Arts / Performing arts / Theater

Children's Theater: A Paradigm, Primer, and Resource

by Kelly Eggers & Walter Eggers – Scarecrow Press (April 09, 2010)

This book introduces readers to the world of children's theater by highlighting one specific model, The Oyster River Players, a small children's theater company in New Hampshire. By exploring the history and...

The London Stage 1890-1959: Accumulated Indexes

by J. P. Wearing – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (October 30, 2014)

This volume combines all the individual indexes—title, genre, theatre, and general—found in the seven volumes of The London Stage: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel (2nd edition) covering...

Stage Mothers: Women, Work, and the Theater, 1660-1830

by Elaine M. McGirr, Laura Engel, Ellen Malenas Ledoux & Judith Hawley et al. – Bucknell University Press (October 31, 2014)

Stage Mothers expands the discussion of eighteenth-century women’s social and dramatic roles by demonstrating the complicated, contradictory, and celebratory faces of maternity on stage and on the page. This...

The Orphan of Zhao and Other Yuan Plays: The Earliest Known Versions

by Stephen H. West & Wilt L. Idema – Columbia University Press (December 09, 2014)

This is the first anthology of Yuan-dynasty zaju (miscellaneous comedies) to introduce the genre to English-speaking readers exclusively through translations of the plays’ fourteenth-century editions. Almost...

Great Producers

by Iris Dorbian – Allworth (February 23, 2010)

Up close and personal with Broadway?s brightest lights of the past, present, and future.

* Firsthand accounts, rare interviews, backstage anecdotes

* Insider ideas from Disney, Jujamcyn, Mackintosh, Weissler,...

Historical Dictionary of Japanese Traditional Theatre

by Samuel L. Leiter – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (October 30, 2014)

This updated edition adds well over 200 plot summaries representing each theatrical form in addition to:

• a chronology;
• introductory essay;
• appendixes;
• an extensive bibliography;
• over 1500 cross-referenced entries...

The Long Christmas Ride Home

by Paula Vogel – Theatre Communications Group (October 01, 2004)

Pulitzer-Prize winning author of How I Learned to Drive's newest play.

Historical Dictionary of Contemporary American Theater: 1930-2010

by James Fisher – Scarecrow Press (June 01, 2011)

Historical Dictionary of Contemporary American Theater presents the plays and personages, movements and institutions, and cultural developments of the American stage from 1930 to 2010, a period of vast and almost...

The London Stage 1950-1959: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (September 16, 2014)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1950 to December 31, 1959. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

Tragedy in the Contemporary American Theatre

by Robert J. Andreach – UPA (July 16, 2014)

This book examines plays by contemporary playwrights and compares them alongside the works of Eugene O’Neill, Arthur Miller, and Tennessee Williams. Andreach argues that tragedy is not only present in contemporary...

Len Jenkin's Theatre: Wonder and Heart

by Robert J. Andreach – UPA (December 22, 2010)

Early in his career, Len Jenkin identified two qualities that theatre should have: wonder and heart. Imagination creates wonder by transforming nature to suggest more than nature. Love engages the heart on the...

Blood on the Stage, 480 B.C. to 1600 A.D.: Milestone Plays of Murder, Mystery, and Mayhem

by Amnon Kabatchnik – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (June 06, 2014)

This volume examines the key representations of transgression drama produced between 480 B.C. and 1600. Arranged in chronological order, the entries consist of plot summary (often including significant dialogue),...

The London Stage 1930-1939: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (May 15, 2014)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1930 to December 31, 1939. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

The Manifestos and Essays

by Richard Foreman – Theatre Communications Group (November 25, 2013)

The thoughts and work of the legendary avant-garde director.

Staging Scenes from the Operas of Mozart: A Guide for Teachers and Singers

by William Ferrara & Martha Ferrara – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (May 08, 2014)

In Staging Scenes from the Operas of Mozart: A Guide for Teachers and Singers, opera director William Ferrara offers the perfect resource for the dramatic preparation of opera scenes for directors and student...

Hernani

by John J. Janc – UPA (April 23, 2014)

This is a critical edition, or “édition critique,” of Victor Hugo’s play Hernani. Following the play, there are literary, historical, linguistic and critical notes, indexes of all words and proper names,...

The London Stage 1920-1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (March 27, 2014)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1920 to December 31, 1929. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

The Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Drama

by Xiaomei Chen – Columbia University Press (March 11, 2014)

This condensed anthology reproduces close to a dozen plays from Xiaomei Chen’s well-received original collection, along with her critical introduction to the historical, cultural, and aesthetic evolution of...

