Literary studies: plays and playwrights Books

Book SynopsisThis Arden edition of Hamlet, arguably Shakespeare''s greatest tragedy, presents an authoritative, modernized text based on the Second Quarto text with a new introductory essay covering key productions and criticism in the decade since its first publication. A timely up-date in the 400th anniversary year of Shakespeare''s death which will ensure the Arden edition continues to offer students a comprehensive and current critical account of the play, alongside the most reliable and fully-annotated text available.Trade Review[Thompson and Taylor] give us a text quite different from the edited versions that shaped debate for much of the past 400 years ... There is intellectual consistency to [their] position. * Times Literary Supplement *The editors’ 168 pages of introduction and 103 pages worth of appendices provide an unprecedented level of contextualization on matters cultural, textual, and theatrical. * Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 *The scholarship … remains at the high standard expected from the Arden Series … Probably one of the most ambitious scholarly editions of the play to be published in the past century or so, if only for its attempt to present the textual complexities of the relationships between quartos and folio by printing all three early authoritative versions. * Sixteenth Century Journal *Table of ContentsIntroduction to the Revised Edition Introduction Hamlet Appendices Index

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Book Synopsis''What is poetry, how many kinds of it are there, and what are their specific effects?''Aristotle''s Poetics is the most influential book on poetry ever written. A founding text of European aesthetics and literary criticism, from it stems much of our modern understanding of the creation and impact of imaginative writing, including poetry, drama, and fiction. For Aristotle, the art of representation conveys universal truths which we can appreciate more easily than the lessons of history or philosophy. In his short treatise Aristotle discusses the origins of poetry and its early development, the nature of tragedy and plot, and offers practical advice to playwrights. This new translation by Anthony Kenny is accompanied by associated material from Plato and a range of responses from more modern literary practitioners: Sir Philip Sidney, P. B. Shelley, and Dorothy L. Sayers. The book includes a wide-ranging introduction and notes, making this the most accessible and attractive modern editioTable of ContentsIntroduction ; Note on the Texts and Translation ; Select Bibliography ; Chronology of Aristotle ; Outline of the Poetics ; from Plato's Republic, Books II, III, and X ; Aristotle's Poetics ; from Sir Philip Sidney's Apology for Poetry ; from P. B. Shelley's Defence of Poetry ; from Dorothy L. Sayers's Aristotle on Detective Fiction ; Explanatory Notes ; Note on Metre ; Glossary of Key Terms ; Index

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Book SynopsisA farcical look at political violence as it''s played out during the Troubles in Northern Ireland against the drab backdrop of a bare, rustic Irish cottage and unending boredom in an inhospitable environment in which a mutilated cat sets off a murderous cycle of revenge. Wee Thomas was a friendly cat. He would always say hello to you were you to see him sitting on a wall. (Pause.) He won''t be saying hello no more, God bless him. Not with that lump of a brain gone.Who knocked Wee Thomas over on the lonely road on the island of Inishmore, and was it an accident? Mad Padraig will want to know when he gets back from a stint of torture and chip shop bombing in Northern Ireland: he loves that cat more than life itself.Trade Review'Gleeful, gruesome play about political terrorism in rural Ireland, which won the Olivier Award for best comedy...Appallingly entertaining...Enlightening..."Lieutenant" is brazenly and unapologetically a farce. But it is also a severely moral play, translating into dizzy absurdism the self-perpetuating spirals of political violence that now occur throughout the world.' The New York Times 'A cautionary fairy tale for our toxic times. In its horror and hilarity, it works as an act of both revenge and repair, turning the tables on grief and goonery, and forcing the audience to think about the unthinkable.' The New Yorker

