''Rock 'n' Roll'' is a play by British playwright

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (; born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

that premiered at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

, London, in 2006.

Plot summary

The play is concerned with the significance of

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

in the emergence of the socialist movement in Eastern-Bloc

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

between the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring (; ) was a period of liberalization, political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected Secretary (title), First Secre ...

of 1968 and the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution () or Gentle Revolution () was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations against the one-party government of the Communist Pa ...

of 1989. Taking place in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, England and in Prague, the play contrasts the attitudes of a young Czech PhD student and rock music fan, who becomes appalled by the repressive regime in his home country, with those of his British

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

professor, who unrepentantly continues to believe in the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

ideal. The play takes place over several decades, from the late 1960s until 1990, ending with a concert given by

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

that year in Prague. Recurrent references are made to a glimpse by one of the main characters of the young

Syd Barrett Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett (6 January 1946 – 7 July 2006) was an English singer, guitarist and songwriter who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Until his departure in 1968, he was Pink Floyd's frontman and primary songwriter, ...

performing ''Golden Hair''. Barrett's physical and mental decline also plays a role in the drama (Barrett in fact died during the play's run). The underground Czech group

the Plastic People of the Universe The Plastic People of the Universe (PPU) is a Czech rock band from Prague. They are considered the foremost representatives of Prague's underground culture (1968–1989), which defied Czechoslovakia's Communist regime. Members of the band o ...

are held up by another character as an ideal of resistance to Communism. The poetry of

Sappho Sappho (; ''Sapphṓ'' ; Aeolic Greek ''Psápphō''; ) was an Ancient Greek poet from Eresos or Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by music. In ancient times, Sapph ...

is another recurrent motif; its pagan sensualism is implicitly compared with the anarchic erotic force of rock music. One of the characters, a Czech writer, is named Ferdinand as an homage to

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and dissident. Havel served as the last List of presidents of Czechoslovakia, president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until 1992, prior to the dissol ...

. Havel wrote three plays with a protagonist named

Ferdinand Vaněk Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

, a stand-in for Havel himself. These plays were distributed by

samizdat Samizdat (, , ) was a form of dissident activity across the Eastern Bloc in which individuals reproduced censored and underground makeshift publications, often by hand, and passed the documents from reader to reader. The practice of manual rep ...

and became a symbol of the resistance. A number of Havel's friends then wrote their own

Vaněk plays The Vaněk plays are a set of plays in which the character Ferdinand Vaněk is central. Vaněk first appeared in the play ''Audience'' by Václav Havel. He subsequently appeared in three other plays by Havel (''Protest'', ''Unveiling'', and ''Doz ...

, with Ferdinand Vaněk as a character. Stoppard continues in that tradition. This play is one of several works in Stoppard's ''oeuvre'' concerned with artistic dissent against the

Communist Party of Czechoslovakia The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia ( Czech and Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992. It was a member of the Com ...

: ''

Dogg's Hamlet, Cahoot's Macbeth ''Dogg's Hamlet, Cahoot's Macbeth'' are two plays by Tom Stoppard, written to be performed together. This was not the first time that Stoppard had made use of Shakespearean texts in his own plays or even the first time he had used ''Hamlet'' alth ...

'' also addresses this, as do '' Every Good Boy Deserves Favour'' and ''

Professional Foul ''Professional Foul'' is a television play written by Czech-born, British playwright Tom Stoppard. It was broadcast on 21 September 1977 in BBC 2's ''Play of the Week'' series. The play is set in Prague and follows the character of Profess ...

''.

Original production

The original production was staged at the

and ran from 3 June until 15 July 2006. It then transferred to the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by ...

. The production was directed by

Trevor Nunn Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is an English theatre director and lyricist. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has dir ...

and featured the following cast: * Jan –

Rufus Sewell Rufus Frederik Sewell (; born 29 October 1967) is a British actor. In film, he has appeared in ''Carrington (film), Carrington'' (1995), ''Hamlet (1996 film), Hamlet'' (1996), ''Dangerous Beauty'' (1998), ''Dark City (1998 film), Dark City'' (1 ...

