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Oh What a Lovely War
This pioneering work is a theatrical chronicle of the First World War, told through the songs and documents of the period, was created in 1963 by Joan Littlewood's London-based group,Theatre Workshop. It was ground-breaking, not only for its blatant denounciation of the incompetence of political leaders during World War I, but also for its unusual theatrical style and development. Created organically through a process of improvisation which was then scripted, Oh What A Lovely War is a colorful and innovative exercise in ensemble theatre and acting.
It recalls the horrors of World War I through the humor and frivolity of a seaside pier show, mixing famous British war songs (often with alternative words) with gags and dances, and sets hilarious clowning against shocking factual documentation of the war's casualties. An exhilarating ensemble piece, Joan Littlewood's theatrical creation is a lesson in Brechtian theatre, in its self-conscious theatricality, and uses humor to present human tragedy.
It received the acclaim of London audiences and critics. It won the Grand Prix of the Théâtre des Nations festival in Paris that year and has gone on to become a classic of the modern theatre. In 1969 a film version was made which extended the play's popular success. This new version of the play, as edited by Joan Littlewood, returns the script to its original version.
Includes a new photo section of the original production, and an Afterword by Victor Spinetti.
It recalls the horrors of World War I through the humor and frivolity of a seaside pier show, mixing famous British war songs (often with alternative words) with gags and dances, and sets hilarious clowning against shocking factual documentation of the war's casualties. An exhilarating ensemble piece, Joan Littlewood's theatrical creation is a lesson in Brechtian theatre, in its self-conscious theatricality, and uses humor to present human tragedy.
It received the acclaim of London audiences and critics. It won the Grand Prix of the Théâtre des Nations festival in Paris that year and has gone on to become a classic of the modern theatre. In 1969 a film version was made which extended the play's popular success. This new version of the play, as edited by Joan Littlewood, returns the script to its original version.
Includes a new photo section of the original production, and an Afterword by Victor Spinetti.
95 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1967
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About the author
Joan Littlewood
19 booksJoan Maud Littlewood was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of Modern Theatre". Her production of Oh, What a Lovely War! in 1963 was one of her more influential pieces.
Littlewood and her company lived and slept in the Theatre Royal while it was restored. Productions of The Alchemist and Richard II, the latter starring Harry H. Corbett in the title role, established the reputation of the company.
She also conceived and developed the concept of the Fun Palace in collaboration with architect Cedric Price, an experimental model of a participatory social environment that, although never realized, has become an important influence in the architecture of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Littlewood and her company lived and slept in the Theatre Royal while it was restored. Productions of The Alchemist and Richard II, the latter starring Harry H. Corbett in the title role, established the reputation of the company.
She also conceived and developed the concept of the Fun Palace in collaboration with architect Cedric Price, an experimental model of a participatory social environment that, although never realized, has become an important influence in the architecture of the 20th and 21st centuries.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
July 25, 2016
Apart from the poems of Wilfred Owen et al from the Great War nothing has moved me more than the film and later the play of 'Oh What a Lovely War'.
It was a joy therefore to find this theatre workshop Bloomsbury edition - Original version and edited and introduced by Joan Littlewood. Reading it brought back the productions I have seen and it had me humming the songs.
No-one can really explain to us who have lived with peace during our lifetimes and we owe it in our act of remembrance to understand as much as we can if we are to engage and never forget.
The lives are spent, many in the prime of their youth, on the battlefields and beyond. A generation lived with its aftermath and for many their involvement was never shared and carried to the grave.
Facts can overwhelm us. The scale of loss and the waste of life drown us in numbers we cannot count. However, wars have not ceased and the capacity to kill has advanced with time.
In his Afterword, Victor Spinetti writes ".......but I never knew that all the fuses for the shells were made in Britain and that the Germans bought their share from us, during the war."
Futility, Hypocrisy and Rage cannot begin to express one's ability to assimilate such information.
Find your means to remember but if you can catch the play, please go............
It was a joy therefore to find this theatre workshop Bloomsbury edition - Original version and edited and introduced by Joan Littlewood. Reading it brought back the productions I have seen and it had me humming the songs.
No-one can really explain to us who have lived with peace during our lifetimes and we owe it in our act of remembrance to understand as much as we can if we are to engage and never forget.