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Book SynopsisFrances Ya-Chu Cowhig (author)is an internationally produced playwright whose work has been staged in the United Kingdom at the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, Hampstead Theatre, Trafalgar Studios 2 [West End] and the Unicorn Theatre. In the United States her work has been staged at venues that include the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Manhattan Theater Club and the Goodman Theatre. Frances' plays have been awarded the Wasserstein Prize, the Yale Drama Series Award (selected by David Hare), an Edinburgh Fringe First Award, the David A. Callichio Award and the Keene Prize for Literature. Her plays include Lidless, The World of Extreme Happiness, Snow in Midsummer, and The King of Hell's Palace.Joshua Chambers-Letson (editor) is Professor of Performance Studies at Northwestern University. He is the author of After the Party: A Manifesto for Queer of Color Life (NYU Press, 2018) and A Race So Different: Law and PeTrade ReviewSome playwrights have a gift to amuse; Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig has a darker gift. Anyone with romantic notions of Chinese culture will be unsettled by the jagged, unsentimental portrait of modern urban China. * Chicago Reader *“Fearless, zippily-paced, and satirical, shining a light on Chinese society's necessary doublethink, be that willful blindness to the political past, or an equally blind belief in an impossibly brilliant future. * Independent (on The King of Hell's Palace) *An expansive, ambitious play about trauma and passion * The Stage (on Snow in Midsummer) *Cowhig speaks bitterness and makes us sit up and listen * Lyn Gardner The Guardian (on The World of Extreme Happiness) *Table of Contents1. Editorial Preface (Chambers-Letson) – A brief preface introducing the volume and its structure. 2. General Introduction (Mok) – An introduction to Cowhig’s work and the process behind the China Plays 3. The World of Extreme Happiness (Cowhig) 4. World Afterword (Chambers-Letson) 5. Snow in Midsummer (Cowhig) 6. Snow Afterword (Chambers-Letson) 7. The King of Hell’s Palace (Cowhig) 8. King Afterword (Chambers-Letson) 9. Transcribed Conversation w/ Cowhig, Chambers-Letson, and Mok

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Book SynopsisAn essential resource for anyone studying Princess & The Hustler by Chinonyerem Odimba for GCSE English Literature – featuring a complete guide to the text, plus sample questions and answers to help you prepare for assessment. Get to grips with Princess & The Hustler with expert, easy-to-follow breakdowns and analyses of key aspects of the play – including the characters, plot, structure, themes, setting and language – along with a clear explanation of the historical context. This guide also contains prompts for further reflection and research, to help you get the most out of your study and revision, whether at home or in the classroom. Featuring insights from playwright Chinonyerem Odimba, colour photographs of the original production, and extensive quotes and extracts from the text, this GCSE Study Guide will strengthen your understanding, build your confidence and boost your chances of success. It is also an invaluable resource for teachers approaching the play.

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Book SynopsisNo Fear Shakespeare gives you the complete text of Henry V on the left-hand page, side-by-side with an easy-to-understand translation on the right.

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Book SynopsisLike every other play in the Cambridge School Shakespeare series, Measure for Measure has been specially prepared to help all students in schools and colleges. This version of Measure for Measure aims to be different from other editions of the play. It invites you to bring the play to life in your classroom through enjoyable activities that will help increase your understanding. You are encourage to make up your own mind about the play, rather than have someone else''s interpretation handed down to you. Whatever you do, remember that Shakespeare wrote his plays to be acted, watched and enjoyed.Table of ContentsList of characters; Measure for Measure; A problem play?; The writer in his time; The powerful and the powerless; Justice and mercy; Sex and sexuality; The language of Measure for Measure; Setting and staging; William Shakespeare.

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Book SynopsisThis colourful graphic novel features an illustrated cast of characters and a helpful plot summary.

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Book SynopsisSubtitled â??A tragicomedy in two actsâ??, and famously described by the Irish critic Vivien Mercier as a play in which â??nothinghappens, twiceâ??, En attendant Godot was first performed at the Th_Ãtre de Babylone in Paris in 1953. It was translated into English by Samuel Beckett, and opened as Waiting for Godot at the Arts Theatre in London in 1955.â??I told [Ralph] Richardson that if by Godot I had meant God I would have said God, and not Godot.This seemed to disappoint him greatly.â??-- Samuel Beckett to Barney Rosset, 18 October 1954All the dead voices.They make a noise like wings.Like leaves.Like sand.Like leaves.[Silence.]They all speak together. Each one to itself.[Silence.]Rather they whisper.They rustle.They murmur. They rustle.[Silence.] What do they say?They talk about their lives.To have lived is not enough for them.They have to talk about it.To be dead is not enough for them.It is not sufficient.[Silence.]They make a noise like feathers.Like leaves.Like ashes.Like leaves.