The Queen's Dumbshows: John Lydgate and the Making of Early Theater

by Claire Sponsler – University of Pennsylvania Press (March 10, 2014)

The Queen's Dumbshows explores the importance of John Lydgate's mummings and entertainments for literary and theatrical history, rethinking what constitutes "drama" in late medieval England and what role it...

My TWP Plays: A Collection Including Ten Lost Years

by Jack Winter & Bruce Barton – Talonbooks (January 20, 2014)

The first anthology of plays by one of the central figures of Toronto's left-wing theater collective TWP.

World Drama, Volume 1: 26 Unabridged Plays

by Barrett H. Clark – Dover Publications (January 31, 2013)

Volume 1 of this two-volume set contains 26 plays including Aeschylus "Prometheus Bound"; Sophocles "Antigone"; Seneca "Medea"; Marlowe, "Dr. Faustus"; Heywood, "A Woman Killed with Kindness"; Johnson, "Every...

Japanese No Masks: With 300 Illustrations of Authentic Historical Examples

by Friedrich Perzynski & Stanley Appelbaum – Dover Publications (August 24, 2012)

120 full-page plates of magnificent, elaborately carved, museum-quality masks worn by actors playing gods, warriors, beautiful women, feudal lords, and supernatural beings. Captions.

Annie Oakley and Buffalo Bill's Wild West

by Isabelle S. Sayers – Dover Publications (May 29, 2012)

Wonderful behind-the-scenes look at the life and career of Annie Oakley. More than 100 rare photographs, posters, handbills, and other memorabilia.

The London Stage 1910-1919: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Scarecrow Press (December 19, 2013)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1910 to December 31, 1919. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

Giorgio Strehler Directs Carlo Goldoni

by Scott Malia – Lexington Books (December 11, 2013)

Giorgio Strehler Directs Carlo Goldoni explores the relationship between directorial aesthetic and the dramatic canon. Scott Malia examines how director Giorgio Stehler established his own reputation while bolstering...

The London Stage 1900-1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Scarecrow Press (December 05, 2013)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1900 to December 31, 1909. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

The Ingenious Simpleton: Upending Imposed Ideologies through Brief Comic Theatre

by Delia Méndez Montesinos – UPA (December 05, 2013)

This book analyzes the role of the theatrical simpleton in the pasos of the sixteenth-century playwright Lupe de Rueda, in Mario Moreno’s character “Cantinflas,” and in the esquirol of the 1960s Actos...

Historical Dictionary of Russian Theater

by Laurence Senelick – Scarecrow Press (March 16, 2007)

Despite constant hindrance from government interference and control, the Russian theater has produced many memorable playwrights, schools of thought, and plays, whose influence can be seen throughout the world....

The London Stage 1890-1899: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel

by J. P. Wearing – Scarecrow Press (November 21, 2013)

This is a day-by-day calendar of plays produced at the major London theatres from January 1, 1890 to December 31, 1899. Covering dozens of west-end theatres and including production details of thousands of plays,...

Blacks in Blackface: A Sourcebook on Early Black Musical Shows

by Henry T. Sampson – Scarecrow Press (October 30, 2013)

Published in 1980, Blacks in Blackface was the first and most extensive book up to that time to deal exclusively with every aspect of all-Black musical comedies performed on the stage between 1910 and 1940....

The Commedia dell'Arte of Flaminio Scala: A Translation and Analysis of 30 Scenarios

by Richard Andrews – Scarecrow Press (October 17, 2008)

This is a translation with detailed commentary of 30 commedia dell'arte scenarios first published in 1611 by Flaminio Scala. It aims principally to demonstrate the methodology of Italian improvised theater and...

Theatre of the Oppressed

by Augusto Boal & Charles A. McBride – Theatre Communications Group (October 15, 2013)

The innovative Brazilian playwright, director and international lecturer explicates Aristotle's poetics and the philosophies of Machiavelli, Hegel and Brecht to determine the extent to which their chief components--imitation,...

Cousins: A Memoir

by Athol Fugard – Theatre Communications Group (October 15, 2013)

A remarkable memoir of the author's coming of age as a writer.

An Ideal Theater: Founding Visions for a New American Art

by Todd London – Theatre Communications Group (September 23, 2013)

An inspiring collection of the dreams and visions of the founders of the American theatre movement.

Historical Dictionary of British Theatre: Early Period

by Darryll Grantley – Scarecrow Press (October 10, 2013)

This book has over 1,183 entries in the dictionary section, these being mainly on playwrights and plays, but others as well including managers and critics, and also on specific theatres, legislative acts and...

