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Showing 1 - 20 of 232 items
This book is a practical resource for acting and directing students of all ages middle through high school, college, and…
professionals young and old. Its 30 duet scenes and eight monologues include a fair sampling of the late 20th-century work of playwrights across the United States. These excerpts are highly original in that few people can claim to have read or seen them performed, though they have all been produced regionally. The gallery of characters contained in these pages offers readers an arresting and kaleidoscopic reflection of American society. The literary styles one encounters here demonstrate the range and power of American writers who will continue to shape theatrical techniques for years to come. Overall, this anthology provides a generous sampling of vital and compelling treatments of our social, artistic, and spiritual experiences of the late 20th century.By Obsidian Theatre. 2023
What is the future of Blackness? Obsidian Theatre presents twenty-one versions of it.In 2021, Obsidian Theatre engaged twenty-one writers to…
create twenty-one new stories about imagined Black futures. Twenty-one to celebrate Obsidian’s twenty-first anniversary in 2021. Each playwright was tasked with scripting a ten-minute monodrama in response to the question “What is the future of Blackness?” To counter the intense early-pandemic isolation and the trauma of witnessing heightened violence toward Black bodies, Obsidian’s goal was to give as many opportunities to as many diverse Black artists as possible and to bring new voices together from both theatre and film. It was a grand experiment to create a rich tapestry of possibilities and to uplift Black artists in the process.A radical offering in unprecedented times, newly appointed Obsidian artistic director Mumbi Tindyebwa Otu’s curatorial aim was joyful, aspirational, and empowering: come together in this moment and create something communal, unapologetically Black, and with the Black gaze at its centre—art as the architecture for creating those futures. Includes plays by Amanda Parris, Cheryl Foggo, Shauntay Grant, Donna-Michelle St. Bernard, Lawrence Hill, Djanet Sears, and many others.First published in 1996, The William Makepeace Thackeray Library is a collection of works written by and about the novelist.…
This sixth volume contains the work of Lewis Melville, one of the most productive biographers and critics of Thackeray at the turn of the 20th century. Richard Pearson’s helpful introduction not only provides additional information on the biographer himself, but also analyses the text and tracks its development over time. This book will be of interest to those studying Thackeray and nineteenth-century literature.By Budd Schulberg, Stan Silverman. 2001
Budd Schulberg&’s Academy Award–winning screenplay, updated as a stage drama for modern audiencesFirst performed in 1988 and again on Broadway…
in 1995, Budd Schulberg and Stan Silverman&’s stage version of On the Waterfront may represent the purest incarnation of his classic story. Produced forty years after the movie swept the Academy Awards, the subtly modernized stage play was a call to arms for a new generation. With this rendition, Schulberg and Silverman hoped to reach young people who seemed detached from the dehumanizing effects of poverty and the exploitation of society&’s most vulnerable. Set in the 1950s and featuring original protagonists Terry Malloy and Father Pete Barry, On the Waterfront continues to stand as a masterful and uniquely American tragedy. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Budd Schulberg including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author&’s estate.By Sigurd Burckhardt. 1968
Mr. Burckhardt does not discuss the plays as theatre. Instead he states: "This book is concerned with what Shakespeare meant.…
I believe that Shakespeare's plays, to put it bluntly, have messages and that these messages are discoverable, in fact, statable.... Shakespeare not only abides our questions, he tells us what questions to ask; he took infinite pains to be precisely understood."Originally published in 1968.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.By Raymond Macdonald Alden. 1922
This fascinating title, first published in 1922, presents a detailed overview of the life and works of Shakespeare. Alden first…
considers Shakespeare’s Elizabethan context, alongside exploring the Classical and Italian foundations, political theories, concepts and theatrical trends that influenced his works. Next, a comprehensive biography provides insight into Shakespeare’s probable education, relationships and contemporaries. The final sections are devoted to the genres into which Shakespeare’s works have been categorised, with full analyses of and backgrounds to the poems, histories, comedies and tragedies. An important study, this title will be of particular value to students in need of a comprehensive overview of Shakespeare’s life and works, as well as the more general inquisitive reader.By August Wilson. 2007