* Max – Brian Cox * Eleanor, Esme –

Sinéad Cusack Sinéad Moira Cusack ( ; born 18 February 1948) is an Irish actress. Her first acting roles were at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, before moving to London in 1969 to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. She has won the Critics' Circle and ''Eve ...

* Interrogator, Nigel –

Anthony Calf Anthony Calf (born 4 May 1959) is an English actor. He studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). He had recurring roles in the television medical drama ''Holby City'', as Michael Beauchamp, and ''New Tricks'' as D ...

* Ferdinand – Peter Sullivan * Young Esme, Alice –

Alice Eve Alice Sophia Eve (born 6 February 1982) is a British and American actress. The daughter of actors Trevor Eve and Sharon Maughan, she began her career with supporting roles in the films '' Hawking'' and '' Stage Beauty'' (both 2004). Her other ...

* Gillian, Magda, Deirdre – Miranda Colchester * Piper, Police Officer 1, Stephen –

Edward Hogg Edward George Hogg (born 26 January 1979) is an English actor, known for portraying Jesco White in '' White Lightnin, Stephen Turnbull in '' Bunny and the Bull,'' Eugene Mathers in '' Indian Summers,'' Segundus in ''Jonathan Strange & Mr No ...

* Milan, Police Officer 2, Jaroslav – Martin Chamberlain * Lenka – Nicole Ansari * Candida – Louise Bangay Taking over from the principal actors mid-run were: * Jan –

Dominic West Dominic Gerard Francis Eagleton West (born 15 October 1969) is an English actor, director, producer, and musician. He is best known for playing Jimmy McNulty in HBO's ''The Wire'' (2002–2008), Noah Solloway in Showtime's '' The Affair'' (20 ...

* Max – David Calder * Eleanor, Esme –

Emma Fielding Emma Georgina Annalies Fielding (born 7 October 1970) is an English actress. Early life and education The daughter of a British Army officer, Fielding spent some of her childhood in Nigeria, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Northern Ireland and other ...

* Young Esme/ Alice –

Fiona Button Fiona Button is an English actress. She is best known for playing Rose Defoe in '' The Split''. Early life and education Button was born in Lausanne, Switzerland, and grew up in Newbury, Berkshire. She made her professional stage debut at th ...

The production closed on 25 February 2007 at the

before an announced transfer to Broadway in the autumn of 2007. The premiere of the play was attended by first president of the post-Communist

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

and leading figure of the

(a friend of Stoppard's) and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

star

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

, whose band,

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

, features in the final scene of the play. Jagger has worked with Stoppard previously, having produced the film ''

Enigma Enigma may refer to: *Riddle, someone or something that is mysterious or puzzling Biology *ENIGMA, a class of gene in the LIM domain Computing and technology * Enigma (company), a New York–based data-technology startup *Enigma machine, a famil ...

'', for which Stoppard wrote the screenplay, and has, along with his production company Jagged Films, "approached" Stoppard "for the movie rights" to the play ''Rock 'n' Roll''."Jagger Set to Team Up with Stoppard"
, ''contactmusic.com'', accessed 28 April 2007. Also in attendance was Paul Wilson, the Canadian former lead singer of the

Plastic People of the Universe The Plastic People of the Universe (PPU) is a Czech Rock music, rock band from Prague. They are considered the foremost representatives of Prague underground (culture), Prague's underground culture (1968–1989), which defied Czechoslovak Soci ...

, with whom Stoppard consulted while writing the play.

Prague production

The play premiered in Prague's historic National Theatre (Národní Divadlo) in February 2007. It features opening and closing performances by

The Plastic People of the Universe The Plastic People of the Universe (PPU) is a Czech rock band from Prague. They are considered the foremost representatives of Prague's underground culture (1968–1989), which defied Czechoslovakia's Communist regime. Members of the band o ...

