The Art of Success

"The success of Dear's art lies in excesss He is as much a caricaturist as a draughtsman and above all he is a fierce, if compassionate moralist" (Clive Barnes, New York Post) The Art of Success is a coruscating portrait of William Hogarth, an artist and satirist whose popular prints, including "The Harlot's Progress" and "The Rake's Progress" enabled him to earn a considerable living. In a hectic scramble through one London night, Hogarth attends a meeting of the Beefsteak Club, is pursued by an outraged murderess and visits his whore. Premiered by the Royal Shakesepeare Company at Stratford upon Avon in 1986, the play transferred to the Barbican, London in 1987. "Dear is fascinated by the horrors of the king's illness, but he is also amused by the thought that what is, after all, one of Britain's most potent political symbols, the throne, should be occupied by a lunatic." (Robert Hewison, Sunday Times) In the Ruins is a two hander first broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in 1984, and has George 111 musing on his life and times. First staged at the Bristol New Vic in 1989, the play transferred to the Royal Court, London in 1990.
"Rich and entertaining stuff. George's ranting is full of great jokes; and Dear gives him a wholly credible monarch's dialect, nursery talk combined with glorious ruling-class arrogance." (Independent)