A real-estate developer sets about trying to redevelop the 'blighted' Hill District of Pittsburgh in the final part of August…
Wilson's Century Cycle, his epic dramatisation of the African American experience in the twentieth century. Ivy League-educated Harmond Wilks has a plan to redevelop Pittsburgh's Hill District and hopes to become the town's first black mayor. But an old mansion slated for demolition, 1839 Wylie Avenue, turns out to have a significant past. 'I would encourage people to rave in the nonlinearity of his well-made plots, to big up his quirky architecture, to honor guard the house at 1839 Wylie so that it will always remain standing' Suzan-Lori Parks, from her Foreword.By Henrik Ibsen. 2019
In these four unforgettably intense plays, Henrik Ibsen explores the complex nature of truth, the tension between freedom and responsibility,…
and the terrible pull that the past exerts over the present. In The Wild Duck, an idealist destroys a family by exposing the lie behind his friend's marriage. In Rosmersholm, a respectable man is driven to extremes by guilt over his wife's death, while in The Lady from the Sea, a woman is caught between her family and the enticement of the wild sea. And in Hedda Gabler, one of Ibsen's most famous and vivid anti-heroines struggles to break free from the conventional life she has created for herself, with tragic results.In this ground-breaking study, Hongwei Bao analyses queer theatre and performance in contemporary China. This book documents various forms of…
queer performance – including music, film, theatre, and political activism – in the first two decades of the twenty first century. In doing so, Bao argues for the importance of performance for queer identity and community formation. This trailblazing work uses queer performance as an analytical lens to challenge heteronormative modes of social relations and hegemonic narratives of historiography. It will be of great interest to students and scholars of theatre and performance studies, gender and sexuality studies and Asian studies.By Scholastic, Scott Cawthon. 2017
Don't miss the first official guide to the world of the bestselling horror video game series, Five Nights at Freddy's,…
including easter eggs, gameplay tips, and the most hotly-debated fan theories.In the first official guidebook to Five Night at Freddy's, fans and gamers alike can immerse themselves in the series' mythology, gameplay, and secrets as we unwind the twisted mysteries hidden at the heart of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. Delving into each game, players can map the animatronics' paths, learn how timed elements of the games work, and discover how to trigger unique events. Special sections throughout highlight Freddy's fans' most talked-about theories, from The Bite of '87 vs. The Bite of '83 to the identity of Purple Guy to the recurring hallucinations of "it's me." All the evidence, along with every detail of the games and novels, is laid out for fans to explore in this one-of-a-kind guide to the warped world of Five Nights at Freddy's.By Tom Stoppard. 1996
Culled from nearly 20 years of the playwright's career, a showcase for Tom Stoppard's dazzling range and virtuosic talent, The…
Real Inspector Hound and Other Plays is essential reading for fans of modern drama. The plays in this collection reveal Stoppard's sense of fun, his sense of theater, his sense of the absurd, and his gifts for parody and satire. They include The Real.By Ravi Jain, Miriam Fernandes. 2023
A contemporary dramatic take on a 4,000-year-old Sanskrit epic that is foundational to Indian culture. Why Not Theatre’s large-scale, once-in-a-generation retelling…
of Mahabharata brings together a cast of performers entirely from the South Asian diaspora, blending cultures and art forms in a spectacular production at the Shaw Festival and the Barbican Theatre in London. Over two parts (Karma and Dharma) and a communal meal (Khana), this translation and adaptation of Mahabharata spans generations and takes audiences into the hearts and minds of some of the most complex and enduring characters ever created. With warring families and devious revenge plots, Mahabharata tells the story of an ancient feud with philosophical and spiritual questions that are no less urgent today. In times of division, how do we find wholeness? Are we destined to repeat the mistakes of our ancestors? And how can we build a new world when we have nearly destroyed this one? Contains the full text of the play along with materials opening up the behind-the-scenes world of the production, including interviews with the creators, background and context about the source material, production photographs, a Mahabharata family tree, and glossary."Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes’s contemporary take on the Mahabharata is one of the most beautiful emotional journeys I have had the privilege to witness. It is inspiring, mind broadening, and speaks to all the senses. It even brings you back to the origins of theatre itself, when people would gather in the quarries around a bonfire to tell stories. With their tasteful use of technology, dance, and opera, the 4,000-year-old Sanskrit poem comes to life and feels more universal than ever. A captivating theatre experience, from the first flame to the last pixel." – Robert Lepage"In their stunning rendition of the great Indian epic Mahabharata, Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes brilliantly reverse the whole concept of what Bertolt Brecht famously advised theatre directors: to make the familiar, unfamiliar. Jain and Fernandes have turned the unfamiliar into the familiar. The 4,000-year-old saga most Indians grew up with is made accessible to a contemporary audience the world over. No mean feat. ‘The play, true to its source, crosses all boundaries of culture, class, and geography. Its timeless storytelling and evocative stage design is transformed into a saga for the world, with its fundamental emotions of human nature – power, hate, jealousy, greed, and lust. To be gob-smacked by this innovation would be an understatement. Immerse yourself in this take on the Mahabharata and travel with it in time into the past, present, and future of humanity." – Deepa MehtaBy Charles Dickens, Sir Richard Eyre. 2011
Dickens' burning passion for theater has often been overlooked by fans of his novels. A keen playwright and actor, he…
staged performances for which he oversaw every detail, and personally adapted many of his own fictional works. As a consummate self-publicist, he also undertook numerous stage tours and public readings of his own work. For Dickens, and for large swathes of Victorian society, theatre was a way of life and a hub of community: audience and performers would swell out onto the streets and into nearby drinking establishments after each show. Drawing on a variety of sources, both fictional and journalistic, this collection portrays a career's worth of Dickens' musings, critiques, and opinions on one of his most revered passions and pastimes—the theater.By Aristophanes, Michael Ewans. 2010
Most readers nowadays encounter the plays of Aristophanes in the classroom, not the theater. Yet the "father of comedy" wrote…
his plays for the stage, not as literary texts. Many English translations of the plays were written decades ago, and in their outdated language, they fail to capture the dramatic liveliness of the original comedies. Now Michael Ewans offers new and lively translations of three of Aristophanes' finest plays: Lysistrata, The Women's Festival, and Frogs. While remaining faithful to the original Greek, these translations are accessible to a modern audience--and actable on stage. Here readers will discover--in all its uncensored glory--the often raw sexual and scatological language Aristophanes used in his fantastically inventive works. This edition also contains all that a reader needs to understand the plays within a broader context. In his comprehensive introduction, Ewans discusses the political and social aspects of Aristophanic comedy, the conventions of Greek theater, and the challenges of translating ancient Greek into modern English. In his theatrical commentaries--a unique feature of this edition--Ewans draws on his own experience of directing the plays in a replica of the original theater. In scene-by-scene analysis, he provides insight into the major issues each play raises in performance. The volume concludes with two glossaries--one of proper names and the other of Greek terms--as well as a bibliography that includes the most recent scholarship on Aristophanic comedy.By Anderson M. Baten. 2023
“It was Greek to me.” This handy reference showcases William Shakespeare’s genius, compiling over 1,500 of his most famous epigrams, invectives,…
literary expressions, and philosophical poems that have found their way into our everyday vernacular.By Angeliki Avgitidou. 2023
Performance Art: Education and Practice is an introduction to performance art through activities and practice prompts that are framed by…
