June Guertin

Thursdays, February 2 - March (not March 8) 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Meeting House Offices, Upper Conference Room, 121 Mt. Vernon Street

British dramatic literature boasts some of the most masterfully written comic creations known to the theatrical canon. In British Comic Drama, we will read aloud and discuss six of these remarkable comedies, ranging from a sophisticated comedy of manners set in France (Noel Coward’s Private Lives) to a witty satire on British aristocracy (Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest), to the silly gender-bending humor of a beloved classic, (Brandon Thomas’s Charley’s Aunt), to a raucous knock-about romp in a vicarage (Philip King’s See How They Run), to the dark, farcical antics of Alan Ayckbourn’s Absurd Person Singular. The course will conclude in a crescendo of hilarity with the outrageous, anarchic satire on middle-class British society: Joe Orton’s Loot.

We will consider the differences between comedy’s subgenres of satire, farce, and comedy of manners, as well as discuss the components of mistaken identity, disguise, intrigue, and absurd situations that recur in the plays we read.

Most importantly, since the goal of comedy is to evoke laughter through humor, we will spend six delightfully indulgent, lighthearted (and at times lightheaded) afternoons surrendering to the enjoyment of laughter.

Everyone must bring the same edition of each play to class. Used copies of the plays can be purchased inexpensively from amazon.com, or they can be borrowed from your local library.

The following editions of the plays will be read in this order:

Charley’s Aunt by Brandon Thomas (1892). Published by Samuel French, 1964.
The Importance of Being Earnest by Anglo/Irish playwright Oscar Wilde (1895).
In Oscar Wilde/Plays, Penguin Books. Many printings from 1955 to 1983.
Private Lives by Noel Coward (1930). In Noel Coward: Three Plays, Vintage Books/
Random House, 1999. (Photo of Coward in profile on cover).
See How They Run by Philip King (1945). Published by Samuel French, 1977.
Absurd Person Singular by Alan Ayckbourn (1975). In Alan Ayckbourn: Three Plays,
Grove Press, 1975.
Loot by Joe Orton (1966). In Joe Orton: Complete Plays, Grove Press, 1976 or 1994.

June Guertin

June Guertin is a theatre historian with a master’s degree in Theatre Education from Emerson College, and a PhD in Theatre History/Dramatic Criticism and Literature from Tufts University. She has directed productions at Playwrights’ Platform, The Alley Theatre, and MIT, and has published articles in American Theatre Magazine, Theatre Week Magazine, and Theatre Journal. She has taught at Tufts and currently teaches World Theatre at Emerson College.