Looking Over the Shoulders of Giants

Alan Bennett’s 2009 play-within-a-play ‘The Habit of Art’ is a layered examination of the creative process and of grappling with the complicated legacies of titans.

Carol Rosegg
Matthew Kelly and Benjamin Chandler in ‘The Habit of Art.’ Carol Rosegg

“I want to hear about the shortcomings of great men, their fears and their failings.” In a way, this prescient first line is all you need to know about “The Habit of Art,” Alan Bennett’s 2009 play-within-a-play: a layered examination of the creative process and of grappling with the complicated legacies of titans. 

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