Sarah Kane, Skin

Graham Saunders (University of Reading); Aleks Sierz (Independent Scholar - Europe)
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Sarah Kane wrote five plays and one short film. The 10-minute film

Skin

is about Billy, a young skinhead, who joins in a brutal racist attack on a mixed-race wedding party in Brixton, and then finds himself drawn to Marcia, a black woman whose flat is visible from Billy's window. He visits Marcia, the couple have sex, she carves her name on his back, but finally rejects him, finding solace with Kath, her flatmate, while Billy unsuccessfully takes an overdose. Completed in summer 1995,

Skin

was directed by Vincent O'Connell, Kane's friend and mentor (her first two plays were dedicated to him). The film was shortlisted for production for the Short & Curlies series by Channel Four/British Screen at the beginning of 1995, just as Kane's debut

Blasted

was being produced, and was filmed in…

937 words

Citation: Saunders, Graham, Aleks Sierz. "Skin". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 03 June 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=15071, accessed 28 March 2024.]

15071 Skin 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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