Bernard-Marie Koltès: Seven Plays

The anthology is the first collection of the seven major plays by seminal French playwright Bernard-Marie Koltès (1948-1989) in American English. Translated in over thirty languages, Koltès is considered to be the most important French playwright of the end of the twentieth century and heir to the legacy of Jean Cocteau, Jean Genet, Samuel Beckett, Sarah Kane, and Heiner Müller. His style is marked by a profusion of poetic language—reshaping traditional theatrical language in both content and form, while exploring new and unknown territories. A fervent traveler, his work was deeply inspired by his exposure to new languages and cultures, particularly from such places as Lagos (Nigeria), São Paulo (Brazil), Tikal (Guatemala), Managua (Nicaragua), New York (United States), and Lisbon (Portugal). His attention was constantly directed toward the figure of the underdog and marginalized communities. But it is in New York that Koltès is said to have found his “place in this world,” and particularly in the gay liberation movement in the late ’70s and early ’80s. He died at the age of 41 due to complications from the AIDS virus. Despite his significant relationship with the United States, until now no definite anthology of American translations of Koltès existed. This unique volume provides a fresh set of translations that rigorously bring into focus Koltès’ poetic and musical language.