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    Book Recommendations

     

    The History of Theatre
    by David Timson, Derek Jacobi (Narrator)


    Following the success of The History of Opera, Naxos produces the history of drama and the stage from ancient Greece through the twentieth century in an accessible program. With master Derek Jacobi and actors who excerpt from dozens of plays as guides, the listener is treated to a fascinating chronicle for students, aficionados--and even anyone with a passing interest in history or theater. Jacobi illuminates the cultural heritage surrounding each period in a style both grand and approachable. David Timson's text is rich and involving. The linear sequence is tracked on the CD version, and the excellent liner notes to the plays, the excerpts, and the music round out this significant program. R.F.W. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

     Harlequin on the Moon: Commedia dell'Arte and Visual Arts
    by Lynne Lawner

    The rich history of the Commedia dell'Arte as portrayed through a range of visual art forms.  Covers an in-depth background of the performances, antics and lifestyles of the commedia.  The figures of the Commedia dell'arte have surfaced in artworks over the last 400 years -
    many of the characters have become icons and been translated across cultures - this work
    looks at how artists have played a role in this process.
    An essential addition to the serious student or aficionado of Commedia.

    The Italian Comedy : The Improvisation, Scenarios, Lives, Atrod.
    by Fred Eggan. by William A. Glaser and David L. Sills. J. G. Crowther.
    by Pierre Louis Duchartre

    Its curiosity value alone makes it a worthwhile purchase.

    Many facets of this traditional comic form are considered in this text. This is truly a classic text it has remained in print for over thirty years - that alone is testament to the fact that it is regarded as a very valuable resource.

    Commedia dell'Arte : An Actor's Handbook 

    by John Rudlin
     

    An excellent text on the Commedia dell'Arte. 

    Covers all the major characters, the history and performance styles.  It also contains detailed instructions on making a traditional leather mask.

     

    German Expressionist Theatre: The Actor and the Stage by David F. Kuhns

    • A recent release from Cambridge University Press.

      German Expressionist Theatre and Performance in Weimar considers the powerfully stylised,
      anti-realistic styles of symbolic acting on the German Expressionist stage from 1916 to 1921.
      It relates this striking departure from the dominant European acting tradition of realism to
      the specific cultural crises that enveloped the German nation during the course of its involvement in World War I. The examination of previously untranslated portions of Expressionist script and actor memoirs allows for an  unprecedented focus on description and analysis of the acting itself.

    The Theatre of Yesterday and Tomorrow : 
    Commedia dell'Arte on the Modern Stage
    by James Fisher
    A book for the true aficionado or serious scholar - An exceptional book on the subject

    he Relationship of Oral and Literate Performance Processes in the Commedia dell'Arte :
    Beyond the Improvisation/Memorisation Divide

    by Tim Fitzpatrick

    An impressive and scholarly text that should be owned by any aficionado of the form.

    Covering the processes involved in the form and including several excerpts and variations of original routines. (Pricey!)

    Scenarios of the Commedia Dell'Arte : 
    Flaminio Scala's Il Teatro Delle Favole Rappresentative
    by Flaminio Scala, Henry F. Salerno (Editor), Kenneth McKee

    This is a reprint of the first folio of scenarios ever published.

    Ancient Sun, Modern Light : Greek Drama on the Modern Stage
    by Marianne McDonald

    The Triumph of Pierrot : The Commedia dell'Arte and the Modern Imagination

    by Martin Burgess Green and John C. Swan

    A very good book that explores Commedia from it's Italian origins to it's varied modern incarnations.

    The Triumph of Pierrot : The Commedia dell'Arte and the Modern Imagination

    by Martin Burgess Green and John C. Swan

    A very good book that explores Commedia from it's Italian origins to it's varied modern incarnations.

    Lazzi : The Comic Routines of the Commedia dell'Arte

    by Mel Gordon

    "Lazzi" - a collection of the routines used by the Commedia troupes of old - this book provides opportunities to explore what was or to create your own contemporary versions based on originals.

