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Musicals! is an illustrated sourcebook for total theatre training, emphasizing the director's role in the three main building blocks for mounting a performance: preparation, production, and performance. Boland and Argentini provide a comprehensive, step-by-step theatre primer which will prove invaluable to musical directors, teachers, administrators, students, and actors. After the initial decisions are made, specific guidelines in preparing the stage picture, holding auditions and casting, and running the gamut of rehearsals are provided. Lighting, costumes, creating sets and scenery, and safety precautions are also discussed. The musical number and choreography are analyzed and defined, and advice on how to use color and solve multiple scene problems is given. With opening night approaching, a checklist of what must be done is enumerated and explained. The authors provide tips on publicity, running the box office, as well as the do's and don'ts of mounting the show and its final strike . Includes a glossary of theatrical terms, a selected bibliography, and recommended sources for scenic drops, costumes, and lighting equipment. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Some useful information put into practice
I got several books on directing when I was about to direct my first show, an opera, last year and was glad I got this one. It had some really useful ideas on blocking diagrams that I immediately put to use. ... Read more

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The Moscow Art Theatre is still recognized as having more impact on modern theatre than any company in the world. This lavishly illustrated and beautifully produced facsimile edition of a Russian journal from 1914 documents, photographically, the premieres of all of Anton Chekhov's plays produced by the Moscow Art Theatre, including:
*The Seagull,
*Three Sisters
*Uncle Vanya
*Cherry Orchard
*Ivanov.
Edited by renowned theatre historian Vera Gottlieb, the volume also reproduces - for the first time in an English translation - introductions by Stanislavsky's collaborators Nemirovich-Danchenko and Efros. With 175 unique photographs, this is a significant contribution to our understanding of the origins of today's theatre. ... Read more

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Authored by professional fight director J. Allen Suddeth, all the aspects of brawn, brawl, and broadswords are covered. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

great resource
"Fight Directing" is a great resource for directors and acting teachers. When directors ask me about a combat resource I tell them to pick up this book and a copy of Swashbuckling.

A Must Have for Fight Directors!!!
Whether you are an experienced fight director or just getting started (I'd suggest a high level of proficiency in stage combat first), fight master J. Allen Suddeth's book is packed with useful, practical, and creative information on directing stage combat sequences.Best of all, he offers numerous approaches to comabt choreography and encourages the reader discover what works best for him/herself.Directors should also be encouraged to read this, as it will assist in the collaborative process between director and fight director.Incredibly useful and absolutely necessary!

Complete Safety Guide
This book is an excellent guide to what the Society of American Fight Directors preach--Safety!Fight Master Suddeth details the many traps and common practices that put actors in harms way, then shows us the safe alternatives.It is a guide that should be kept in every theater as a reference for actors, stage managers, directors, etc.It doesn't pretend to teach you how to direct fights--this only comes with intense training--but rather teach you how to protect yourself and fellow artists.Included are details of weaponry and how to maintain them, tips, pointers, tricks, etc.

With decades of experience under his belt, this book is an extremely valuable tool if you are participating in any form of staged violence.Don't leave your safety to trial & error.

Warning-May lead to brilliance in fight direction!
I bought Mr. Suddeth's book a year or so ago simply looking for some pointers on choreographing a fight. What I found was an invaluable guide to directing, not just a fight, but the entire scene in which it was contained. I also found that FDftT had much to offer for experienced fight directors and novice stage combatants alike. The language was clear, the writing engaging and the content comprehensive. The issues addressed in this book transcend the mere basics of staged violence and focus instead on the scene and its integral relationship with the fight. If you are looking to "brush-up" on stage combat technique I would suggest that you get out and enroll in a stage combat class, not try to hone a hard earned skill by reading a book. If you are looking for insights on how to go about safely and effeciently directing a scene or play that contains staged violence, put up your feet, relax and open Fight Directing for the Theatre by J. Allen Suddeth.

