Inside accounts of the making of some of the most influential theatre productions of the last four decades.

Max Stafford-Clark has been at the cutting edge of theatre in Britain for more than thirty years. Taking Stock draws on diaries, photos and interviews to recreate the evolution of nine of his most famous and influential productions:

Fanshen by David Hare

Epsom Downs by Howard Brenton

Cloud Nine by Caryl Churchill

Rita, Sue and Bob Too by Andrea Dunbar

Serious Money by Caryl Churchill

Our Country’s Good by Timberlake Wertenbaker

The Steward of Christendom by Sebastian Barry

Some Explicit Polaroids by Mark Ravenhill

Macbeth by William Shakespeare

The result is one of the richest, most intimately informative books on the making of theatre.

‘a rare opportunity to get inside the mind of one of British theatre’s most original practitioners… a fascinating view of an incredibly diverse body of work’
- British Theatre Guide

‘a splendid portrait of the vicissitudes of the collective life’
- Times Literary Supplement

‘fascinating… By pioneering the workshop method of rehearsal, where actors and director all contribute ideas before sending the playwright off to pen the text, Stafford-Clark made a major innovation in the evolution of British drama… He also tells a good story’
- Independent

‘a terrific read… an absolute treasure trove of insights, tips, reminiscences and lessons in the 'process’ of how a new play comes into the world’
- Rogues and Vagabonds