Merlin and the Cave of Dreams

Merlin and the Cave of Dreams

by Charles Way

Nominated as an outstanding play of 2004. Helen Hayes Award finalist in USA.

The King is dead and the Green Kingdom is in turmoil. Only Merlin knows that the future lies in the hands of young Arthur.

Taken away from the only home he’s known, Arthur slumbers in Merlin’s Cave of Dreams. Here, his past and future are revealed in a glorious vision that will lead him on the adventure of a lifetime.

Can Arthur slay the giants and dragons that stand in his way? Will he pull the sword from the stone and claim his rightful kingdom?

Reviews

“A major playwright.” The Guardian

“Charles Way’s lyrical script… displays many influences from European mythology, traces Arthur’s journey from discovering the true identity of his parents to drawing Excalibur from the stone and becoming King. In between, he has to journey through the underworld and confront a number of difficult challenges, just like many other mythical heroes from different cultures and traditions.” British Theatre Guide

“Forget chivalrous knights in shining armour rescuing love-sick maidens, round tables and the fabled glories of Camelot. Charles Way’s delightful play takes the young rustic Arthur through his rites-of-passage towards self-awareness as the once and future kind to draw that sword from the stone.” The Stage

“And dream we did, most delightfully, and wondered at the magic as we sailed with the young Arthur, a true son of Wales, to an Avalon of rugged standing stones, wizards, giants, grotesques and wicked kings and beautiful ladies.” Theatre in Wales

About the author

Charles Way has written over 40 plays, many of them for young people. He was recently commissioned by the National Theatre to write Alice In The News, which children all over Britain have performed.

He has written many plays for radio, and a TV poem for BBC 2, No Borders, set on the Welsh borders, where he lives and has spent most of his creative life.