This book should be in every theatre!
As a beginner in the world of theatre and stage combat, this book has helped me more than any other text out there. Anyone who hopes to stage a fight in ANY production should read this first AND THEN keep it around throughout rehearsals!Its insightful tips are like having someone there to help you along your way, keeping you focused on what is important : safe and effective dramatic storytelling through combat. Balancing level-headed practicality with clear artistic vision, it can be understood and enjoyed by any theatre practitioner.From the shop to the director's chair, it is a must have. ... Read more

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Unlike other introductory theatre textbooks that are often written for theatre majors and assume a considerable amount of previous knowledge, this text is designed for the general education student in college - one who may not be familiar with very many plays and has only seen a limited number of theatre productions. Because it can be difficult to make references to works that students are already familiar with, this text focuses on just four plays: the tragedy Macbeth, the American classic Our Town, the landmark African American drama A Raisin in the Sun, and the contemporary rock musical Rent. At the beginning of the text, each play is described with plot synopses (and suggested video versions), and then these four representative works are referred to throughout the book. By using these four model plays, this textbook aims to inform the student about theatre arts, stimulate interest in the art form, lead to critical thinking about theatre, and prepare the student to be a more informed and critical theatregoer. The textbook looks at both the theoretical and practical aspects of theatre arts, from the nature of theatre and drama to how it reflects society to explaining the processes that playwrights, actors, designers, directors, producers, and critics go through. Finally, the textbook addresses students as contemporary theatregoers and offers ways in which to better view a theatre production, to discuss it critically, and to do a written evaluation of a theatre event.Structured into seven chapters, each looking at a major area or artist - and concluding with the audience and the students themselves - this unique approach to theatre thoroughly addresses all of the major topics to be found in an introduction to theatre text. ... Read more

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This unique new book will open people's eyes to the power of live theatre in museum settings--its capacity to touch the heart and mind, challenge understanding, and provoke new ways of thinking about exhibits. Catherine Hughes' aim is simple: to prove that there is no more vital a tool for making a subject, period, or people come to life than drama. ... Read more

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Devising Theatre is a practical handbook that combines a critical analysis of contemporary devised theatre practice with descriptions of selected companies, and includes suggestions for any group devising theatre from scratch. It is the first book to propose a general theory of devised theatre.Oddey identifies the unique nature of this mode of performance and examines how devised theatre is perceived by professional practitioners, providing an historical overview illustrating how it has evolved since the 1960s. She looks at the particular working practices and products of a number of professional companies, including a Reminiscence theatre for the elderly and a theatre-in-education group, and offers ideas and exercises or exploration and experimentation. Devising Theatre is a much-needed, authoritative account of an exciting and growing field of theatre practice. ... Read more

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Classic work on Indian dance tradition, theater. illus. ... Read more

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This major introductory textbook is from one of the leading educators working in theatre today. What Is Theatre? will make its reader a better playgoer, responding more fully to performance, with a keener appreciation of all the resources of theatre-acting, design, direction, organization, theatre buildings, and audiences. By focusing on the best professional practice and the most helpful learning processes, Dr. Brown shows how to read a play-text and to see and hear its potential for performance. Throughout this book, suggestions are given for student essays and class discussions, to help both instructor and reader to clarify their thoughts on all aspects of theatre-going.

While the main focus is on present-day theatre in North America, history is used to illuminate current practice. Theatres in Europe and Asia also feature in the discussion. A view is given of all contributors to performance, with special emphasis placed on actors and the plays they perform. This textbook is not tied to a few specific play-texts, but designed to be effective regardless of which play a student sees or reads. In Part Two, leading practitioners of different generations and cultural backgrounds describe their own work, providing a variety of perspectives on the contemporary theatre. All this is supplemented by nearly 100 black and white and color illustrations from productions, working drawings, and plans. This new text engages its readers in the realities of the theatre; it is up-to-date, comprehensive, and packed with practical advice for understanding how theatre works and how plays come alive in performance.

John Russell Brown is professor of Theatre at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and has taught at a variety of colleges including New York and Stanford Universities. For 15 years he was an associate director of the National Theatre in London, and he has directed plays in many other theatres including Cincinnati Playhouse, the Empty Space in Seattle, and the Clurman Theatre in New York. Professor Brown has written extensively about theatre, especially about Shakespeare and contemporary theatre. He is editor of The Oxford Illustrated History of Theatre.

Focus is on the best professional practice and the most helpful learning processes.

Throughout the book, suggestions are given for students' essays and topics for class discussions.

