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Ariane Mnouchkine (Routledge Performance Practitioners)
By Judith Miller. 2018
Over the last forty years, French director Ariane Mnouchkine and her theater collective, Le Théâtre du Soleil, have devised a…
form of research and creation that is both engaged with contemporary history and committed to reinvigorating theater by focusing on the actor. Now revised and reissued, this volume combines: ● an overview of Mnouchkine’s life, work and theatrical influences ● an exploration of her key ideas on theater and the creative process ● analysis of key productions, including her early and groundbreaking environmental political piece, 1789, and the later Asian-inspired play penned by Hélène Cixous, Drums on the Dam. ● practical exercises, including tips on mask work. As a first step toward critical understanding, and as an initial exploration before going on to further, primary research, Routledge Performance Practitioners offer unbeatable value for today’s student.
Routledge Revivals: David Mamet (Routledge Revivals)
By Christopher Bigsby. 1985
First published in 1985, C.W.E Bigsby examines the career and work of playwright David Mamet. Bigsby shows that Mamet is…
a fierce social critic, indicting an America corrupted at its core by myths of frontier individualism and competitive capitalism. Mamet has created plays whose bleak social vision and ironic metaphysics are redeemed, if at all, by the power of imagination. No American playwright before him has displayed the same sensitivity to language, detecting lyricism in the brutal incoherencies of every day speech and investing with meaning a contemporary aphasia. Few have offered dramatic metaphors of such startling and disturbing originality. Bigsby’s study is the first book to provide a thorough account of David Mamet’s life and career, as well as close analyses of individual plays.
Preaching the Blues: Black Feminist Performance in Lynching Plays examines several lynching plays to foreground black women’s performances as non-normative…
subjects who challenge white supremacist ideology. Maisha S. Akbar re-maps the study of lynching drama by examining plays that are contingent upon race-based settings in black households versus white households. She also discusses performances of lynching plays at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the South and reviews lynching plays closely tied to black school campuses. By focusing on current examples and impacts of lynching plays in the public sphere, this book grounds this historical form of theatre in the present day with depth and relevance. Of interest to scholars and students of both general Theatre and Performance Studies, and of African American Theatre and Drama, Preaching the Blues foregrounds the importance of black feminist artists in lynching culture and interdisciplinary scholarship.
The Works of Aphra Behn: The Plays, 1678-1682 (The Pickering Masters)
By Janet Todd. 1996
Aphra Behn (1640-1689) was one of the most successful dramatists of the Restoration theatre and a popular poet. This is…
the sixth volume in a set of seven which comprises a complete edition of all her works.
Pollastra and the Origins of Twelfth Night addresses two closely linked and increasingly studied issues: the nature of the relation…
of Shakespeare's plays to Italian culture, and the technology of modern theater invented in Renaissance Italy. The discovery of forgotten works by Giovanni Lappoli, known as Pollastra, led to publication in Italy in 1993 in a limited edition of the Italian texts with supplemental scholarship by the authors, entitled Romance and Aretine Humanism in Sienese Comedy. One of those texts, the comedy Parthenio, has escaped the attention of theater bibliographers, because it was quickly sold out in its time and only a handful of copies are known to exist today. Yet it played an important part in the birth of Italian Renaissance drama and of modern comedy in general, in that it was the immediate predecessor and source of Gl'Ingannati, arguably the most famous comedy of the Italian Renaissance and certainly the most imitated, translated, adapted all over Europe. The best known of its progeny is Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Much has been written in Italy and England about Gl'Ingannati and Shakespeare's debt to it, but nothing at all about Parthenio. This volume provides the first English translation (with the original Italian on facing pages); and presents for an international audience the theatrical scholarship from the 1993 book Romance and Aretine Humanism in Sienese Comedy, augmented with new findings.
The Works of Aphra Behn: The Plays, 1678-1682 (The Pickering Masters)
By Janet Todd. 1996
Aphra Behn (1640-1689) was one of the most successful dramatists of the Restoration theatre and a popular poet. This is…
the final volume in a set of seven which comprises a complete edition of all her works.
Celine the Crippled Giant: Reading The Maternal Imaginary
By Milton Hindus. 1997
Louis Ferdinand Céline (the pseudonym of Louis Destouches) was a famous novelist and ferocious anti-Semitic pamphleteer who rose to fame…
before Hitler, but perfectly represented the fascist mind-set that swept across Europe between 1932 and 1944. Never a Nazi himself, he was author of Journey to the End of the Night, Death on the Installment Plan, Guignol's Band, Homage to Zola, and a series of "pamphlets." The latter are a potpourri of racist editorials, ballet scenarios, and anti-Semitic confessions so violent that an aesthete like Andre Gide thought them parodies of other anti-Semitic literature. Little wonder the Nazis regarded Céline as a fellow-traveler. He retreated with the Nazis across the Rhine and sought refuge with them, first in Germany and then in Denmark. In 1951, he benefitted from an amnesty as a wounded veteran of both World Wars. Before his death in 1961 he had regained his popularity with the public and was regarded as a classic writer. Now that the body of his work is in translation, Céline's fame in the literary world circles the globe.Céline, perhaps more than any other analysis, helps shed some light on this enigmatic figure. It establishes his literary importance, and, at the same time, examines his anti-Semitism. After a final meeting, Hindus declared that "Celine is a splinter in my mind that I've got either to absorb completely or eject completely." The reader of this fascinating critical memoir of one of the twentieth century's most controversial literary figures is apt to be left with a similar dilemma.
