Among his plays, the salt land 1954, equus 1973 which won shaffer the 1975 tony award for best play as well as the new york drama critics circle award, amadeus 1979 which won the evening standard drama award and the theatre critics award for the london production. Free download or read online amadeus pdf epub book. The family moved to london in 1936, and peter spent three years as a bevin boy working in a coal mine, before going to cambridge university to study history. Equus book by peter shaffer official publisher page. Through a psychiatrists analysis of the events, shaffer creates a chilling portrait of how materialism and convenience have killed our capacity for worship. You will find my contact information under the about tag on the sites toolbar. Buy equus longman literature by peter shaffer, roy blatchford, adrian burke isbn. Passion in peter shaffers equus essay peter shaffer, equus. Jun 06, 2016 peter levin shaffer, playwright, born 15 may 1926. Equus by peter shaffer, 1974, avon edition, in english equus 1974 edition. The play portrays a worldand you could certainly argue that the world of the play accurately resembles our ownin which peoples deepest human desires are being squeezed out of their lives and replaced by banal and massproduced pleasures. Equus summary equus is a 1974 tony awardwinning play written by peter schaffer and published in 1973.
Oct 24, 1974 shaffer details a minds journey in equus. As psychiatrist martin dysart struggles to understand the motivation for alans brutality, he is. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The stage design given by shaffer is quite novel, using a central raised platform, circular and revolving, together with two benches on either side and, in the background, a row of seats for the chorus representing the god equus. Mar 20, 2012 my name is nobody western english free and full movie henry fonda hd spaghetti western duration. A sensation at the time, it is still visceral and shocking on stage. Peter shaffer, a leading british playwright whose tonywinning dramas equus and amadeus explored the male psyche through the entwined anguish. Passion in peter shaffer s equus essay in peter shaffer s equus, a psychiatrist, martin dysart, is conducting an investigation on alan strang. The drama unfolds through the eyes of martin dysart, a psychiatrist and an amateur mythologist, who narrates the events of.
Shaffer, peter 1926 shaffer is a british playwright noted for technical skill, versatility, and sophistication. Shaffer was inspired to write equus when he heard of a crime involving a 17yearold who blinded six horses in a small town in suffolk. He was born to a jewish family in liverpool, the son of reka nee fredman and jack shaffer, an estate agent. He is learning, through his investigation of alans horrific crime, about what it really means to make someone normal and what a psychiatrist really does. Equus at pittsburgh public theater theater pittsburgh. In a spotlight stands alan strang, a lean boy of seventeen, in sweater and jeans. For your reference, we provided these equus quotes with page numbers using the following version of the book. The main characters of this plays, drama story are. Pauls school in london and trinity college, cambridge. You will find my contact information under the about tag on the sites.
Equus is a play by peter shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses. Equus characters from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. Sir peter shaffer, in full sir peter levin shaffer, born may 15, 1926, liverpool, englanddied june 6, 2016, curraheen, county cork, ireland, british playwright of considerable range who moved easily from farce to the portrayal of human anguish. Peter shaffer, one of the most commercially successful english playwrights of the latter 20 th century, and the author of the frequently revived amadeus and equus, died june 6. Equus is a drama play by peter shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses. His early successes were five finger exercise and the royal hunt of the sun. Playwright peter shaffer topand the original equus posteron the eve of the firstand highly publicizedbroadway revival of equus, broadway.
Dysart a psychiatrist who lives a life without worship and commitment becomes fascinated and envious of alan. Equus by peter shaffer is one of the six set texts for the new edexcel a level syllabus. Sep 23, 2008 playwright peter shaffer topand the original equus posteron the eve of the firstand highly publicizedbroadway revival of equus, broadway. Alan strang is a disturbed youth whose dangerous obsession with horses leads him to commit an unspeakable act of violence. My name is nobody western english free and full movie henry fonda hd spaghetti western duration. Equus by peter shaffer, 9780141188904, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook.
Alan strang, a disturbed young man, has been committed to a psychiatric hospital for blinding six horses. By living through the treatment of alan, dysart realizes he is able to. In equus, which took critics and public alike by storm and has gone on to become a modern classic, peter shaffer depicts the story of a deranged youth who blinds six horses with a spike. Shaffer further clarifies her role as the representative of the value of normality when she tells dysart that he has a duty to protect things like the normal smile in a childs eyes 63.