Theatre history is not summarized, but used to illuminate certain practice. ... Read more

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On a warm evening a man is crying "Howl, howl, howl" as he carries in his arms the body of a young woman. This isn't urban violence, it's Gorilla Rep's production of King Lear. There are no sets. The action uses available space: a parking lot, a pedestrian mall, a field. The audience - students, theater lovers, passersby, homeless people - move along with actors, from a tree to a fountain to a bench, and the audience may follow a portion of the performance or all of it. This is one of the most radical, and yet most easily available, concepts in theater: make the world the theater, make the world the audience. Christopher Carter Sanderson is the creator of an alternative theatrical concept: live free performance in public spaces. Featured in the New York Times, the Gorilla Rep productions are praised both for their acting and for the startling ingenuity of the concept. In this new book, Sanderson explains how theater can be made to work in any free space. He provides specific and practical advice for any performer or director,and relates stories from his own Gorilla Rep experience that show what the most unorthodox of theatrical techniques can achieve - without a theater, without a stage, and without a ticket to be sold.Gorilla Theater ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

This is no Shakespeare
Let me start by saying this man did NOT "create the concept of Gorilla Theater" as he and his critics claim him as doing.To do so would discredit the very beginnings of theater history itself when the closest thing the world had to theater were wandering performers.As a professor at Yale and theater practitioner you would think he would acknowledge his adaptation of the original form of theater that has been around for centuries.I unfortunately found the book hard to read because, even though he lays down the basic principles and ideas of outdoor non-profit theater production, he also single handedly claims himself as the originator and creator of it all.I simply could not get past the man's ridiculous ego to enjoy the novelty of his work.

An excellent and useful guide
This book is not for those with an axe to grind over outdoor theatre or Gorilla Rep's aesthetic. It offers advice and guidelines that have been tried and tested. It is best used by those who have creative minds of their own and can take the basic principles of Gorilla Theatre and make it their own. The book is also a testament to the fact that theater is not made through ideas and money alone but through the dedication and creativity of the people involved. This book is clearly a culmination of years of hard work and innovation, and is best judged in terms of its practical use for those who are actually working towards creating their own outdoor shows.

Minus Five Stars
Actors screaming lines at cattle auctioneer-tempo in public parks?

This guy couldn't direct his way out of a wet paper bag. ... Read more

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This book explores the vision and talents of a controversial group of artists who, depending on one's perspective, either revitalized or disfigured the standard dramatic repertoire by adapting canonical dramas for the contemporary American stage. Amy S. Green's critical history features the bold directorial ventures of JoAnne Akalaitis, Lee Breuer, Liviu Ciulei, Richard Foreman, Joseph Papp, Lucian Pintilie, Richard Schechner, Peter Sellars, Andrei Serban, Robert Woodruff, and Garland Wright. Green covers Greek and Roman drama, plays by Shakespeare and Molière, and the operas of Mozart and da Ponte, and discusses in detail many landmark theatrical events of the past thirty years. This versatile, insightful study provides an informed reading of the business of theatrical revision, and a full-scale investigation of this rich and controversial genre. ... Read more

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This is a full-length study of the renowned French theatre director Ariane Mnouchkine, and her company, the Théâtre du Soleil. Mnouchkine is recognized as one of the first women directors to achieve an international reputation and her productions, spanning from Shakespeare to contemporary drama, have been widely acclaimed as being in the forefront of twentieth-century theatre. Having worked with Mnouchkine's company in 1985, Adrian Kiernander was in a unique position to observe her directorial style and working methods. In this fascinating study, Kiernander analyses the elements which inform Mnouchkine's work as well as the input she has had on modern theatre. The book includes an interview with Mnouchkine, a chronology of her productions and theatre career, and is illustrated with photographs from productions. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

A must have
What a pleasure it was to read this book. I learned more about being a director and performer from this, than from the thousands of dollars spent taking class in NY. As I am not a fan of the dry read, I opened this with a little trepidation, and was so pleasantly surprised. Mr. Caird writes with humor and intelligence and keeps you engaged from beginning to end. I immediately recommended it to other performer/directors that I know, and feel it should be required text in every college theater program. The wonderful thing is that this is a book I will go back to time and again with each different project I am attached to, whether it be as a performer or director. It is a MUST HAVE.

a true practical companion
I was lucky to have been directed by this man once, and maybe even luckier to have purchased his book! It's informative, enlightening, affirming, ever-encouraging, often very funny and a necessary bit of reading for not only any director, but also for actors, producers, stage managers, musicians, technical directors, designers, etc., and anyone who is even remotely interested in how theatre works. This book will sit on my table next to my script in the rehearsal room! I will be giving this book to friends of mine who've been directing a lot longer than I.

