by Robert L. Benedetti (1985)
Explains the role of a director from his first encounter with a play through casting, rehearsals, staging and shaping the play - A director's approach to Hamlet_
James C. Bulman
This collection of essays brings a full range of contemporary critical perspectives to bear upon the practical questions of performing Shakespeare. It will be of particular interest to students and teachers of theatre and literary theory.
David Grote
"The first book-length study of its kind, this volume investigates Shakespeare as a member of his acting company, dating and casting all the plays they presented from 1594 to 1614, and exploring the effects of actors in his writing.". "Grote describes the company's reorganization as the King's Men, which led to the writing of Shakespeare's great tragedies, as well as the trials of the plague years, Shakespeare's retirement from the stage, the development of writers to replace him, and the burning of the Globe.". "Much has been written about Shakespeare and a great deal is known about the Elizabethan theater. Yet little has been done to examine Shakespeare in relation to his acting company. This book casts light on Shakespeare's life in drama and the creation and staging of his plays. More precisely than any other work, it establishes the dates for his company's productions, exploring the varied and profound influences actors had on the works of Renaissance dramatists, and giving us a unique look at the man who knew his actors best of all."--BOOK JACKET.
Jean Wilson
"The plays of Elizabethan and Jacobean England, and Shakespeare's work in particular, are usually presented in a purely literary context; the material context is relatively neglected. Yet the setting, staging and costuming of Shakespeare's plays are not only fascinating subjects in their own right; they also illuminate aspects both of the playtext and of contemporary social and cultural history." "The Archeology of Shakespeare sets out to right this imbalance in theatre studies by systematically investigating the material evidence that bears upon the theatre and theatrical presentations of Shakespeare's day. The astounding discovery in 1989 of the foundations of the Rose theatre, followed later in the year by the uncovering of the site of Shakespeare's own Globe theatre, have transformed our knowledge of the subject. Dr. Wilson assesses the results of these investigations in relation to what is known of the other theatres of London, and supplements her findings by the study of contemporary art forms, especially tomb sculpture, an under-used body of material that throws considerable light on the interiors and staging practices of Elizabethan playhouses." "Chapters on the social and cultural background to the Elizabethan theatre, as well as on Shakespeare himself, provide the context to the fascinating detail of the 'archeology'. Nearly ninety illustrations of contemporary paintings, sculptures and buildings complement the text."--BOOK JACKET.
David Krasner
The history of African American performance and theatre is a topic that few scholars have closely studied or discussed as a critical part of American culture. In this fascinating interdisciplinary volume, David Krasner reveals such a history to be a tremendously rich one, focusing particularly on the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. The fields of history, black literary theory, cultural studies, performance studies, and postcolonial theory are utilized in an examination of several major productions. In addition, Krasner looks at the aesthetic significance of African American performers on the American stage and the meaning of the technique entitled "cakewalking."