About the Play:

HARD TO FIND BOOK, only a very limited number of copies are still available.

Finalist for the 2001 Governor General's Literary Award for Drama (Canadian equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize)

A Three Martini Lunch contains three one-act comedies by Clem Martini. The interlocking dark comedies in this Blockwatch Trilogy were all first presented at the noon hour by Lunchbox Theatre in Calgary. A Three Martini Lunch takes you on a culinary tour of urban angst in a neighborhood where philosophy professors have conversations with their neighbour's pit bulls; where security freaks turn their domiciles into fortresses; where issues like intolerance, juvenile delinquency and spouse abuse get hashed out in backyards and greenhouses and up on the roof.

In Conversations with My Neighbour's Pit Bull, Robert Teller, a philosophy professor, tries to get along with his neighbour via his pit bull. This black comedy takes a thoughtful glimpse at racism, intolerance, and the fears that lie chained up in our own backyards. (Premiered in 1991; Cast: 1 woman, 3 men)

In House of Glass 12-year-old Ellen is caught stealing from a drugstore. As punishment, she agrees to clean the windows of the pharmacy owner, Beth – who happens to be her neighbour across the alley. Ellen's experiences with Beth, a woman with problems of her own, help her in the difficult process of growing up. (Premiered in 1993; Cast: 3 women, 1 man)

In Up on the Roof a myopic woman, her abusive ex-husband, and a vertigo-inflicted neighbour are stranded on a rooftop and must comes to terms with their disintegrating lives and an uncertain future. (Premiered in 1995; Cast: 1 woman, 2 men)

What people say:

"In these three interrelated plays, Clem Martini's characters struggle with public and private dilemmas on lawns, backyards and rooftops. Hilarious and poignant, the writing crackles with irony and wisdom." — Governor General's Award Committee

About the Playwright:

Clem Martini is an award-winning Canadian playwright, screenwriter and novelist. He has over thirty plays, and ten books of fiction and nonfiction to his credit, including A Three Martini Lunch, which was a nominee for the Governor General's Literary Award in Drama (Canadian equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize). His texts on playwriting, The Blunt Playwright, The Greek Playwright, and The Ancient Comedians are employed in universities and colleges across the country. In addition to writing, he is the Chair of Drama in the School of Creative and Performing Arts at the University of Calgary.