Stories have the power to attract our attention from the very beginning till the end of it if its plot and characters are exciting and if it is presented to the audience or readers skilfully. History has witnessed many such playwrights who have penned down amazing plays that have been passed on to us through generations without any decline in their popularity. And such plays being written is not the relic of the past. It continues in the present as well, with some great playwrights writing plays to be carried down the lane of time and be remembered forever.
The plays could be fictional or non-fictional, depending on the playwright’s preference. The decision of any contemporary issues being presented or just being a fictional story also lies in the hands of the playwright. But whatever the decision is, there could be no doubt that we have some fantastic plays that must be read or seen performed in theatre by all of us, especially by those who love literature.
Below stated are some of the great tragedies, comedies and dramas that you might want to add to your reading wish list:
Tragedies
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Hamlet is the tragedy that would compel you to turn the page to know what happens next. Bound in the duty to kill his uncle to avenge his father’s death, Hamlet traces the thrilling journey through life, death, and madness. The added-on touch of comic elements at places, Shakespeare’s poetic way of presenting it and the characters’ psychology makes it one of the most famous tragic plays.
Oedipus Rex By Sophocles
This Greek tragedy has indeed stood the test of times, with it being one of the most famous plays and the basis of work for many playwrights to date. The fact of Oedipus killing his father and marrying his mother being known at the very beginning of the play to unravel the secrets of the tragic act later would make it an excellent read in this genre.
Comedies
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
Waiting for Godot is yet another play that touched the skies of popularity and success with seemingly simple patterns and no elaborate plot in the play, which still had a lot to say through its meanings. It is a story of two tramps waiting for Godot, who doesn’t come until the end. Though it might seem comic, the resonance of their waiting with humankind waiting for some miracle adds on a tragic touch exposing the reality of life, thus, making it a tragicomedy.
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
This play by Oscar Wilde is a quintessential masterpiece, with it being a comedy of manners. This play has continued to make people laugh over the years while it goes on to mock not only the mannerisms but also the ideas of chauvinism and classism. This play has truly served as an inspiration for playwrights.
Dramas
Long Day’s Journey Into Night by Eugene O’Neill
It is a play that will help experience the utter rawness resonating out of every instance of it. Autobiographical in nature, this place traces the entire adulthood of the writer when he strives hard with his two adult sons and a parallel struggle to ensure that his wife remains serene after having had a stint while being in rehab of morphine addiction. It is indeed an American family drama par excellence.
Rhinoceros by Eugene Ionesco
Rhinoceros is a play that would present you with the existential crisis in its most dramatic forms with a historical backdrop that marks this play as an attack on totalitarian and conformist ideologies. It shows a struggle between the Rhinoceros who have followed in the path of the majority without questioning it as against those who are left alone to struggle but are still not ready to give in to the flawed majoritarian structure.