    The Three Cuckolds (Commedia in Performance)
    by Leon Katz

    Pierrot in Petrograd : The Commedia Dell'Arte/Balagan in Twentieth-Century Russian Theatre and Drama
    by J. Douglas Clayton 

    Playing Commedia
    by Barry Grantham
    "
    Grantham offers a thorough and very practical approach and while the focus is on commedia the principles and techniques he addresses serve as an ideal introduction to mask work generally.
    I'd say that this book more than many others is essential reading. It has manual status. Check it out."

    Dave Riley (Mask and Puppet List)

    The Cambridge Companion to Greek Tragedy

    by P.E. Easterling (Editor)

    Over 400 pages of relevant scholarly material on the origins of Western theatre.

    Looking at ancient Greek tragedy in the context of late-20th-century reading, criticism and performance, seven distinguished scholars examine tragedy as an institution in the civic life of ancient Athens; a range of approaches to the surviving plays; and changing patterns of reception, adaptation, and performance, from antiquity to the present.

    Stages of Drama : Classical to Contemporary Theater
    by Carl H. Klaus (Editor), Miriam Gilbert, Bradford S. Field

    Booknews, Inc. , September 1, 1995
     Presents some 40 plays from the classical Greek period to the present, including the work of 26 playwrights from 12 countries, by authors such as Sophocles, Shakespeare, Ntozake Shange, and David Henry Hwang. A general introduction discusses reading and witnessing a play, while section introductions provide an overview of each period of drama and discuss issues related to understanding and staging the plays. Contains b&w photos, and critical reviews of each play, plus a list of film and video productions of the plays. No index. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

    Dionysus Writes : The Invention of Theatre in Ancient Greece
    by Jennifer Wise

    Images of the Greek Theatre (Classical Bookshelf)
    by J. R. Green, Eric Handley (Contributor), Richard Green, British Museum

    A Short Introduction to the Ancient Greek Theater 
    by Graham Ley 

    Ten Greek Plays in Contemporary Translations
    by Levy Lind, Levi R. Lind (Editor)

    Greek and Roman Theatre  
    by Don Nardo

    A Theatre History text looking at the origins of Western Theatre.

    Oedipus at Thebes : Sophocles' Tragic Hero and His Time
    by Bernard MacGregor Walker Knox, Berbard Knox 

    In this widely praised book, an eminent classicist examines Sophocles` Oedipus Tyrannus in the context of fifth-century B.C. Athens. In attempting to discover what the play meant to Sophocles` contemporaries--and in particular in disentangling Sophocles` ideas from Freud`s psychoanalytical interpretations--Bernard Knox casts fresh light on its timeless and universal nature. For this edition, Knox has provided a new preface and a list of suggested readings.

     

    Ancient Sun, Modern Light : Greek Drama on the Modern Stage
    by Marianne McDonald 

    The influence of tragedy on classic comedy is evident in the increasing preoccupation with subjects that are  utopian or timeless (while) the traditional satire on contemporary events and personages recedes more and more onto the background"-Introduction 

    The National Stage: Theatre and Cultural Legitimation in England, France, and Americaby Loren Kruger

    A big global picture of the state and place of theatre in three nations.  This academic exploration discusses the various social, political and cultural roles that theatre has played in the US and Europe.

    The Making of Modern Drama
    by Richard Gilman

    This highly acclaimed critical exploration of modern drama begins with Buchner and Ibsen and then discusses the major playwrights who have shaped modern theater-Strinberg, Chekhov, Pirandello, Brecht, Beckett, and Handke. A new introduction by the author assesses developments of recent years.

     

    The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre by Phyllis Hartnoll

    A concise guide to theatre in the familiar dictionary format.  An impressive volume and a useful starting point for any investigation into theatre.

    What Is Theatre? : An Introduction and Exploration by John Russell Brown

    A fairly comprehensive introduction to theatre, including discussion of the roles of various practitioners and the audience. Well worth a look.

    History of the Theatre
    by Oscar G. Brockett

    An amazing text. If not definitive, certainly very close to it. At over 700 pages, this text covers the development of theatre from its origins to the 1990's.
     

    by Annabelle Henkin Melzer

     

     

     

    Seven Famous Greek Plays
    by Whitney Jennings Oates (Editor), Eugene O'Neill (Editor)

     

     

     

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