Franz Xaver Kroetz – författare

The first major English language version of a contemporary German classic A study of the frail, flawed relationship between a middle-aged woman tripe butcher and a loud-mouthed factory worker. Since its 1981 premiere Through the Leaves has been praised as a play that explores the pathos of the inability of two people to relate intimately to each other through conversation. Anthony Vivis' superb translation is published to tie in with the production at the Duchess Theatre in London, starring Simon Callow."A contemporary German classic...a beautiful study of two people" Nicolas de Jongh, Standard "The most fascinating of contemporary West German playwrights.Through the Leaves sticks like a splinter in the mind" Frank Rich, New York Times "Kroetz's play written in 1976, astringently translated by Anthony Vivis, takes a hard, convincing look at the imbalance of power between a man and a woman and at what happens when tenderness and cruelty converge" Observer

This is the first collection of plays available in the UK by Germany's most famous living playwright. Spanning his work from 1972-94, the volume contains six of his most representative plays, some of which have been produced to great acclaim in this country. Request Concert (1972) is an extraordinary silent play which shows the last moments in a woman's life before her suicide; The Nest (1975) shows the fatal action that an employee takes in order to fulfil the wishes of an employer; Tom Fool (1977) the story of an insecure Munich assembly-line worker, was a huge success, having its world premiere in four simultaneous productions in 1978; Through the Leaves (1978): 'This is an astonishing event, a reminder of the potency of realism. At a time when style tends to dominate content, it proves that nothing is more gripping in theatre than social, psychological and economic truth' (Guardian, 2003); Desire (1994) deals with the last of all taboos, a serial sex offender's release after many years.Praise for Through the Leaves, produced in London's West End in 2003 starring Simon Callow: 'A gripping and convincing study of emotional need' Sunday Telegraph; 'A contemporary German classic' Evening Standard

Take your clothes off. That's better than a magazine...A love story set in the back room of a butcher’s shop with a brutal bastard of a dog howling in the yard next door.Charlie’s faith in the possibility of love can't be dimmed. No matter what deranged brutalities life throws at her. Victor doesn’t take his builder’s boots off for dinner, has a rule to never go to a woman’s flat in case she gets ‘ideas‘, and doesn’t like secrets . . . or dogs . . .But could he be the one she’s been waiting for? Men’s Business is the world premiere of Tony and Olivier Award-winner Simon Stephens’ new translation of Franz Xaver Kroetz’s rarely performed masterpiece Mannersache.

Parents-to-be Kurt and Martha just want the best for their baby. They're not afraid of hard work – the latest buggy doesn't come cheap. But when Kurt's boss offers him a chance to make some easy money with a mysterious side job, his rashness catches up with him.A fable about the moral and environmental cost of our materialistic nesting instincts, Conor McPherson's powerful new version of Franz Xaver Kroetz's Das Nest premiered at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, in 2016 and the Young Vic, London, directed by Ian Rickson.