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Book SynopsisFrom one of the great modern writers, the acclaimed lectures in which he draws on a lifetime of experience to take the measure of Shakespeare''s plays and sonnets W. H. Auden, poet and critic, will conduct a course on Shakespeare at the New School for Social Research beginning Wednesday. Mr. Auden . . . proposes to read all Shakespeare''s plays in chronological order. So the New York Times reported on September 27, 1946, giving notice of a rare opportunity to hear one of the century''s great poets discuss at length one of the greatest writers of all time. Reconstructed by Arthur Kirsch, these lectures offer remarkable insights into Shakespeare''s plays and sonnets while also adding immeasurably to our understanding of Auden.Trade Review"Auden's lectures on Shakespeare are a marvelous blend of steady, patient intelligence and stunning insight—spirited, free-thinking, resourceful, unintimidated, liberated from the air of treacly piety, and very, very intelligent."—Stephen Greenblatt"A remarkable achievement."—Frank Kermode, London Review of Books"The finest [book] by any English poet on the subject since (and I am not forgetting Coleridge) Dr. Johnson."—Lachlan MacKinnon, Daily Telegraph"In every way, Kirsch has produced a model of useful scholarship. . . . To know Auden's work well is to acquire a liberal education. These lectures on Shakespeare are a good place to start."—Michael Dirda, Washington Post Book World"For anyone who has ever resolved in vain to sit down and read right through Shakespeare, this at last is the volume to help fulfil that resolution. . . . [M]asterly."—Christopher Murray, Irish Times

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Book SynopsisNewsroom, political platform, local hot spot, confession box, preacher-pulpit and football stadium. For generations, African men have gathered in barber shops to discuss the world. These are places where the banter can be barbed and the truth is always telling.Barber Shop Chronicles, which was partly inspired by verbatim recordings, is a heart-warming, hilarious and insightful play that leaps from a barber shop in Peckham to Johannesburg, Harare, Kampala, Lagos and Accra over the course of a single day.It was first produced by the National Theatre, Fuel and Leeds Playhouse in 2017 and is here publishedas a Methuen Drama Student Edition with commentary and notes by Oladipo Agboluaje.Trade ReviewIsn’t this what all playwrights would wish for? To come across in their daily lives a dramatic arena. To find it both immediate and far-reaching. To put on stage lives that have not been seen there before ... [The] chronicles are set in Lagos, Johannesburg, Harare, Accra, Kampala – and south London. They include confessionals, politics, feuding, tales of men away from their homes, men cut off from fathers, men in search of companionship. Common threads – a plot about father and son, a joke about a fly in a drink, a big Barcelona-Chelsea match – weave these episodes together. But it is the stretch of the talk and material that is remarkable: anecdotal and argumentative. -- Susannah Clapp * Observer *Throbs with energy and heat. Full of sadness and great joy. * Daily Telegraph *Rich and exhilarating. A fascinating peek into the barber shop. * The Stage *Life-affirming * Independent *Table of ContentsCHRONOLOGY COMMENTARY PLAYWRIGHT CONTEXT Black British drama (including work of practitioners such as Roy Williams, debbie tucker green and Mojisola Adebayo) THEMES Masculinity (including sport and sexuality) and how it shapes characters and subverts universal and specifically black and African notions of masculinity GENRE Verbatim theatre (use of transcripts to create a work of fiction); comparing to other verbatim plays such as London Road and The Permanent Way SETTING Barbershop as a 'safe space' for black men Diasporic movements - how the play's transnational locations construct a 'black' identity PLAY TEXT FURTHER READING

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWonderfully inspiring. A delightful spell in the company of one of our greatest and most thoughtful actresses * Daily Mail, Books of the Year *A magical love letter to Shakespeare * Kenneth Branagh *A wonderful mixture of appreciation and anecdote * Financial Times, Books of the Year *It’s a mark of Dench’s impish genius and O’Hea’s deftness that it genuinely feels like you’re sitting at her kitchen table with her. It’s companionable and compelling – if you love Judi Dench or Shakespeare (and most of us do), look no further * Guardian *Gorgeous flows of recollection * Literary Review *An utterly delightful book…there can be few higher pleasures in civilised life than hearing Judi Dench recite the poetry of Shakespeare. What emerges is a wealth of unpretentious horse sense – Shakespeare from a great actor’s perspective – that repeatedly strikes to the heart of the matter with a sharp instinctive intelligence that puts fancy-pants literary critics to shame * Telegraph *This is a gloriously entertaining tour through the canon in the company of perhaps the most experienced living Shakespearean actor; reading it feels like a chat with an old friend. * Observer *The book is pure enchantment. It swirls and dances with brilliance and mischief, so forget traditional Shakespearean criticism and analysis. Sack the Eng. Lit. professors. As never before, this book brings the subject to wild, authentic life. * Daily Mail *A wonderful ode to the bard * I *Riveting, revealing and witty * Gazette and Herald *

