The House of Bernarda Alba: a modern adaptation

A thrillingly modern adaptation of a classic play which is popularly studied throughout the world. Award-winning writer Rona Munro is one of Scotland's leading playwrights. Published to coincide with the world premiere of the adaptation: Scottish tour of production: Citizens Theatre, Glasgow (15 Sep-3 Oct 09); Dundee Rep Theatre (5-10 Oct 09); Alhambra Theatre, Dunfermline (15-17 Oct 09); King's Theatre, Edinburgh (3-7 Nov 09).

A viscerally modern adaptation of Lorca's seminal drama, transposing the formidable matriarch Bernarda and her imprisoned family to the gangland communities of Glasgow's East End. Faithfully preserving Lorca's sense of boiling tension and impending tragedy, this adaptation brings a classic text thrillingly up to date.Following the gangland execution of her husband, the formidable matriarch Bernarda Alba will do anything to safeguard her family's dubious fortune and the future of her five daughters. A deal is struck - a marriage of convenience between her eldest girl and the son of a business rival. All Bernarda has to do is ensure that the wedding happens, and quickly. Five headstrong daughters cooped up in the family home in an emotionally charged atmosphere of bitter rivalry and repressed sexuality make that an epic challenge. One of the most celebrated European dramas of the 20th century, the play was finished by Lorca shortly before he was executed in Spain for his left-wing politics. He described it as a "drama of women in the villages of Spain" - a theme that is electrifyingly transposed in this version to the tough communities of Glasgow's East End. Faithfully preserving Lorca's sense of boiling tension and impending tragedy, this adaptation brings a classic text thrillingly up to date. This text was published to coincide with the world premiere of the adaptation, a production by the National Theatre of Scotland in 2009.