The lives are spent, many in the prime of their youth, on the battlefields and beyond. A generation lived with its aftermath and for many their involvement was never shared and carried to the grave.
Facts can overwhelm us. The scale of loss and the waste of life drown us in numbers we cannot count. However, wars have not ceased and the capacity to kill has advanced with time.
In his Afterword, Victor Spinetti writes ".......but I never knew that all the fuses for the shells were made in Britain and that the Germans bought their share from us, during the war."
Futility, Hypocrisy and Rage cannot begin to express one's ability to assimilate such information.
Find your means to remember but if you can catch the play, please go............
February 8, 2025
One of the most accomplished and fascinating theatrical productions of the 20th century, in my opinion, for its clever use of popular song and documentary materials and the keen understanding of form, social relations and history which makes this a, for the most part, materialist play which aims to demonstrate to the audience that they are not passive, uninvolved individuals who live through history, but that history is made, and thus, that we can remake it, if only we take charge of our own destiny. War is not driven by animosity - it is driven by the common class interest of the world's industrialists, and we who are foolish enough to believe in the fiction of a nation become the raw material that they extract value from, sheep being led to the slaughter, to be filled with their bullets and suffocated by their poison gas. I believe that this kind of art, art which uses genuinely artistic and entertaining means to remind the public that they have a common class interest, that nationalist animosities are an oppressive fiction, that peace must prevail but that imperialism will forever lead to war, that we can overcome our present misery if only we understand that we can seize our own destiny is not only a necessity, but the artist's moral imperative as we yet again face fascism, ecological collapse, and war.
It doesn't read well, though, I'll tell you that. Secondary sources on the stage production supplemented by the less impressive, but nevertheless remarkable film adaptation, are probably more enjoyable.
It doesn't read well, though, I'll tell you that. Secondary sources on the stage production supplemented by the less impressive, but nevertheless remarkable film adaptation, are probably more enjoyable.
March 22, 2022
“The battlefield is unbelievable; heaps of corpses, French and German, lying everywhere, rifles in hand.”
so like this was good and very anti-war which was cute but it was soo long and drawn out soo much. i appreciated the elements of epic theatre but there were parts that were hard to comprehend and just drawn out. like yes fuck war but i wanted more from the show.
so like this was good and very anti-war which was cute but it was soo long and drawn out soo much. i appreciated the elements of epic theatre but there were parts that were hard to comprehend and just drawn out. like yes fuck war but i wanted more from the show.
February 22, 2010
I studied this play for my drama GCSE, but actually really enjoyed it despite fearing the worst.
It gives a satirical view of the events of WWI and can be very funny at times. These comedic sections, however, are juxtaposed to great effect with the harrowing recollections of the death tolls and life on the battlefield.
I would definitely reccommend this to all drama students particularly, but I think it's also a great read for anybody with any interest in history.
It gives a satirical view of the events of WWI and can be very funny at times. These comedic sections, however, are juxtaposed to great effect with the harrowing recollections of the death tolls and life on the battlefield.
I would definitely reccommend this to all drama students particularly, but I think it's also a great read for anybody with any interest in history.
August 17, 2014
I have always loved reading plays. Their sparceness has always been their power in that as a reader you always have to do mor to make the story work. You have to act the play out in your own mind; more so than with a novel.
This though is not the easiest of plays to read as there is so much that is visual, newsreels, slides etc and relies on some knowledge of the songs being sung.
I would recommend this wholeheartedly though especially in this the centenary commemoration of the start of WWI.
This though is not the easiest of plays to read as there is so much that is visual, newsreels, slides etc and relies on some knowledge of the songs being sung.
I would recommend this wholeheartedly though especially in this the centenary commemoration of the start of WWI.
December 31, 2015
A play well written by a troupe about WWI! The characters feel real, and the play is very easy to follow, even though some small parts are written in a foreign language; not more than a few lines here and there. This play definitely goes from subtle humor to dark quickly, and never comes back up. If you enjoy a good read and a not so happy ending, but well ended play give this one a shot.
