Shining City
by Conor Mcpherson

Name: Shining City
Brand: Conor Mcpherson
SKU: 9781854598196
Rating: 3.66 (337 reviews)

Shining City Book Cover — Shining City Cover

Highlights

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90 minsBritish Mystery

What readers are saying

Readers have mixed feelings about the play, often remarking that it shines more on stage than in written form. While many appreciate Conor McPherson's exploration of complex themes like identity and isolation, some find the narrative challenging to follow. The dialogue is frequently praised for its naturalism, though a few note it can feel overly lengthy or tedious at times.

Intriguing story and charactersStrong emotional themesPowerful final momentsBetter experienced on stageOccasionally tedious dialogue

Synopsis

A brilliant, haunting play from the multi-award winning author of The Weir.

Ian has left the priesthood to become a therapist.

John is one of his first clients.

John's wife has been killed in a car accident, and he keeps receiving visits from her ghost.

John, with Ian's help, starts to recover.

But what begins as an unusual encounter becomes a desperate struggle between the living and the dead - a struggle which will shape and define both of them for the rest of their lives.

Shining City premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in June 2004.

'moving, compassionate, ingenious and absolutely gripping ... scenes that provoke great, generous gales of laughter, others that send a shiver of fear down the spine ... riveting' Telegraph

'quiet, haunting and absolutely glorious... as close to perfection as contemporary playwriting gets' New York Times

'compulsively gripping...

McPherson brilliantly reconciles the mundane and the metaphysical' Guardian

ThemesEx-clergy--Drama Ex-clergy Psychotherapist and patient--Drama Psychotherapist and patient