The Tragedie of Macbeth: The Folio of 1623 (Timeless Shakespeare)
By James Rigney. 1996
The Shakespearean Originals Series takes as its point of departure the question: "What is it that we read Shakespeare?" The…
answer may seem self-evident: we read the words that Shakespeare wrote. But do we? In the case of all the major editions of Shakespeare available in the market, the fact of the matter is that many of the words that we read in an edition of, say, Hamlet, never appeared in the text as it was printed during or shortly after Shakespeare's own lifetime. They are the interpetations and interpolations of a series of editors who have been systematically changing Shakespeare's text from the eighteenth century onwards. This volume offers the text of Macbeth, as printed in the 1623 First Folio.
Measure For Measure: The Folio of 1623
By William Shakespeare, Grace Ioppolo. 1996
The Shakespearean Originals Series takes as its point of departure the question: "What is it that we read Shakespeare?" The…
answer may seem self-evident: we read the words that Shakespeare wrote. But do we? In the case of all the major editions of Shakespeare available in the market, the fact of the matter is that many of the words that we read in an edition of, say, Hamlet, never appeared in the text as it was printed during or shortly after Shakespeare's own lifetime. They are the interpetations and interpolations of a series of editors who have been systematically changing Shakespeare's text from the eighteenth century onwards. This volume offers the text of Measure for Measure, as printed in the 1623 First Folio.
A Preface to Shakespeare's Tragedies (Preface Books)
By Michael Mangan. 1992
This book is a study of four of Shakespeare's major tragedies - "Hamlet", "Othello", "King Lear" and "Macbeth". It looks…
at these plays in a variety of contexts - both in isolation and in relation to each other and to the cultural, ideological, social and political contexts which produced them.
The Literary Language of Shakespeare
By S. S. Hussey. 1993
Professor Hussey looks at the vocabulary, syntax and register of Renaissance English, following this with a more detailed analysis of…
particular kinds of language in the plays such as prose, verse, rhetoric and the soliloquy. For this new edition, the text has been revised throughout with, in particular, a completely new chapter providing detailed readings of selected plays, illustrating the ways particular aspects of language can be studied in practice.
The Rise and Fall of the Well-Made Play (Routledge Revivals)
By John Russell Taylor. 1967
First published in 1967, this title considers the idea of the ‘well-made play’ in the context of how and why…
it has been devalued and how far, in allowing it to be devalued, we have lost sight of certain important elements of the theatre. The focus of the book is largely on the development of British theatre and those who have been instrumental to it. This is an indispensable introduction for any student with an interest in the history and development of the British theatre.
First published in 1990, this investigative overview of the politics of arts’ and cultural funding examines the question of public…
support for the arts. Looking at both popular commercial forms of culture, including radio, pop music and cinema, and the more traditional highbrow arts such as drama and opera, Art, Culture and Enterprise was the first book of its kind to deal systematically with the politics of contemporary culture. Drawing examples from specific British venues, Justin Lewis shows how innovative projects work in practice, and considers arts marketing and the promotion of culture as an economic strategy. A particularly relevant title in the context of the debate surrounding Arts Council funding, this reissue will prove valuable for artists, administrators and students of media and cultural studies, alongside those with a general interest in the future of public art and culture.
The Bald Soprano: & Other Plays (Books That Changed the World)
By Eugène Ionesco. 1958
This Absurdist masterpiece by the author of Rhinoceros “is explosively, liberatingly funny…a loony parody with a climax which is an…
orgy of non-sequiturs” (The Observer).Written in 1950, Eugene Ionesco’s first play, The Bald Soprano, was a seminal work of Absurdist theatre. Today, it is celebrated around the world as a modern classic for its imagination and sui generis theatricality. A hilarious parody of English manners and a striking statement on the alienation of modern life, it was inspired by the strange dialogues Ionesco encountered in foreign language phrase books.Ionesco went on to become an internationally renowned master of modern drama, famous for the comic proportions and bizarre effects that allow his work to be simultaneously hilarious, tragic, and profound. As Ionesco has said, “Theater is not literature. . . . It is simply what cannot be expressed by any other means.”
