
"Gilbert is Dead"
Robin French(Author)
Methuen Drama (Publisher)
Published on 4. November 2009
Book
Paperback/Softback
80 pages
978-1-4081-2778-0 (ISBN)
Description
Gilbert Is Dead is a Victorian scientific mystery play: a clever, funny and moving portrait of grief, faith and science. The plot follows Lucius Trickett, London's most celebrated taxidermist, who finds himself in cahoots with Queen Victoria and our hero Gilbert Shirley, to disprove Darwin's theory of evolution with a stuffed specimen of the mysterious ghost loris. But what happens when the missing link goes missing? Robin French's distinctive, often surrealist voice characterised by historically intelligent, meticulously researched subjects and a precise, quirky sense of irony. Very clever, his writing presents an academic, yet accessible, labyrinth, toying with history, scientific theories and popular beliefs. He manages to experiment with form, style and theatrical metaphor whilst also staying firmly rooted in narratives which are engaging, affecting and provide astute social and human comment. The publication of this programme text edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at Hoxton Music Hall (4-29 December 2009), produced by the theatre company Shining Man.
Reviews / Votes
'There are not many taxidermists in English theatre, but in his new play, Gilbert is Dead, playwright Robin French has come up with one for an imaginative and topical fantasy about Darwinism.' Quentin Letts, Daily Mail, 13.11.09 'ambitious and holds the attention throughout' Evelyn Curlet, The Stage, 12.11.09 'a fantastical flavour of Victoriana' Sam Marlowe, The Times, 10.11.09 'stylistic...alternating between parody and dark gothic tragedy' Robert Shore, Time Out, 10.11.09 'it has the agreeable air of a little-visited outpost of a rambling museum, crammed full of peculiar curios' Fiona Mountford, London Evening Standard, 09.11.09 'fun with life's absurdities, but beneath the whimsy lie serious and substantial questions about the nature of existence' : 'fantastical flavour of Victoriana' Sam Marlowe, The Times, 10.11.09 'Whatever dark secrets of the Victorian conscience may be buried here this is an enjoyable romp' Robin French, The British Theatre Guide, 12.11.09More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
College/higher education
Illustrations
Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 5 mm
Weight
73 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4081-2778-0 (9781408127780)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions


Person
Robin French was selected as one of six writers for Future Perfect (Paines Plough/Channel 4). In June 2005, Robin was the only writer to have plays in different pods of the Flight 5065 project on the London Eye (AFRICA for The Royal Court & PIGEON for Paines Plough).