seminal moments in the history of the medium as well as the current theoretical discussions surrounding performance. The book begins by introducing the terminology related to performance art and its early history. The basic elements of performance, including the body, objects, space, the public, and the public sphere are approached through thematic and conceptual correlations such as objects as autobiography, body as an expression of gendered identity, performance and the everyday, the augmented body, the archive of performance, and public space as space for intervention. Case studies analysed in each chapter are accompanied by reflective questions and discussion topics. The book proposes a wide range of exercises and comprehensive practice prompts that aim to enhance performance skills, promote experimentation, and encourage an experiential understanding of the theory, history, and concepts relating to performance art. Performance Art: Education and Practice is addressed to students of Fine Arts and Performance Studies from beginner to intermediate level, performance and visual artists who are interested in expanding their knowledge base and creative range, and artist-teachers who are interested in developing their own curriculum and workshop content.By Mahmood Karimi Hakak. 2024
Shakespeare in Tehran is a personal history of Iran through the eyes of an award-winning Iranian American artist. Drawing on…
parallels between life and the stage, it uses A Midsummer Night’s Dream as a roadmap to explore social, political, economic, and cultural aspects of Iran before and after the revolution of 1979. Through first-person accounts, interspersed with emotional reflections of the universal human experience, it delves into the historical and sociological context of a divided country. Storytelling, flashbacks, and flashforwards paint an intimate picture of public life in Iran in a time of uncertainty. Accessible, engaging, and nuanced, this volume will be of interest to scholars and researchers of politics, history, theater and performance studies, and West Asian studies.Grocery-store clerk Beth has had a hell of a week. A hell of a life, actually, full of people squashing…
her soul. And after pushing back at life—stabbing a steak to her boss’s desk and lighting a magazine rack on fire, for instance—freshly unemployed Beth regroups at her mom’s suburban home. Just when Beth starts to think she’s to blame for systemic limits, the gift of a bird feeder sparks a relationship with a talking Crow who reconnects her with her true power.This sly chamber piece from new voice Caleigh Crow turns post-capitalism ennui on its head with a righteous fury. It unearths the subtle (and not so subtle) ways we gaslight the marginalized, especially Indigenous women, people living with mental-health afflictions, and anyone struggling to make ends meet in low-income service jobs. There Is Violence captures the vivacity and humour of one truly remarkable woman not meant for this earth, and brings her to her own glorious transcendence.By Heidi Thomas. 2012
The real stories, lives and dramas behind the smash hit BBC series Call the Midwife which premieres on PBS September…
30, 2012.The official companion to seasons one and two, The Life and Times of Call the Midwife, gives fans a deeper insight into the period, the stories and the characters, and how Call the Midwife, based on the bestselling memoirs by Jennifer Worth, was brought to the screen. With never before seen photographs taken on set as well as unique sketches and exclusive interviews and anecdotes, this book truly takes you behind the scenes. Discover the hidden secrets of the nurses and nuns of Nonnatus House and delve deeper into the historical context of the series with chapters detailing birth, health, faith, fashion, beauty, street life and food. From the team who brought you The World of Downton Abbey, high production values and attention to detail will create the ultimate and beautifully packaged gift purchase this Christmas that no fan of the show could bare to be without.By Christopher Durang. 2012
&“[A] hilarious and disturbing new comedy about all-American violence&” and other whip-smart political satires by the Tony Award-winning playwright (Ben…
Branley, The New York Times). Christopher Durang, who The New York Observer called &“Jonathan Swift&’s nicer, younger brother,&” became one of America&’s most beloved and acclaimed playwrights by marrying gonzo farce with incisive social critique. Now collected in Why Torture Is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them and Other Political Plays are Durang&’s most revealing satirical plays. Why Torture Is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them is the story of a young woman in crisis: Is her new husband, whom she married when drunk, a terrorist? Or just crazy? Or both? Is her father&’s hobby of butterfly collecting really a cover for his involvement in a shadow government? Does her mother frequent the theater for mental escape, or is she just insane? Add in a minister who directs porno, and a ladylike operative whose underwear just won&’t stay up, and this black comedy will make us laugh all the way to the waterboarding room. Also included in this volume are: Excerpts from Sex and LongingCardinal O&’ConnorThe Book of Leviticus ShowEntertaining Mr. HelmsThe Doctor Will See You NowUnder Duress: Words on FireAn Alter Boy Talks to GodThe Hardy Boys and the Mystery of Where Babies Come From