Broadway production

A Broadway (New York City) run of the play commenced in previews on 19 October 2007 and opened on 4 November 2007 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Several of the original cast members – including Sewell,

Cox Cox or COX may refer to: Companies * Cox Enterprises, a media and communications company ** Cox Communications, cable provider ** Cox Media Group, a company that owns television and radio stations ** Cox Automotive, an Atlanta-based busines ...

and Cusack – appeared in the production that is directed by

. The production had a strictly limited run and closed on 9 March 2008.

Other productions

The San Francisco production, directed by

Carey Perloff Carey Elizabeth Perloff (born February 9, 1959) is an American theater director, playwright, author, and educator. She was the artistic director of American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) in San Francisco from 1992 to June 2018. Biography Per ...

, opened at the

American Conservatory Theater The American Conservatory Theater (ACT) is a nonprofit theater company in San Francisco, California, United States, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. It also has an attached acting school. History The American ...

on 17 September 2008. It then moved to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Huntington Theatre Company The Huntington Theatre Company is a professional theatre located in Boston, Massachusetts and the recipient of the 2013 Regional Theatre Tony Award, under the direction of Managing Director Michael Maso. It is notable for its longstanding artist ...

, who co-produced the production, on 7 November. The first UK production of the play outside London was at the

Library Theatre Manchester Central Library is the headquarters of the city's library and information service in Manchester, England. Facing St Peter's Square, it was designed by E. Vincent Harris and constructed between 1930 and 1934. The form of the build ...

in Manchester from 13 February to 14 March 2009.

Teatre Lliure The Teatre Lliure (, "Free Theatre") is a theatre in Barcelona, Spain, considered one of the most prestigious in Catalonia. Overview The theatre was created in 1976 in the neighbourhood of Gràcia by a group of professionals from Barcelona's i ...

of Barcelona presented ''Rock 'n' Roll'', in Catalan and directed by Àlex Rigola, as the opening show for the 2008–2009 season between 18 September and 19 October. Joy Zinoman, Founding Artistic Director of The Studio Theatre in Washington, DC, will direct the play beginning 22 April 2009. The Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas produced ''Rock 'n' Roll'' beginning 24 April 2009, directed by Alley Theatre Artistic Director Gregory Boyd.

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the ...

of Chicago hosted a production from 2 May through 7 June 2009. The Canadian premiere was at

Dawson College Dawson College is an English-language public college in Westmount and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The college is situated near the heart of Downtown Montreal in a former nunnery on approximately of green space. It is the largest CEGEP in the p ...

in Montréal Quebec in January 2009 directed by Douglas Buchanan. The

Canadian Stage Company Canadian Stage is a Canadian non-profit contemporary theatre company, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. History The company was founded in 1988 with the merger of Centre Stage and Toronto Free Theatre. Canadian Stage has produced more than 3 ...

of Toronto, Ontario featured ''Rock 'n' Roll'' in their 2009–2010 season between 28 September and 24 October.

ACT Theatre ACT Contemporary Theatre (originally A Contemporary Theatre) is a regional, non-profit theatre organization in Seattle, in the US state of Washington. Gregory A. Falls (1922–1997) founded ACT in 1965 and served as its first Artistic director; a ...

in Seattle produced the play as part of their 2009 Season between 9 October and 8 November 2009. Park Square Theatre in St. Paul, Minnesota produced ''Rock 'n' Roll'' beginning 15 January 2010, directed by Mary M. Finnerty. A production was staged at

The Questors Theatre The Questors Theatre is a theatre venue located in the London Borough of Ealing, West London. It is home of The Questors, a large theatre company which hosts a season of around twenty productions a year, not including visiting companies, and is a ...

in Ealing, West London, from 19 December 2009 to 2 January 2010. The San Jose Stage Company presented a new production of ''Rock 'n' Roll'' from 10 February to 7 March 2010.