A Devastação
By Helena Magalhães. 2023
O poder das amizades femininas junta-se a uma crítica ao patriarcado. No final do verão de 1990, Mar, com apenas…
seis anos, é enviada para o Romeirão, um internato Católico no Alentejo onde fica até aos 15 anos. Cresce no meio de regras e privações, castigos e fome, mas rodeada e protegida pela irmandade das outras raparigas, principalmente Anita e Amália, mas também de Eduardo, um dos rapazes da vila, com quem vai criar uma relação inesperada e viver as primeiras descobertas de amor. Anos depois, ainda a lidar com o trauma do passado, com as drogas, a depressão e a solidão, é ao lado de Isabel, Alice e Luísa que aprende a viver uma nova vida sóbria e em paz. Quando reencontra Eduardo, nenhum consegue resistir à ligação magnética, mas com ele voltam feridas antigas que a assombram desde a noite em fugiu do Romeirão. A pequena Mar que se transformou na Marisa das Argolas, a "vilã” de Raparigascomo nós, regressa nesta ousada crítica ao patriarcado português. Escrita com sagacidade e emoção, A devastação explora o poder das amizades femininas e captura as complexidades humanas e familiares, a eletricidade do primeiro amor e os segredos que nos enjaulam em locais amaldiçoados dentro de nós.
Otelo: A tragédia de Otelo, o mouro de Veneza
By William Shakespeare. 2022
Uma tragédia sobre poder, racismo, amor e traição, tão relevante hoje como em 1603, ano em que foi escrita pelo…
maior dramaturgo de sempre. Tradução e introdução de Daniel Jonas «Calar-me? Hei de falar tão livre como o vento. E venham todos, céu, diabos, homens,Que gritem contra mim, hei de falar.» Otelo, destacado general mouro ao serviço do Estado de Veneza, apaixona-se pela bela e jovem Desdémona, oriunda de uma abastada família veneziana. Iago, alferes de Otelo, dominado pela raiva de ter sido preterido, em favor de Cássio, numa promoção a capitão, denuncia a união entre os dois amantes, realizada em segredo, a Brabâncio, pai de Desdémona, provocando a sua ira. Não logrando o seu intento de destruir Otelo, Iago convence-o de que Desdémona o trai com Cássio, assim desencadeando uma série de ações que precipitarão o mais funesto dos desfechos. Otelo é uma das mais importantes e belas tragédias de Shakespeare, cuja notável densidade psicológica expõe a queda inevitável de um homem consumido pela paixão e pelo ciúme. Uma tragédia sobre poder, racismo, amor e traição, tão relevante hoje como em 1603, ano em que foi escrita pelo maior dramaturgo de sempre.
Changing Destiny
By Ben Okri. 2021
A bold new adaptation of the 4,000-year-old Egyptian poem about Warrior King Sinuhe that captures the essence of civilization and…
the complexities of immigration, from the Booker Prize–winning author.Forced to flee Egypt, Sinuhe is captured as a prisoner of war by the foreign Kingdom of Retenu. Stripped of status and tormented by memories, Sinuhe will need great force of will to survive as a stranger in an unknown land. But can he transcend the mysterious powers of Egypt and the tribulations of exile?With two actors incarnating a multitude of characters, Ben Okri&’s play recreates one of the world&’s first known stories, a timeless tale about the strength of the human spirit.
Mahabharata
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 Mehta
Words for the Theatre: Four Essays on the Dramatic Text (Focus on Dramaturgy)
By David Cole. 2019
In Words for the Theatre, playwright David Cole pursues a course of dramaturgical self-questioning on the part of a playwright,…
centred on the act of playwriting. The book’s four essays each offer a dramaturgical perspective on a different aspect of the playwright’s practice: How does the playwright juggle the transcriptive and prescriptive aspects of their activity? Does the ultimate performance of a playtext in fact represent something to which all writing aspires? Does the playwright’s process of withdrawing to create their text echo a similar process in the theatre more widely? Finally, how can the playwright counter theatre’s pervasive leaning towards the ‘mistake’ of realism? Suited to playwrights, teachers, and higher-level students, this volume of essays offers reflections on the questions that confront every playwright, from an author well-versed in supplying words for the theatre.
The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama
By Kristina Straub, Misty Anderson, and Daniel O’Quinn. 2017
The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama brings together the work of key playwrights from 1660 to 1800, divided…
into three main sections: Restoring the Theatre: 1660–1700 Managing Entertainment: 1700–1760 Entertainment in an Age of Revolutions: 1760–1800 Each of the 20 plays featured is accompanied by an extraordinary wealth of print and online supplementary materials, including primary critical sources, commentaries, illustrations, and reviews of productions. Taking in the spectrum of this period’s dramatic landscape—from Restoration tragedy and comedies of manners to ballad opera and gothic spectacle—The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama is an essential resource for students and teachers alike.