An Excerpt From '13' By Mike Bartlett

MIKE BARTLETT
BORN: 7th October 1980
PLACE OF BIRTH: Oxford, England
NATIONALITY: British

Childhood”
Mike Bartlett grew up just outside of Oxford, in a small market town called Abingdon where after attending his local primary school he moved to Abingdon School for boys, and it was here where a young Bartlett discovered an interest and passion for theatre, performing in several plays during his time at this school.
His father worked as a psychologist and his mother a headmistress
Mike Bartlett’s grandfather was a minister and growing up Mike Bartlett was sent to Sunday school
LINKS TO “13” AND THE CHILDHOOD OF MIKE BARTLETT

Much of the content of “13” explores the strain, pressure and tension between an individuals duty/obedience towards
In an interview with David Wolf for Prospect - a British general interest magazine, Mike Bartlett reveals how it wasn’t until he was about 16 that he began to realise that he wanted to pursue theatre as a career. His realisation occurred after seeing Mark Ravenhill’s “Shopping and Fucking” production - a play that deals with sex and violence issues. In the Prospect interview Bartlett reveals, “I remember thinking ‘I don’t understand why all plays aren’t like this. Why are so many plays set in the
“My Child” focuses on a father who attempts to maintain a close relationship with his son which is made difficult by his ex-wife’s actions. The father ultimately ends up kidnapping his son and taking him away to Scotland in an attempt to maintain a relationship with him.

Style:
Many of Mike Bartlett’s plays including “13” include images of modern life - with characters adopting and using modern technology on stage, such as iPads, iPhones, Facebook, etc. In his interview with Prospect magazine he remarks: ‘We do so much virtually. So when you had five people in a room - what a brilliant place for a scene. Now it happens over email, and the whole thing is atomised and mixed up. I really want to find a theatre that can reflect that landscape… forms that represent what it feels like to live now’
Mike Bartlett writes plays that involve indulging into British modern society, exploring themes such as love, family, climate change, globalisation and war. Bartlett’s political intentions are revealed in many of his plays, such as “13”. “Love, Love, Love” involves looking at the conflict between baby boomers and their children.