Horipro is a Japanese talent agent, talent agency that manages actors, entertainers and musicians, as well as commercial and television productions. It has locations in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville and Los Angeles in the United States. History I ...

presented the first Japan production of the play at the Setagaya public theatre in

Setagaya is a special ward in the Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood and administrative district within the ward. Its official bird is the azure-winged magpie, its flower is the fringed orchid, and its tree is the '' Ze ...

, Tokyo, from 3 to 29 August 2010.

Belmont Abbey College Belmont Abbey College is a private, Catholic liberal arts college in Belmont, North Carolina. It was founded in 1876 by the Benedictine monks of Belmont Abbey. The college is affiliated with the Catholic Church and the Order of Saint Benedict. ...

in Belmont, North Carolina will produce ''Rock 'n' Roll'', directed by Simon Donoghue, beginning 24 February 2011. St. Louis Actors' Studio (stlas.org) Produced ''Rock 'n' Roll'' in November 2010
National Theater of Kosovo
will also produce ''Rock 'n' Roll'' beginning January 2011. Yıldız Teknik Üniversitesi Oyuncuları (YUO) started rehearsals in November 2010 for a Turkish production. The Kavinoky Theatre in Buffalo, New York produced "Rock 'N' Roll" in 2011 from 4 March to 3 April The Sydney Theatre, Sydney, production by the Melbourne Theatre Company from 11 April 2008 to 17 May 2008

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

's production opened 22 September 2011 in RAMT (Russian Academic Youth Theatre) The Guildford Acting School produced Rock 'N' Roll in 2023 from 25 to 27 May which featured MA & MFA Acting students in collaboration with BA Theatre Production and MA Stage & Production Management students https://www.gsauk.org/events/39601AJRRLKSVBMNJSKBSJSPPVNLVSKDK/book

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. History The original ''Hampstead Theatre Clu ...

produced Rock 'N' Roll in 2023 from 6 December 2023 to 27 January 2024.

Nina Raine Nina Raine is an English theatre director and playwright, the only daughter of Craig Raine and Ann Pasternak Slater, and a grand niece of the Russian novelist Boris Pasternak. She graduated from Christ Church, Oxford in 1998 with a First in E ...

directed. The cast included

Nancy Carroll Nancy Carroll (born Ann Veronica Lahiff; November 19, 1903 – August 6, 1965) was an American actress. She started her career in Broadway musicals and then became an actress in sound films and was in many films from 1927 to 1938. She was t ...

Nathaniel Parker Nathaniel Parker (born 18 May 1962) is an English stage and screen actor best known for playing the lead in the BBC crime drama series ''The Inspector Lynley Mysteries'', and List of Merlin characters#Agravaine de Bois, Agravaine de Bois in the ...

, and Jacob Fortune-Lloyd.

References

Bibliography

* Eno, Brian, and Mark Edwards
"Czechs and Thugs and Rock’n’Roll"
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' 11 June 2006. Accessed 28 April 2007. Tom Stoppard's new play centres on the pop band whose arrest launched a human-rights movement. He discusses how artists change the world."* Lawson, Mark
Radio interview with Tom Stoppard
'' Front Row'',

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

, 29 May 2006,

RealAudio RealAudio, also spelled Real Audio, is a proprietary audio format developed by RealNetworks and first released in April 1995. It uses a variety of audio codecs, ranging from low-bitrate formats that can be used over dialup modems, to high-fidelit ...

(30 mins.). Accessed 28 April 2007. (Listed o
Arts and Drama: Front Row

. Accessed 28 April 2007.) * Mastalir, Linda
"Tom Stoppard's ''Rock 'n' Roll''
''

Radio Prague Radio Prague International () is the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic. Broadcasting first began on 31 August 1936 near the spa town of Poděbrady. Radio Prague broadcasts in six languages: English, German, Fr ...

'', Current Affairs. Transcript and audio file of a report on the play broadcast on

on 28 June 2006. Accessed 28 April 2007.

External links

* {{Tom Stoppard Plays by Tom Stoppard 2006 plays University of Cambridge in fiction