Mother Courage and Her Children

Mother Courage and Her Childrenis a classic in the repertory of Western theater. Written in response to the outbreak of World War II, this chronicle play” of the Thirty Years War follows one of Brecht’s most enduring characters, Courage, as she trails the armies across Europe, selling provisions from her canteen wagon. However, Courage pays the highest price of all. One by one, her children are devoured by violence, but she will not give up her livelihood—the wagon and the war.

Bertolt Brecht (1898-û1956) was one of the most influential playwrights of the twentieth century. Born in Augsburg, Bavaria, he fled Germany in 1933 when Hitler came to power. Returning to Germany after the war, he founded the Berliner Ensemble and continued to work on plays and films.
Olympia Dukakis has worked for more than forty years as an actress, director, producer, teacher, and activist and has won numerous awards, including the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award.
Norman Roessler is editor of Communications, the performance journal of the International Brecht Society, and is a lecturer at Temple University in Philadelphia.
John Willett (1917-û2002) is a scholar and translator of several works by Bertolt Brecht into English.
Ralph Manheim (1907-û1992) is a translator of works by Bertolt Brecht, Hermann Hesse, G++nter Grass, and many others.