Equus is a 1973 play by peter shaffer about a young stableboy who is driven to madness by his emotional pain, insecurity, and his inability to face his past in a rational manner. British playwright peter shaffer, who wrote the plays equus and amadeus, has died in ireland. Peter shaffers play, equus, has been shocking audiences since 1973. Jun 06, 2016 remarkably, though, peter shaffer achieved the feat in three successive decades. Martin dysart to get to the root of the problems affecting neurotic seventeen yearold alan strang, who has blinded six horses with a pick at the stable where he works. Martin dysart richard burton, a psychiatrist who has grown unhappy with his life, takes on the peculiar case of alan strang peter firth, a reserved teenager who has been accused of. Equus by peter shaffer, 1974, avon edition, in english equus 1974 edition open library. The brightness and warmth of the lights suggests the warmth of dysarts feelings towards hester and the way in which he does see some sense in what she. An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, equus is peter shaffer s exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. Pdf amadeus book by peter shaffer free download 160 pages. Alans pose represents a contour of great tenderness. The place and value of passion in life is the most important issue raised by shaffers play.
Equus is the dramatization of a psychologically damaged young man, alan, who, for no known reason, blinded six horses with a hoof pick at the stables he worked at. Playwright peter levin shaffer was born in 1926 in liverpool, one of twin boys. Please feel free to contact me in regard to these documents or my services as a consultantdramaturgmuse on productions of these or other works. An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, equus is peter shaffers exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. It depicts a psychiatrists fascination with a disturbed teenagers mythopoeic obsession with horses. Equus play project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Peter shaffer s equus 1973 won the 1975 tony award for best play. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 160 pages and is available in paperback format. Freebooknotes found 7 important quotes from 5 key chapters of equus by peter shaffer. The first edition of the novel was published in 1979, and was written by peter shaffer. Equus, peter shaffers 1973 play, tells the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man convicted of blinding six horses. British author peter shaffer, who won tony awards for best play for equus 1974 and amadeus 1980 has died, according to his publicist. In the play equus, written by peter shaffer, a guy named alan creates his own god and worships it passionately. The action takes place after the event in the hospital which the courts have remanded alan, and while the crime is central to the play, the play revolves around the character of the.
The leading role of alan strang has been performed by acclaimed actors such as daniel radcliffe, peter firth and alfie allen. Martin dysart, as he tries to help 17yearold alan strang, who has just been charged with blinding five. Equus by peter shaffer uploaded by appleman on oct 12, 2007. The exam requires students to explore how they would realise key extracts from the play. In the recollection of psychiatric patient alan peter firth, institutionalized for blinding horses, his introduction by friendly equestrian jill jenny agutter to his employer tobe dalton harry andrews, from equus, 1977, adapted by peter shaffer from his acclaimed play. Sir peter levin shaffer, cbe 15 may 1926 6 june 2016 was an english playwright and screenwriter of numerous awardwinning plays, several of which have been turned into films. His brother, anthony, also went on to become a playwright. Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published.
The film stars richard burton, peter firth, colin blakely, joan plowright, eileen atkins, and jenny agutter. Over the weekend we were lucky enough to catch the touring version at sheffields lyceum theatre. The theme of passion in equus from litcharts the creators. Passion in peter shaffers equus essay in peter shaffers equus, a psychiatrist, martin dysart, is conducting an investigation on alan strang. Shaffer relies of aspects of realism and naturalism. Shaffer was known for complex psychological portraits and for his love of. Peter shaffers equus 1973 won the 1975 tony award for best play. Remarkably, though, peter shaffer achieved the feat in three successive decades. Peter shaffer wanted to make elaborate theatre the guardian. Equus, drama in two acts by peter shaffer, produced and published in 1973. Shaffers representation of psychiatric practices is recognisably naturalistic eg. In 1972, peter shaffer heard from a friend the bare outline of a true incident about a stable boy in england who blinded a number of horses. It depicts a psychiatrists fascination with a disturbed teenagers mythopoeic obsession with horses the drama unfolds through the eyes of martin dysart, a psychiatrist and an amateur mythologist, who narrates the events of his rehabilitation of alan strang, a 17yearold stable boy who has been arrested for. Shaffer details a minds journey in equus the new york times.
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