Coward, the Playwright

by John Lahr

Traces the development of the theatrical career of the English author, Noel Coward, and analyzes the social satire in his major plays

178 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

John Lahr is the senior drama critic of The New Yorker, where he has written about theatre and popular culture since 1992. Among his eighteen books are Notes on a Cowardly Lion: The Biography of Bert Lahr and Prick Up Your Ears: The Biography of Joe Orton, which was made into a film.

He has twice won the George Jean Nathan Award for Dramatic Criticism. Lahr, whose stage adaptations have been performed around the world, received a Tony Award for co-writing Elaine Stritch at Liberty.

He divides his time between London and New York.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Lahr expertly slips inside Noel Coward's head and hears how his mind ticks in creating his classic comedies as an playwright, actor and composer. The book is heavy in detail regarding Coward's plays that it's helpful to have read and/or seen his works to fully digest all the material. I appreciated Coward after reading the book and have a greater interest in his lyrics.

[Duff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really excellent analysis of Coward's plays and speculation on the social and psychological issues in Coward's life that lead to them. At first, I was not impressed by the book. But, after some reflection and going back to review a couple of analyses, I have moved it to 4 stars.

[Luke Devenish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful. Lahr gets Coward like very few others. The chapter on charm and Coward's life long professional exploration of it is fantastic, as is all the stuff on Coward's public self vs his private one. Endlessly quotable! A boon for all scholars.