March 14, 2016
Love the fact that when reading this play a friend was also reading it and they where completely different. A harrowing story of the war and a brave attempt to get the truth to the masses
August 25, 2022
İlk kez 1963 yılında Londra'da sahnelenen, 1DS klasiklerinden kabul edilen müzikal.Müzikal BBC yapımcısı Charles Chilton(babasını 1DS Batı Cephesi Arras 'ta kaybetmiş) The Long Long Trail programına dayanıyormuş. Chilton'un 1DS döneminde 40 yakın popüler şarkıyı (bazılarının sözlerini değiştirerek) içeren bir müzikal fikrini Joan Littlewood ile paylaşmış
Joan Littlewood ekibi tarafından geliştirilen oyun dönemin politikacı ve generalleri ile ilgili hicivler içeren savaş karşıtı bir müzikale dönüştürülmüş. Bu eleştirilerden en büyük payı da 1DS Batı Cephesindeki İngiliz birliklerin komutanı Douglas Haig alıyor. Öyle ki aile oyuna tepki göstermiş.
What a lovely war 60 lı yıllardaki genel savaş karşıtlığını, hem de 1DS ile ilgili baskın tarih yazımını "arslanlara liderlik eden eşekler" yansıttığı söylenebilir.
Bu açıdan oyun 1DS Batı cephesinin özeti.
Sadece okumakla kalmayın. Youtube dan tiyatro versiyonunu da izleyin.
Joan Littlewood ekibi tarafından geliştirilen oyun dönemin politikacı ve generalleri ile ilgili hicivler içeren savaş karşıtı bir müzikale dönüştürülmüş. Bu eleştirilerden en büyük payı da 1DS Batı Cephesindeki İngiliz birliklerin komutanı Douglas Haig alıyor. Öyle ki aile oyuna tepki göstermiş.
What a lovely war 60 lı yıllardaki genel savaş karşıtlığını, hem de 1DS ile ilgili baskın tarih yazımını "arslanlara liderlik eden eşekler" yansıttığı söylenebilir.
Bu açıdan oyun 1DS Batı cephesinin özeti.
Sadece okumakla kalmayın. Youtube dan tiyatro versiyonunu da izleyin.
March 19, 2023
Joan Littlewood wrote a brilliant play about the madness and waste of World War 1, including all the best songs of the era. This musical play examines all the issues- conscription, racism, sexism, the demonisation of pacifists, the mental illness combat causes- they called it shell shock, we now call it PTSD. Some of the songs have had their words changed to make fun of politicians, and the songs tell the history of the war. I got to sing some of these songs to my elderly neighbours who had grown up in WW1, worked in munitions and metal work for the war effort, then emigrated to Australia. Joy and her husband Duncan remembered these songs from their youth, long after Joy had lost many memories to dementia. A great show for schools, the kids love the swearing and innuendo, and learn some history and politics along the way.
October 26, 2021
Interesting parody of the greek chorus and Aristotelian theory of unity, unfortunately I just didn’t appreciate it that much. Thought provoking though, and really smart in some ways, I just can’t express how much I didn’t enjoy it.
August 1, 2019
I performed this at uni in 2011, funny how it is still culturally relevant today.
February 28, 2021
I don’t enjoy Variety, even satirical variety, and I didn’t know most of the songs. I guess it was an accessible way into the borrow of WWI at the time but we’ve come a long way since
July 21, 2022
Can never decide if this is genius or rubbish
May 16, 2023
Idk guys I just really liked this play. Highly recommend reading alongside song recordings. Just fab. So silly.
December 6, 2014
A biting satire chock full of historical references. The frantic delivery adds to the chaotic, sometimes unintelligible mood. While the irony is a little obvious in places, this is still a good read and serves pretty well as a summary of WWI.
(Think Blackadder's explanation of why WW1 started)
(Think Blackadder's explanation of why WW1 started)
Read
August 22, 2009I couldn't put it down once I had started, I could jsut see it and how painful it would be to watch, a really moving piece of writing I would love to direct
March 21, 2012
I have seen the play too, which I preferred, I think it was just more moving and created an emotion-intense performance, something I just think the play didn't convey so well.
February 12, 2015
I'm performing some of this in my A Level performing arts. I'm finding it a very fun play to perform and as I love Blackadder, the similarities between the two make it a win win situation!
April 13, 2014
Decent play. Hard to tell completely what is happening when reading a play though. Would like to see it live
February 23, 2015
Maybe if I see the play perform on stage I'd appreciate it much better...
Too many songs.
Too many songs.
Read
March 3, 2015I saw this at Krannert Center for the Performing Arts in Spring 2015. It was an incredibly powerful depiction of WWI.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews