Arnold Wesker English playwright Date of Birth: 24.05.1932 Country: Great Britain

1. Biography of Arnold Wesker
2. Early Life and Education
3. Early Career and Plays
4. Theater Activism and "Shylock"
5. Later Works and Recognition

Biography of Arnold Wesker

Arnold Wesker, an English playwright, was born on May 24, 1932, in London. He was the son of chef Leah and tailor and active communist Joseph. The birth of Arnold was attended by Samuel Sacks, the father of neurologist Oliver Sacks.

Early Life and Education

From 1943, Arnold attended school in Hackney, where he received special attention in office programs, including training on how to use a typewriter. After moving to Llantrisant, South Wales, Wesker enrolled in the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art but could not afford the tuition fees. He later worked as a cook, furniture maker, bookseller, and served two years in the Royal Air Force.

Early Career and Plays

Wesker's play "The Kitchen," written in 1957, while he was working at the Bell Hotel in Norwich, became a film in 1961. During this period, he met his future wife, Dusty. Wesker's plays explore themes such as self-discovery, love, confronting death, and disillusionment with politics. His play "Chicken Soup with Barley," written in 1958, premiered in a provincial theater in Coventry, reflecting Wesker's political views as an "angry young man."

Theater Activism and "Shylock"

Wesker joined the Royal Court Theatre during the Aldermaston March, a protest march against nuclear weapons, in 1959. He was an active member of the anti-war group "The Committee of 100" and was imprisoned in 1961 for participating in a campaign of mass nonviolent resistance to nuclear weapons. Wesker's play "The Merchant," later renamed "Shylock," uses the same three stories as Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice" to tell the tale of Shylock and Antonio, who share a love for books, culture, and disdain for Christian anti-Semitism.

Later Works and Recognition

In 2005, Wesker published his first novel, "Honey," featuring the character Bitty Bryant from his play "Roots." Wesker deviated from the established chronology, as the novel is set in the 1980s while the play takes place in the 1960s. In 2008, he published his first poetry collection, "All Things Tire of Themselves," which he considered to be his best and most distinctive poems.

Wesker's valuable works and documents spanning his entire career were acquired by the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas in Austin in 2000. Wesker personally organized his archive, which consisted of approximately 300 boxes of manuscript drafts, correspondence, and personal notes. He sent his final work to the Harry Ransom Center in March 2016, shortly before his death.

Arnold Wesker married Dorin "Dusty" Bicker in 1958, and they had three children together. He also had a daughter, Elsa, from Swedish journalist Disa Håstad. Wesker passed away on April 12, 2016, after suffering from Parkinson's disease. His contributions to theater and literature were acknowledged by Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour Party and the opposition.

Throughout his career, Wesker received numerous awards and honors. In 1958, he received a £300 grant from the Arts Council of Great Britain for his play "Chicken Soup with Barley," which he used for his wedding with Dusty. In the following year, he won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Most Promising Playwright. In 1964, Wesker received the Marzotto Prize (£3000) for his play "Their Very Own and Golden City," and in 1979, he won the Spanish Prize for Best Foreign Play. He was knighted in 2006.