Hamletmachine and Other Texts for the Stage

Carl Weber's traslations of Muller's works are incredibly powerful, this collection of plays is a must for any Drama Student interested in modernism, surrelism or history. Muller's works are amazing and in depth studies of present history and well worth the read (and the challenge involved in staging them).

While translations of Heiner Mueller are often difficult, his plays are nonetheless fascinating. What is often lost in translation of Heiner Mueller is his play on words- the German language allows Muller to build words with fragments that themself have meaning. Also, readers of Mueller should understand that his works are commonly a vivasection of another work's theme, expanded to explore and highlight the conflict. Mueller's work draws from the writings of Shakespeare, Brecht, Kafka, and others.Mueller's writing is political and often historical, examining relationships and conflicts from East German history.Hamlet Machine is Mueller's best known work, though probably not his best. The other plays included in this volume are all great.

This is an excellent collection of Muller for anyone seriously interested in theatre. The German author's remarkable work spans political changes before, during, and after the fall of the Berlin Wall and represents a pivotal time in German society and theatre. With new treatments of classical texts (like Hamlet and Medea) as well as innovative works exploring themes of devotion and sexuality (like Quartet), this collection of short plays is a great starting point for theatre enthusiasts interested in tackling Muller.