Mis-directing the Play: An Argument Against Contemporary Theatre

by Terry McCabe – Ivan R. Dee (December 16, 2008)

Arguing for a radical reorganization of the stage director's view of his role, Terry McCabe challenges the notion that a play is the director's vehicle for self-expression. The idea of the director as centerpiece...

Stage Managing and Theatre Etiquette: A Basic Guide

by Linda Apperson – Ivan R. Dee (September 01, 1998)

Here is a practical introduction to one of the most complex jobs in theatre. Linda Apperson clearly and concisely leads the reader through the procedures and responsibilities of stage management, from auditions...

Shakespeare and the Spanish Comedia: Translation, Interpretation, Performance: Essays in Honor of Susan L. Fischer

by Barbara Mujica – Bucknell University Press (October 03, 2013)

Shakespeare and the Spanish Comedia examines masterpieces of early modern English and Spanish theater with attention to issues of transculturation, translation, interpretation and performance. This collection...

The Battle of the Sexes Russian Style

by Nadezhda Ptushkina – Glagoslav Publications B.V. (August 15, 2013)

Nadezhda Ptushkina's plays reflect her keen interest in constructing multidimensional characters that reflect the myriad ways people are affected by today's turbulent world. Often writing strong female roles,...

Cruelty and Desire in the Modern Theater: Antonin Artaud, Sarah Kane, and Samuel Beckett

by Laurens De Vos – Fairleigh Dickinson University Press (April 18, 2011)

Departing from a refreshing look at the ideas of Antonin Artaud, this book provides a thorough analysis of how both Sarah Kane and Samuel Beckett are indebted to his legacy. In juxtaposing these playwrights,...

Digital Technical Theater Simplified

by Drew Campbell – Allworth (September 13, 2011)

The theater is in the midst of a digital revolution! This book provides readers with an easy-to-understand overview of the digital technology currently available for the stage. In clear language, Digital Technical...

Labyrinth 2: Plays by Don Nigro: 2001-2011

by Jim McGhee – UPA (December 14, 2012)

This book provides a summary of the action of each script, characters required, costume, set, lighting, and sound requirements of the plays Don Nigro has written over the past ten years. Accounts of plays written...

The Boys from Syracuse: The Shuberts' Theatrical Empire

by Foster Hirsch – Cooper Square Press (September 05, 2000)

From 1905 to the crash of 1929, Sam Shubert (1874-1905) and his brothers Lee (1874-1953) and J. J. (1878-1963), despite poor beginnings and near-illiteracy, created a theater monopoly unrivaled in history. Their...

Sherlock Holmes on the Stage: A Chronological Encyclopedia of Plays Featuring the Great Detective

by Amnon Kabatchnik – Scarecrow Press (June 10, 2008)

One of the world's most well known fictional characters, Sherlock Holmes first appeared in print in 1887. The detective was featured in four novels and 56 short stories written by his creator, Sir Arthur Conan...

Historical Dictionary of Chinese Theater

by Tan Ye – Scarecrow Press (June 13, 2008)

The Historical Dictionary of Chinese Theater is the first English language dictionary dedicated entirely to Chinese theater. The history of Chinese theater is told through a chronology, an introductory essay,...

Kissing the Mask: Beauty, Understatement and Femininity in Japanese Noh Theater, with Some Thoughts on Muses (Especially Helga Testorf), Transgender W

by William T. Vollmann – HarperCollins e-books (May 04, 2010)

“Intrepid journalist and novelist William T. Vollman’s colossal body of work stands unsurpassed for its range, moral imperative, and artistry.”

—Booklist

William T. Vollmann, the National Book Award–winning...

The Director's Voice, Vol. 2

by Jason Loewith – Theatre Communications Group (November 20, 2012)

Interviews with leading stage directors working in the American theater.

The Collected Drama of H. L. Mencken: Plays and Criticism

by S. T. Joshi – Scarecrow Press (June 07, 2012)

In The Collected Drama of H. L. Mencken: Plays and Criticism, S. T. Joshi has assembled for the first time Mencken’s dramatic works, comprising six one-act plays and the lengthy three-act play Heliogabalus....

Confessions of a Casting Director

by Jen Rudin – It Books (December 17, 2013)

Confessions of a Casting Director is a must-have for any aspiring actor or stage parent—the definitive guide to breaking into film, television, theater, and even YouTube from longtime casting director and...

Jack Be Nimble

by Jack O'Brien – Farrar, Straus and Giroux (June 17, 2013)

A warm, witty tell-all and history of American regional theater, from one of our best-loved directors

For Jack O'Brien, there's nothing like a first encounter with a great performer, nothing like the sound of...