In 1985 and 1986 Scottish theatergoers could scarcely avoid the work of twenty-three-year-old playwright Peter Arnott--in a twelve-month period four plays of his premiered, with one in particular, White Rose (1985), receiving extravagant praise from critics during its Edinburgh Festival run and subsequent appearance in London. A playwright who combines a strong political interest with a literary turn of mind, and a commitment to the aims of popular theater with a desire to experiment formally in each new play, Arnott wrote another five plays in the following four years, while also working with participatory community theater groups in Glasgow's housing projects. Ranging across diverse styles--including an Everyman parable, an epic historical play, and works drawing on cinematic genres such as the thriller and war movie--his prolific if uneven output appeared to confirm early press descriptions of Arnott as "a major new talent" and "Scotland's most promising playwright."

Yet, since 1990 he has...