An Experiment with an Air Pump

"Shelagh Stephenson has written a play teeming with interest, humour, eloquence and, above all, ideas." - Independent
1799 - On the eve of a new century, the family-house of an esteemed scientist buzzes with experiments, furtive romance and farcical amateur dramatics. 1999 - In a world of scientific chaos, cloning and genetic engineering, the cellar of the same house reveals a dark secret buried for 200 years.
Joint recipient of the 1997 Peggy Ramsay Award, Shelagh Stephenson's daring and thoughtful drama twists in on itself, discussing what it means to play God.
An Experiment with an Air Pump is published in Methuen Drama's Modern Classics series, featuring a new introductory interview with the author by Jack McNamara.

Shelagh Stephenson is a Northumberland-born playwright. Her first stage play, The Memory of Water, premiered at Hampstead Theatre in 1996 and subsequently transferred to the West End, where it won an Olivier Award for Best Comedy in 2000. Her second play, An Experiment With An Air Pump, was joint recipient of the Peggy Ramsay Award. She has written several radio plays, including the award-winning Five Kinds of Silence, which she adapted for the stage. Her screen adaptation of The Memory of Water was released in spring 2002 with the title Before You Go.

Introductory interview with the author, by Jack McNamara
An Experiment with an Air Pump, by Shelagh Stephenson