Showing results by narrator "K. G. Cross" in All Categories

Franz Kafka was one of the first and greatest masters of dystopian literature. In his bleak world view, man is presented as helpless and ineffectual, his destiny determined by distant, obscure and essentially unfriendly agencies. In none of his works is this savage and unreasoning enslavement presented more vividly than in Metamorphosis, a novella in which Gregor Samsa, a respectable employee and dutiful son, wakes to find himself transformed into a gigantic insect.

This book contains two plays by Henrik Ibsen. Norma is a satirical opera designed as a dramatic parody of Vincenzo Bellini's opera Norma, in which the characters are portrayed as central figures in the political life of contemporary Norway. St. John's Night is a fairy-tale comedy that takes place during a midsummer feast on a farm in Telemark. It is inspired by many sources, most notably A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, and features many of the same themes.

Danny's mother assures him that snowmen can't talk. In this whimsical adventure, Danny discovers that her assertion is not entirely correct.

One woman learns the consequences of having a PlaceNook account when all her "friends" show up on her doorstep unannounced.

A collection of some of Hans Christian Andersen's most famous and loved fairytales: "The Princess and the Pea", "Little Tiny" or "Thumbelina", "The Brave Tin Soldier", "The Little Match-Seller", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Emperor's New Suit", "The Swineheard", "The Tinder Box", "The Nightingale", "Ole-Luk-Oie the Dream God", and "The Little Mermaid".

Rosmersholm is a play surrounding the deep and intense political and cultural change in Norway in the middle of the 1880s, a period during which the traditional ruling class were forced to relinquish their right to impose their ideals on the rest of society. We follow Johannes Rosmer, a pastor who has resigned from his position; Rebecca West, a woman who sees Rosmer's potential and believes she can help him to realize his dream of creating a world of "happy, noble people"; and Headmaster Kroll, Rosmer's former best friend.

After many years living abroad with her longtime lover, Lady Catherine Champion-Cheney visits her former marital home, now occupied by her son, Arnold, and his wife, Elizabeth. Also present is her estranged husband, Clive, who lives in a cottage on the estate. Elizabeth has become dissatisfied with the life she leads with her wealthy husband, who is very occupied with his political career, and she encourages the advances of a dashing but impecunious suitor, Teddy Luton.

The Wild Duck (Vilanden) is a tragedy with comic episodes. Ibsen himself characterized the play as a tragicomedy. It depicts ordinary life realistically instead of romantically and sentimentally, a revolutionary concept in Ibsen's time. The play is now generally acknowledged as one of Ibsen's supreme accomplishments.

Old truths - shattered. Old structures - broken. The barrier is breached, and after the last armies of the world fell to dragons’ fire and demons’ ire, the only ones standing between predators and prey are the foot soldiers of a power-mad Church. Welcome to the Books of Future Darkness - Patrik Sahlstrøm’s tales of a world gone mad, where desperate people do everything to survive after the magical apocalypse.

A man loses his only child in a car accident. But has she really gone? Why does he keep hearing her voice?

A collection of Christmas radio plays by Mike Murphy: Six heartwarming tales celebrating the festive season performed by members of The Online Stage.

Often considered to be Ibsen's most popular play in his lifetime, The League of Youth caused fighting in the streets, with conservatives claiming it was an attack on their party and liberals claiming it was an attack on theirs! A thought-provoking comedy that's sure to feel shockingly familiar. Unusually for Ibsen, this play has a lot of humour and a more-or-less happy ending.

Most of us would like to change some events in our past. However, if we were granted such an opportunity, would we be happy with the results? The Bench is a radio play by Glenn Hascall.

The sardonic and moving monologue of the author's personal experience with head trauma.

When Drake is told that his beloved wife does not have long to live, he clutches at straws for anything that will prolong her life. A mysterious stranger offers him a cure for his wife's illness that appears to be remarkably effective - but, like many miracles, it comes at a cost.

In preparation for a move from his former family home into a retirement village, widower Mitch is clearing out the attic. He comes across a woolen hat knitted for him by his late wife, Linda, when she was pregnant with their son, Alan. He tries it on and finds that the hat has properties other than just keeping head warm.

Jack Carlisle is driving through an unnamed town when he spots lights on at the library. Needing a break, Jack stops only to begin a strange journey requiring him to make choices that lead to unexpected consequences.

Jenny is the story of Jenny Winge, a talented Norwegian painter who lives a free and independent life in Rome. Betraying her own ideals, she has an affair, resulting in a child out of wedlock, and decides to raise the child on her own. Undset gives a gripping portrayal of a woman struggling towards fulfillment and independence, who at the same time wrestles with mental problems. It is written with unflinching honesty, which makes her story as compelling today as it was nearly a century ago.

Santa's Christmas schedule has run into a major problem - all his reindeer, even the heroic Rudolph, are too ill to fly. However, a promising solution to Santa's dilemma is offered from an unlikely source - the eccentric elf Melvin.

At the opening of this late Shakespearean drama, Polixenes, the king of Bohemia, has been the longtime guest of Leontes and Hermione, the king and queen of Sicily. When the time comes for Polixenes to leave, Leontes urges him to stay longer. At first Polixenes refuses, but soon he yields to the entreaties of Hermione. His rapid change of mind convinces Leontes that the two are lovers and that Polixenes is the father of Hermione's unborn child.