ABSTRACT
The late nineteenth century witnessed a revolution in the European theatre. The Norwegian dramatist, Henrik Ibsen, broke through the slick conventionalities of the theatrical norm – ingenious plots, easy dialogue well tuned to the contemporary ear, and themes undemandingly congenial to the theatregoing public. The most celebrated dramatist of the 1890s was Oscar Wilde, whose comedies abound in polished wit and epigram that compel the reader to make direct comparison with the work of Sheridan 100 years earlier. George Bernard Shaw was born in Dublin but came to London at the age of twenty. He embraced the cause of socialism and joined the Fabians. As a music critic he advertised Wagner and as a dramatic critic he advertised Ibsen. A good deal of poetic drama followed in the wake of Murder in the Cathedral. Among the better religious plays of the forties was The Old Man of the Mountains by Norman Nicholson.
