The Mountaintop is published here as a Methuen Drama Student Edition, featuring notes and commentary by Harvey Young, Dean of the College of Fine Arts, Boston University, USA. The introduction offers a discussion of key themes including race, identity, politics, magical realism, one-act plays, historical figures and martyrs.The night before his assassination, Martin Luther King, Jr. retires to room 306 in the now-famous Lorraine Motel after giving an acclaimed speech to a massive church congregation. When a mysterious young maid visits him to deliver a cup of coffee, King is forced to confront his past and the future of his people.Portraying rhetoric, hope and ideals of social change, The Mountaintop also explores being human in the face of inevitable death. The play is a dramatic feat of daring originality, historical narration and triumphant compassion.