What’s on… Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud… Spokesong and Pentecost, the first and last plays of Stewart Parker in rep at Rough Magic… In the World, Laurent Mauvignier’s new novel…
Film: Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
Based on her own graphic novel, Marjane Satrapi co-writes and co-directs this acclaimed animation, in stylish black and white, an autobiographical rites of passage tale about a young woman growing up in 1970s Iran, during the tumult of regime change that sees the corrupt, unpopular Shah deposed for a strict Islamic fundamentalist rule instead.
Book: In the World by Laurent Mauvignier
In May 1985, legions of football fans come from far and wide for the European cup final between Liverpool and Juventus at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. Laurent Mauvignier’s bestselling second novel follows four particular sets of characters – Italian, English, French and Belgian – from the evening before to the great day itself when tragedy strikes.
Plays: Spokesong and Pentecost by Stewart Parker
20 years after his untimely death, Stewart Parker’s first and last plays, Spokesong and Pentecost, get the Rough Magic treatment from his niece, artistic director Lynne Parker in a co-production with Belfast’s Lyric Theatre. Spokesong, a musical from 1975, and Pentecost, premiered by Field Day in 1987, both draw on the political turmoil of 1970s Northern Ireland for inspiration (the Ulster Workers’ Strike of 1974 providing the context for his final great play). Opening in Belfast where both plays are set, they tour to Dublin in late May, and the cast including Eleanor Methven, Kathy Keira Clarke and Dan Gordon.