Anna Karenina (NHB Modern Plays)

Annotation

Helen Edmundson's celebrated and 'exemplary adaptation' (The Times) of Leo Tolstoy's enduring classic is a vibrant and deeply moving meditation on the nature of love. Anna is beautiful and admired but empty - until a chance meeting throws her into emotional turmoil and a scandalous affair. Contrasting with this tale of destructive love is the story of Levin, an idealistic man striving to find meaning in life - and a self-portrait of Tolstoy himself. Originally produced by Shared Experience, winning the Time Out Award for Outstanding Theatrical Event of 1992. This edition was published alongside a revival of the play at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2011. 'Theatre this engrossing is rare' - Time Out 'The aim is not to report the novel but to recreate it as a piece of theatre... a dramatisation which is symbolically accurate as well as theatrically compelling' - Guardian