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Book SynopsisA practical approach to breaking through the barriers of restraint and incomprehension when faced with Shakespeare. Taking many of the techniques explored in her international bestseller Freeing The Natural Voice, in this companion volume Kristin Linklater shows how to apply them to the exploration and speaking of Shakespeare’s language. Beginning with exercises designed to break long-held habits and allow an emotional rather than intellectual relationship to Elizabethan language, she analyses Shakespeare's strategies for creating character, story and meaning through figures of speech, iambic pentameter, rhyme and the alternation of verse and prose. Using copious examples from the plays, Linklater offers her readers the tools to increase understanding and make Shakespeare's words their own.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2020 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate TheatreI looked at her, wanting her to laugh. Wanting her to share in the joke. But she didn't. She just stared. I knew then, in that moment that she had taken it literally...Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Richard Gadd has a chilling story to tell about obsession, delusion and the terrifying ramifications of a fleeting mistake.This powerful and engaging monologue play portrays a man brought to the edge by the actions of a chance encounter which takes a toll on all aspects of his life. In doing so it asks important questions about victims, the justice system and how one decision has the ability to change your life.Trade ReviewFrankly magnificent * Fest *A true one off * Daily Telegraph *A mercurial talent * Independent *

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Book SynopsisFor twenty-six years after his first mention of the character, J.M. Barrie worked on the story of Peter Pan as he appeared through different incarnations: the three-act play Peter Pan, or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up (1904), the illustrated novella Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1906), the Epilogue to the play “An After Thought” (1908), the full-length novel Peter and Wendy (1911), two short stories, and finally a longer version of the original play. This edition of Peter Pan includes not only the novel and revised play as they were first published, but also an earlier novella and the previously unpublished original play.Appendices include materials from Barrie’s personal writings and contemporary reviews and illustrations.Trade Review“A unique achievement—the bringing together of Barrie’s various and scattered Peter Pan texts within a single volume. As such it is an absolute gift to Peter Pan devotees, containing as it does much material that is otherwise unavailable to the general reader. An added bonus is the inclusion of numerous contemporary reviews for both the play of 1904 and the later novelization of 1911.” — Andrew Birkin, author of J.M. Barrie and The Lost Boys“This edition of Peter Pan is an exemplary work of scholarship, giving us not only the 1911 edition of the full novelization of this much edited and reproduced story, but also the 1904 slim pantomime version never before published, “An Afterthought” (1908), and the 1906 novella Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens. The reader has in this edition a thorough exposure to this complicated text. Alton has chosen the Appendices carefully and wisely. Her Introduction meticulously covers the complicated history of the writing, editing, performing, and publishing of this famous story. And she provides us with a review of the major critical responses to the story. This edition of Peter Pan is simply the best we have.” — Roderick McGillis, The University of CalgaryTable of ContentsAcknowledgementsIntroductionJ.M. Barrie: A Brief ChronologyA Note on the TextPrimary Text:Peter and WendyFormative Texts:Peter Pan, or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up“An After-Thought”Peter Pan in Kensington GardensAppendix A: Contemporary Reviews (Plays) Peter Pan, or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up The New York Times (28 December 1904) The Times (28 December 1904) The Saturday Review (7 January 1905) The New York Times (12 November 1905) The New York Times (10 June 1906) “An After-Thought” The New York Times (15 March 1908) Appendix B: Contemporary Reviews (Books) Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens The New York Times (4 December 1910) The New York Times (4 December 1910) Peter and Wendy The New York Times (22 October 1911) The Literary Digest (19 November 1911) Appendix C: Peter Pan Material Barrie’s Manuscript Page of “Fairy” (1903) “Davy Jones’ Locker” (1904) Frank Gillette’s Costume Designs for 1905 London Production of Peter Pan, or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up (1905) Maude Adams from the 1905 New York Production of Peter Pan, or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up (1905) Pauline Chase from the 1907 Playbill Touring Production Poster of Peter Pan, or the Boy whoWouldn’t Grow Up (1907) Appendix D: Related Texts by J.M. Barrie Preface to The Coral Island (1913) “Captain Hook at Eton” (1927) “To the Five” (1928) Appendix E: Images and Illustrations “The Child’s Map of Kensington Gardens.” Illustration by Henry Justice Ford from The Little White Bird (1902) “Peter Pan’s Map of Kensington Gardens.” Illustration by Arthur Rackham from Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1906) J.M. Barrie’s Key to Kensington Gardens (1903) “We Feel Dancey.” Illustration by Arthur Rackham from Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1906) “Title Page.” Illustration by Francis Donkin Bedford from first edition of Peter and Wendy (1911) “Peter Flew In.” Illustration by Francis Donkin Bedford from first edition of Peter and Wendy (1911) “Peter Pan Playing Pipes” and “Wendy on Rock.” Illustrations by Mabel Lucie Attwell from Peter Pan and Wendy (1921) Diarmuid Byron-O’Connor’s Sculpture of Peter Pan at GOSH (2000) Bibliography and Works Cited

