Highly Recommended

A typical Stoppard play, if there is such a thing, contains wordplay, serious consideration of religion and philosophy, and visual gags and misunderstandings all woven together. "Jumpers" manages to sustain several quite long and quite interesting soliloquies from George, a professor of Moral Philosophy, on the nature of God and the meaning of goodness. As always, there is unusual stage business that keeps the eyes busy. Note the running game of charades between George and Dotty.

"The Real Inspector Hound" and "After Magritte" are two brilliant plays that are marvels of compactness and complexity. Wordplay, juxtaposition of opposites, mistaken identities, complicated stage business, and other theatrical tricks are woven together in a tapestry that raises several serious philosophical issues in the midst of very funny situations and dialog. These plays are very tightly constructed, yet have a loose feel to them thanks to Stoppard's layering of the dialog and action on several layers simultaneously. A joy to read.