Representation of British Royal Family in Mike Bartlett’s Play “King Charles III”

This article explores the stylistic eclecticism present in Mike Bartlett’s play “King Charles III” and the dramatic interpretation of the British royal family members. The relevance of contemporary themes on the evolution of existing political genres is emphasized. Employing methods such as close reading, stylistic and verbal analysis, as well as typological, historical, and sociological approaches, the study demonstrates that the play encompasses elements of political drama, political comedy, and satirical comedy. It posits that the author’s use of eclecticism is driven by a desire to draw public attention to pressing social and political issues while expanding the genre diversity within politically oriented drama. The analysis reveals that Bartlett not only portrays individualized characters (the royal family members) but also collective representations reflecting the perspectives of various societal strata on the political landscape of the United Kingdom. A notable characteristic of the work is its direct connection to real-world references based on objective criteria: 1) it depicts the political life of contemporary Britain; 2) the characters have real prototypes — members of the royal family; 3) it is linked to an actual political event (the enactment of the Defamation Act 2013).

dramatic interpretation, political drama, blending of dramatic genres, British royal family