Great book at great price!
I really like this book - its no nonsense, non-anecdotal approach to the subject of directing is refreshing to me, since my library is mired in ego-heavy "Back when I directed my seminal production of ...." type literature. There is certainly a place for such books, but this guide is something different. It is aimed at directors, but I think would be helpful reading for anyone involved in the theatre, and can be read at almost any stage of development. Someone experienced in the field will find Caird's astute observations strangely reassuring and a beginner will gain lots of new information in small, approachable bites.

As with most singlevolume books in an A-Z type format, the entries just brush the surface of some subjects. But I love that you can find entries on subjects as diverse asTrap doors, Second-Nightishness, Nudity onstage and Child Actors. Definitely not in that order.

I bought this book at $20 and thought it was a tremendous bargain for the content -it's an even better purchase at the current amazon price. ... Read more

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This book offers an insider's advice on how to workshop, rehearse, and maintain an interactive production. ... Read more

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Robert Wilson, the leading American avant-garde theater director, revolutionized the stage by making visual communication more important than words. His productions cut across the boundaries that traditionally have defined theater, dance, opera and the visual arts to create a total work of art.This book, the first comprehensive study of Wilson, traces the evolution of the director's astonishing career. It explains how Wilson renovated the stage and describes in detail major productions such as: DEAFman Glance, Einstein on the Beach, andCIVIL WarS.Amazon.com Review
Robert Wilson's insane, brilliant 14-hour avant-garde theatreexperiments in the 1970s often were punishments even to the braveaudiences willing to go along with him. But they were packed withtheatre ideas and experiments that have been appropriated and digestedby a generation and a half of more conventional directors. Here, forthe first time on this scale, Wilson's body of work is treated as awhole, and its innovations labeled and catalogued for theages. Extremely useful both for those who are seeking entry toWilson's oeuvre, and for Wilson veterans longing for a betterunderstanding of what exactly it was they saw in Einstein on theBeach, CIVIL WarS, and other projects. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The Most Creative Theater Artist of our Time
Robert Wilson is a genius.Simple statement.Simple fact.He has been altering the way we view language, staging, lighting, color, set design, dance, and presentation/direction since 1965 and his current projects dealing with the reinterpretation of opera are even more bold and thrilling than his earlier experimental works.He is getting better and more inventive and is a formidable force in the theater both here in the US and around the world.

Arthur Holmberg's very fine book THE THEATRE OF ROBERT WILSON was published in 1996 as part of the DIRECTORS IN PERSPECTIVE series by Cambridge University Press.While the hardback version is not readily available, the paperback version is still out there in the rarebook stores.If you find one, buy it.Holmberg is not only a fine scholar, he also comes to his subject by means of extended interviews with Wilson.In this book he chronicles the life of Robert Wilson and his involvement in the theater up to the date of this publication. He devotes a large volume of the information to an essay on 'Contextualizing Wilson: from semiotics to semantics' and while the title breathes artspeak, the content is immensely readable and valuable in providing insights as to how Wilson arrived at his most creative view of 'theater'.Holmberg then wisely presents an in depth discussion with photographs of Wilson's major work at that time, 'the CIVILwarS' - a multimedia massive project that remains one of the most inventive works of theater in the repertoire.

The now signature use of symbols for sets, Noh influenced movement, timeless black and white stark costume design, and immensely creative lighting effects are discussed but only to the point of the time of the book.Wilson's latest creations for the opera stage include the wholly successful spiritual experience of his 'Parsifal' now on the stage of the Los Angeles Opera and the equally stunning reductive 'Madama Butterfly' which follows next year.But also his designs and productions of Wagner'sRing cycle will be unveiled next year and promise to once again make that great work yet more meaningful to the audience.

