The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time: Abridged for Schools - (Plays for Young People) by Simon Stephens (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

This abridged edition is designed for schools and has been adapted for 10 actors playing all of the roles. With a running time of just 90 minutes it is suitable for performance in non-theatre spaces, with minimal technical requirements.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time brings Mark Haddon's best-selling novel to life on stage, adapted by two-time Olivier Award-winning playwright Simon Stephens.

Winner of seven Olivier Awards including Best Play, along with the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League and Tony Awards for Best Play, this remarkable and exhilarating "theatrical masterpiece" originated at London's Royal National Theatre in 2012 before going on to transfer to the West End for multiple seasons, followed by its acclaimed Broadway run. The play has now been seen on five continents around the world with major productions ranging from Mexico, Australia, Canada, Seoul and Japan.

This brand new edition of the play has been abridged specifically with schools in mind and published following a 12-week tour of 60 secondary schools in the UK.

The play tells the story of Christopher John Francis Boone, who is fifteen years old. He stands besides Mrs Shears' dead dog, Wellington, who has been speared with a garden fork, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion. He records each fact in a book he is writing to solve the mystery of who killed Wellington. He has an extraordinary brain and is exceptional at maths while ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched and distrusts strangers. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a frightening journey that upturns his world.

Review Quotes

"Playwright Simon Stephens . . . not only frames the action, but also sets up a rich tension between fiction's invention and the obsession with facts, forensics and systemised data that is a symptom of Christopher's autism . . . this is a highly skilful adaptation" --Michael Billington, Guardian

"A curiously successful case of a hit novel turned into a play . . . This is a profoundly moving play about adolescence, fractured families, mathematics, colours and lights" --Michael Coveney, Independent

"This adaptation by the acclaimed playwright Simon Stephens is intensely, innately theatrical; it is also funny and extremely moving" --Laura Thompson, Daily Telegraph

"Seeing an adaptation of a book that you have loved can inspire a certain nervousness but fans of A Curious Incident should have no such worry when going to see the National's faithful and imaginative adaptation. It is a triumph, capturing the depth and touching nature of the original text and adding theatrical sensibilities to great effect. Highly recommended." --Londonist

"As adaptations of much-loved fiction go, Simon Stephens' perky and imaginative version . . . is an instant classic" --What's On Stage

"Simon Stephens' clever adaptation of Mark Haddon's bestselling novel about a teenage boy with Asperger's syndrome is like a cute dog that leaps up and wants to lick you all over. There's no point in resisting - and there's no need ... The novel gets you inside Christopher's head, but the stage version does more, giving Christopher's internal response to the world an external manifestation" --Lyn Gardner, Guardian

"This is a really superior stage adaptation. Instead of just transposing the book. Stephens has recreated it for the stage. . . It doesn't shirk the discomfort of being a child with special needs, but -as Christopher learns to believe in himself- it also quietly illustrates some of the excitement of living in your own world" --Aleks Sierz, Tribune

"A bittersweet story told with verve and passion" --Siobhan Murphy, Metro

About the Author

Simon Stephens began his theatrical career in the literary department of the Royal Court Theatre, where he ran its Young Writers' Programme. His plays for theatre include Bluebird (Royal Court Theatre, London, 1998, directed by Gordon Anderson); Herons (Royal Court Theatre, 2001); Port (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, 2002); One Minute (Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 2003 and Bush Theatre, London, 2004); Christmas (Bush Theatre, 2004); Country Music (Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, 2004); On the Shore of the Wide World (Royal Exchange Theatre and National Theatre, London, 2005); Motortown (Royal Court Theatre Downstairs, 2006); Pornography (Deutsches Schauspielhaus, Hanover, 2007; Edinburgh Festival/Birmingham Rep, 2008 and Tricycle Theatre, London, 2009); Harper Regan (National Theatre, 2008); Sea Wall (Bush Theatre, 2008/Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 2009); Heaven (Traverse Theatre, 2009); Punk Rock (Lyric Hammersmith, London, and Royal Exchange Theatre, 2009); The Trial of Ubu (Essen Schauspielhaus/Toneelgroep Amsterdam, 2010); A Thousand Stars Explode in the Sky (co-written with David Eldridge and Robert Holman; Lyric Hammersmith, London, 2010); Marine Parade (co-written with Mark Eitzel; Brighton International Festival, 2010); T5 (Traverse Theatre, 2010); Wastwater (Royal Court Theatre Downstairs, 2011); Morning (Lyric Hammersmith, 2012); an adaptation of A Doll's House (Young Vic, 2012); an adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (National Theatre, 2012); Blindsided (Royal Exchange, 2014); and Birdland (Royal Court, 2014). His radio plays include Five Letters Home to Elizabeth (BBC Radio 4, 2001) and Digging (BBC Radio 4, 2003). His screenwriting includes an adaptation of Motortown for Film4 (2009); the two-part serial Dive (with Dominic Savage) for Granada/BBC (2009); and a short film adaptation of Pornography for Channel 4's 'Coming Up' series (2009). Awards include the Pearson Award for Best New Play, 2001, for Port; Olivier Award for Best New Play for On the Shore of the Wide World, 2005; and for Motortown German critics in Theater Heute's annual poll voted him Best Foreign Playwright, 2007. His adaptation of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Play.