuen Drama Book of Plays By Black British Writers (Methuen, 2011).

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