Sadly this book is outdated and the quality of the multiple photographs of Wilson's sets, costumes, and performances are little better than snapshot quality.But the information is fascinating and important.Surely there will begin appearing many books about the creative mind and works of Robert Wilson (perhaps Holmberg will re-do this one and update it) and hopefully those books will include color reproductions of the extraordinary stage pictures from his operas.But until those books come along, this book is well worth searching for.Highly Recommended.Grady Harp, December 05

An excellent book not yet released (*not* out of print).
This is an excellent study on the contemporary stage director Robert Wilson. I have read Dr. Holmberg's book in pre-release.Prospective purchasers should take note that, contrary to what amazon.com says, the book is *not* out of print;it simply has not yet been released by the publisher.Last I heard from a local book store, it will become available in June of 1997. Charles G. Thomas, Cambridge, MA thomas@world.std.com ... Read more

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In this fascinating and affectionate account of a unique theatrical phenonemon, Andrew Harris takes an intriguing look at the reality and myth behind the heart and soul of American drama. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

Bringing Craig down to earth
This is a compact, but well-documented study of a 1926 theatre production of "The Pretenders", a little-known early play by Ibsen at the Danish Royal Theatre in Copenhagen to celebrateAdam and Johannes Poulsen's 25th anniversary as actors. The latter of these called in the help of theatre director, designer and prophet in exile Gordon Craig, who had abstained from active involvement in the theatre since he directed the (in)famous "Hamlet" with screens at Stanislavki's Moscow Art Theatre in 1912. In 1930 Craig produced a sumptuous book (now a collector's item) with colour reproductions of his designs and a personal account of his involvement. Using (Danish) documentation, including floor plans and other papers from the Royal Theatre's archives and press cuttings, Mr and Mrs Marker draw a detailed picture of the actual goings-on behind the scenes, the effectiveness of Craig's ideas in practice and the reception of the production. In some respects rather unlike Craig's self-glorifying account! An interesting, well-illustrated read for people with an interest in dramatic theory and theatre history. Too bad that no colour reproductions were included.

Bringing Craig down to earth
This is a compact, but well-documented study of a 1926 theatre production of "The Pretenders", a little-known early play by Ibsen at the Danish Royal Theatre in Copenhagen to celebrateAdam and Johannes Poulsen's 25th anniversary as actors. The latter of these called in the help of theatre director, designer and prophet in exile Gordon Craig, who had abstained from active involvement in the theatre since he directed the (in)famous "Hamlet" with screens at Stanislavki's Moscow Art Theatre in 1912. In 1930 Craig produced a sumptuous book (now a collector's item) with colour reproductions of his designs and a personal account of his involvement. Using (Danish) documentation, including floor plans and other papers from the Royal Theatre's archives and press cuttings, Mr and Mrs Marker draw a detailed picture of the actual goings-on behind the scenes, the effectiveness of Craig's ideas in practice and the reception of the production. In some respects rather unlike Craig's self-glorifying account! An interesting, well-illustrated read for people with an interest in dramatic theory and theatre history. Too bad that no colour reproductions were included.

Bringing Craig down to earth
This is a compact, but well-documented study of a 1926 theatre production of "The Pretenders", a little-known early play by Ibsen at the Danish Royal Theatre in Copenhagen to celebrateAdam and Johannes Poulsen's 25th anniversary as actors. The latter of these called in the help of theatre director, designer and prophet in exile Gordon Craig, who had abstained from active involvement in the theatre since he directed the (in)famous "Hamlet" with screens at Stanislavki's Moscow Art Theatre in 1912. In 1930 Craig produced a sumptuous book (now a collector's item) with colour reproductions of his designs and a personal account of his involvement. Using (Danish) documentation, including floor plans and other papers from the Royal Theatre's archives and press cuttings, Mr and Mrs Marker draw a detailed picture of the actual goings-on behind the scenes, the effectiveness of Craig's ideas in practice and the reception of the production. In some respects rather unlike Craig's self-glorifying account! An interesting, well-illustrated read for people with an interest in dramatic theory and theatre history. Too bad that no colour reproductions were included. ... Read more

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