Description:
A Tempest is Aimé Césaire's anti-colonialist refashioning of Shakespeare. Alongside The Tragedy of King Cristophe and A Season in the Congo, it completes a 'triptych' of plays that examine the effects of colonialism. This translation premiered at The Gate Theatre, London.
Aimé Césaire has combined a political career as Martinican statesman with poetic calling in which he has been hailed as the leading Francophone poet of the twentieth century. Anti-colonialist visionary and prophet of negritude, his influence has been considerable in shaping ongoing post-colonial debate. Philip Crispin taught in Kingston, Jamaica, and spent four years in Paris studying, teaching and pursuing theatrical projects. He was literary manager of the Gate Theatre, before devoting himself to theatrical research.Brief description: Aimé Césaire has combined a political career as Martinican statesman with poetic calling in which he has been hailed as the leading Francophone poet of the twentieth century. Anti-colonialist visionary and prophet of negritude, his influence has been considerable in shaping ongoing post-colonial debate.
Review Quotes:
"A witty and fiercely anti-colonialist revision of Shakespeare's island fling... the play, in Philip Crispin's admirable translation, lends Shakespeare's myth all kinds of extra resonances" --Michael Billington, The Guardian
"Not simply a new reading of Shakespeare but an original play of astonishing power... Philip Crispin's admirable translation of the play provides the whole production with a secure textual basis... a remarkable theatrical event" --Malcolm Bowie, TLS