Equus Summary
Peter Shaffer

Biography EssayWith less than a dozen major productions since his emergence on the London scene in 1958, Peter Shaffer can hardly be called one of England's more prolific playwrights. But he may well ... Read more

[This entry was updated by C. J. Gianakaris (Western Michigan University) from the entry by Warren Sylvester Smith in the Concise Dictionary of British Literary Biography, volume 8, pp. 337-356.]With ... Read more

Equus debuted 26 July 1973 in a National Theatre production directed by John Dexter at London's Old Vic Theatre. In the following mixed review of the premiere, Wardle finds the play rather calc... Read more

In this review, Kerr praises nearly every aspect of the National Theatre production of Equus. This work, he states, is the "closest I have seen a contemporary play come … to reanimating ... Read more

In the essay below, Timm compares Equus to the classical Greek dramas Oedipus and Antigone and to Racine's Phèdre in an attempt to define a modern version of tragedy. Whether our age is... Read more

The extract from the opening scene of the play Equus is effective. A suspenseful atmosphere is created at the opening scene and this keeps the audience captivated and interested to know more about the... Read more