Curtain up : Agatha Christie : a life in the theatre

Agatha Christie is revered around the world for her books and the indelible characters she created. Lesser known is her writing for the stage—an extraordinary repertoire of plays that firmly established her as the most successful female dramatist of all time. Now author Julius Green raises the curtain on Christie's towering contribution to popular theatre, an element of her work previously disregarded by biographers and historians. Starting with her childhood theatregoing experiences, Curtain Up uncovers Christie's first serious attempts at playwriting, with scripts that reveal a very different style from the now familiar whodunits for which she became famous. Later in her life, she enjoyed enormous global success with her work for the stage, but her record-breaking achievements in the West End and her conquest of Broadway came at a price: she had to fight against her own fame and felt obliged to delete her adored character Hercule Poirot from stories that had... AgathaChristie is revered around the world for her books and the indelible characters she created. Lesser known is her writing for the stagean extraordinary repertoire of plays that firmly established her as the most successful female dramatist of all time. Now author Julius Green raises the curtain on Christies towering contribution to popular theatre, an element of her work previously disregarded by biographers and historians. Starting with her childhood theatregoing experiences, Curtain Up uncovers Christies first serious attempts at playwriting, with scripts that reveal a very different style from the now familiar whodunits for which she became famous. Later in her life, she enjoyed enormous global success with her work for the stage, but her record-breaking achievements in the West End and her conquest of Broadway came at a price: she had to fight against her own fame and felt obliged to delete her adored character Hercule Poirot from stories that had originally been created around him. Greens revelations about Christies passion for the theatre are illustrated with copious extracts from hitherto unknown plays and unpublished private letters, many of which he discovered in archives on both sides of the Atlantic. The illuminating exchanges between Christie, her agents and producers include extensive correspondence with the legendary Mousetrap Man, theatrical impresario Sir Peter Saunders. Meticulously researched and filled with groundbreaking discoveries, Curtain Up sheds new light on Agatha Christies artistry and adds a fascinating layer to her remarkable story. From The Producer Of Numerous Agatha Christie Stage Plays Comes The First Book To Examine The World's Bestselling Mystery Writer's Career And Work As A Playwright, Published To Commemorate Her 125th Birthday. Agatha Christie Has Long Been Revered Around The World For Her Mysteries And The Indelible Characters She Created, Miss Jane Marple And Hercule Poirot. In Addition To Her Contributions As A Novelist, This Gifted Writer Was Also An Acclaimed Playwright. Offering A Unique, In-depth Look At Her Work For The Stage, Curtain Up Analyzes Her Plays And Features Excerpts From Agatha Christie's Correspondences, Notebooks, And Several Unpublished And Unperformed Scripts Quoted From For The First Time. Meticulously Researched, Peppered With Groundbreaking Discoveries--including A Details Discussion Of Her Only Play To Premiere In America--curtain Up Sheds New Light On Christie's Artistry And Adds A Fascinating Layer To Her Remarkable Story.--amazon.com. The People's Playwright. The Early Plays ; Poirot Takes The Stage ; Stranger And Stranger ; Broadway Bound ; Towards Zero -- Saunders Saves The Day. The Binkie Effect ; The Disappearing Director ; Saunders' Folly ; Hat-trick ; The Late Plays. Julius Green. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 561-575) And Indexes. A revealing and witty new examination of how Agatha Christie became the world's most successful and popular female playwright, including details of never-before-published scripts and stories. Everyone knows that The Mousetrap is the world's longest-running play, but this first ever book dedicated to Agatha Christie as a playwright tells how Christie prevailed against the male-dominated establishment to be the only woman to have three plays in the West End at the same time and became the most popular and successful female playwright in the world. Author and theatre producer Julius Green has been given unprecedented access to archives in the UK and USA and has uncovered unpublished and unperformed plays, as well as previously unknown facts and correspondence. Agatha Christie was a skilful and accomplished stage writer, and this long-awaited book is a fascinating, funny and revealing tale that theatregoers and Agatha Christie fans won't want to miss From the producer of numerous Agatha Christie stage plays comes the first book to examine the world s bestselling mystery writer s career and work as a playwright, published to commemorate her 125th birthday. Agatha Christie has long been revered around the world for her mysteries and the indelible characters she created, Miss Jane Marple and Hercule Poirot. In addition to her contributions as a novelist, this gifted writer was also an acclaimed playwright. Offering a unique, in-depth look at her work for the stage, Curtain Up analyzes her plays and features excerpts from Agatha Christie s correspondences, notebooks, and several unpublished and unperformed scripts quoted from for the first time. Meticulously researched, peppered with groundbreaking discoveries including a details discussion of her only play to premiere in America Curtain Up sheds new light on Christie s artistry and adds a fascinating layer to her remarkable story