In this chronicle of the European Thirty Years War and taking place between the
years 1624 and 1636, Mother Courage follows the armies back and forth across Eur
ope, selling provisions and liquor from her canteen wagon to whomever she can. O
ne by one she loses her children to the war but will not part with her livelihoo
d - the wagon. The Berlin production of 1949, with Helene Weigel as Mother Coura
ge, marked the foundation of the Berliner Ensemble.
Considered by many to be
one of the greatest anti-war plays ever written and Brecht's masterpiece, the pl
ay is a powerful example of Epic Theatre and Brecht's use of alienation effect t
o focus attention not on individual characters but on the issues of the play. Th
is edition published in Methuen Drama's Modern Classics series offers a full int
roduction as well as Brecht's own notes and textual variants, setting it apart f
rom all other editions available in the English language. The play is presented
in John Willett's trusted translation.
