Twelve Angry Men
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- €11.99
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- €11.99
Publisher Description
The Methuen Drama Student Edition of Twelve Angry Men is the first critical edition of Reginald Rose's play, providing the play text alongside commentary and notes geared towards student readers.
In New York, 1954, a man is dead and the life of another is at stake. A 'guilty' verdict seems a foregone conclusion, but one member of the jury has the will to probe more deeply into the evidence and the courage to confront the ignorance and prejudice of some of his fellow jurors. The conflict that follows is fierce and passionate, cutting straight to the heart of the issues of civil liberties and social justice.
Ideal for the student reader, the accompanying pedagogical notes include elements such as an author chronology; plot summary; suggested further reading; explanatory endnotes; and questions for further study. The introduction discusses in detail the play's origins as a 1954 American television play, Rose's re-working of the piece for the stage, and Lumet's 1957 film version, identifying textual variations between these versions and discussing later significant productions.
The commentary also situates the play in relation to the genre of courtroom drama, as a milestone in the development of televised drama, and as an engagement with questions of American individualism and democracy.
Together, this provides students with an edition that situates the play in its contemporary social and dramatic contexts, while encouraging reflection on its wider thematic implications.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
L.A. Theatre Works proves it knows how to package audio dramas with this new recording of Rose's classic play (which began as a 1954 episode of TV's Studio One and then was adapted to the screen in 1957 starring Henry Fonda). Sequestered in a closed room, twelve jurors must decide the fate of a young man who has been accused of first-degree murder and faces the death penalty. One juror must tactically argue to convince the other jurors that this case has significant "reasonable doubt." The talented cast, including Richard Kind, Hector Elizondo, Robert Foxworth, Joe Spano and Dan Castellanetta, provide 85 minutes of riveting entertainment, recorded in front of a live audience. The most trying aspect of this audiobook is matching jurors with actors since the jurors are simply given numbers and not names. The back cover of the audiobook is very helpful; it offers a photo of each actor along with his name and juror number. But it can still be a bit frustrating since characters are never referred to by name or juror number. This slight confusion certainly will not prevent people from enjoying this illuminating play about American justice.
