Written in 1836, Woyzeck is often considered to be the first truly modern play.

The story of a soldier driven mad by inhuman military discipline and acute social deprivation is told in splintered dialogue and jagged episodes, which are as shocking and telling today as they were when first performed, almost a century after the author's death, in Munich 1913.

This edition contains introductory commentary and notes by Laura Martin from the University of Glasgow.

METHUEN DRAMA STUDENT EDITIONS are expertly annotated texts of a wide range of plays from the modern and classic repertoires. A well as the complete text of the play itself, this volume contains:

· A chronology of the play and the playwright's life and work
· an introductory discussion of the social, political, cultural and economic context in which the play was originally conceived and created
· a succinct overview of the creation processes followed and subsequent performance history of the piece
· an analysis of, and commentary on, some of the major themes and specific issues addressed by the text
· a bibliography of suggested primary and secondary materials for further study.

Georg Büchner(1813 - 1837) is widely acknowledged as the forefather of modern theatre. On his death at the age 23, he left behind some outstanding dramatic works: his historical drama, Danton's Death, 'the most remarkable first play in European culture (Guardian), the innovatory tragedy Woyzeck, and the absurdist comedy, Leonce abd Lena.

John MacKendrick was born in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire. His major works include Ludd! (Leeds, 1975), Canticle (Keele, 1977), Lavender Blue (National, London, 1977), Cain (Bristol, 1978) and a translation of Buchner's Woyzeck (Oxford, 1978). His play Struensee premiered at the Peacock in 1974.

Laura Martin is Senior Lecturer in Comparative Literature at the University of Glasgow. Her publications include Benedikte Nauberts Neue Volksmarchen der Deutschen: Strukturen des Wandels and Narrative Feminine Identity and the Appearance of Woman in Some of the Shorter Fiction of Goethe, Kleist, Hawthorne and James