English drama the stage. Again In the 1950s, the absurdist play "Waiting for Godot" (1955) (originally "En attendant Godot", 1952), by the French resident, Irishman Samuel Beckett profoundly affected British drama. The Theatre of the Absurd influenced Harold Pinter (1930-2008), (The Birthday Party, 1958), whose works are often characterised by menace or claustrophobia. Beckett also influenced Tom Stoppard (1937-) ("Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead",1966). Stoppard's works are, however, also notable for their high-spirited wit and the great range of intellectual issues which he tackles in different plays. Both Pinter and Stoppard continued to have new plays produced into the 1990s. Michael Frayn
Rich and Famous (play) Rich and Famous (play) Rich and Famous is a two-act play by John Guare. It premiered in 1974 at the Academy Festival Theatre in Lake Forest, Illinois, and made its Off-Broadway debut in 1976. Bing Ringling is an old "promising" playwright, finally about to have a play produced -- play number 844. "Rich and Famous" was first produced by William Gardner at the Academy Festival Theatre, in Lake Forest, Illinois, in August 1974. It was directed by Mel Shapiro and starred Charles Kimbrough, Linda Lavin, and Ron Leibman. Guare wrote the music for the play, which was performed by a