Plays Three

The third volume of Christopher Fry's original stage work brings together his only fully-fledged tragedy - *The Firstborn*, a vivid, urgent retelling of the Biblical story of Moses and the plagues of Egypt - and his six one-act plays, each revealing Fry's unique blend of humour and humanity. They include a lively romance set in a Roman tomb, which first gave theatregoers notice of Fry's bravura talents as a verse dramatist; the meditative, resonant *A Sleep of Prisoners*, which links the Biblically-inspired dreams of four British POWs during World War Two; the Dark Age fable *Thor, with Angels*, with its characteristic themes of love and sacrifice; and two portraits of Anglo-Saxon churchmen, *The Boy with a Cart* and *Caedmon Construed* (also known as *One Thing More*), written fifty years apart. The collection concludes with Fry's brief 'conversational fantasy' *A Ringing of Bells*, set on the eve of the millennium and written for his old school, Bedford Modern.