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Book SynopsisWhen Falstaff calls upon the sky to rain potatoes in The Merry Wives of Windsor, he is highlighting the late sixteenth-century belief that the exotic vegetable, recently introduced to England from the Americas, was an aphrodisiac. In Romeo and Juliet, Lady Capulet calls for quinces to make pies for the marriage feast of her daughter. This fruit was traditionally connected with weddings and fertility, as echoed by John Gerard in his herbal where he also explained that eating quinces would ‘bring forth wise children, and of good understanding’. Taking fifty quotations centring on flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables, Margaret Willes gives these botanical references their social context to provide an intriguing and original focus on daily life in Tudor and Jacobean England, looking in particular at medicine, cookery, gardening and folklore traditions. Exquisitely illustrated with unique hand-painted engravings from the Bodleian Library’s copy of John Gerard’s herbal of 1597, this book marries the beauty of Shakespeare’s lines with charming contemporary renderings of the plants he described so vividly.Trade Review‘An engaging addition to Shakespeare studies … this book is a treasure, compact, readable and beautifully presented.’ * Irish Examiner *

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Book Synopsis McDowall masterfully plants ideas that grow until they explode into extraordinary shapes. Filthy humour breaks down into a cracked algorithm of letters and loss a play that will gnaw away at you. It's sci-fi and theatre at its best. The StageBillions of miles from home, the lone research base on Pluto has lost contact with Earth. Unable to leave or send for help, the skeleton crew sit waiting.Waiting.Waiting long enough for time to start eating away at them.To lose all sense of it.To start seeing things in the dark outside.X premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 2016. This new Modern Classics edition features an introduction by Dr Cristina Delgado-García.Trade ReviewAlistair McDowall is, I think, the most exciting playwright to emerge out of English theatre in the past five years...He makes me want to try harder. He makes me want to be better. * Simon Stephens, UK, Playwright *Alistair McDowall is one of the most highly regarded young playwrights writing today * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisSharp and funny. Gunderson taps into a buoyant spirit ... the touching ''barbaric yawp'' (Whitman''s phrase) of these two deeply engaging kids. The Washington PostHousebound by illness, Caroline hasn't been to school in months. Confined to her room, she has only social media for company. That is until classmate Anthony bursts in uninvited and armed with waffle fries, a scruffy copy of Walt Whitman's poetry and a school project due the next dayCaroline is unimpressed, but an unlikely friendship develops and a seemingly mundane piece of homework starts to reveal the pair's hopes and dreams - as well as a deep and mysterious bond that connects them even further.Finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, 2014. This new Modern Classics edition features an introduction by Julie Felise Dubiner.Trade ReviewSharp and funny. Gunderson taps into a buoyant spirit...the touching 'barbaric yawp' (Whitman's phrase) of these two deeply engaging kids. * Washington Post *The show is suffused not with the bleakness that you might expect, but with a strong sense of potential and promise. * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisFull of analysis and interpretation, historical background, discussions and commentaries, York Notes will help you get right to the heart of the text you’re studying, whether it’s poetry, a play or a novel.Table of Contents Part 1: Introduction Part 2: The Text Part 3: Critical Approaches Part 4: Critical Perspectives Part 5: Background Further Reading Literacy Terms

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Book SynopsisAlan Bennett''s beloved, best-known play, with a beautiful typographic cover. The best moments in reading are when you come across something a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things that you'd thought special, particular to you. And here it is, set down by someone else, a person you've never met, maybe even someone long dead.As an unruly bunch of bright, funny sixth-form boys pursue sex, sport and a place at university, adolescent anarchy and staffroom rivalry provoke insistent questions about history and education.The History Boys premiered at the National Theatre, London, 2004, winning Evening Standard, Critics' Circle, Olivier and South Bank Awards. On Broadway, it received numerous awards, including six Tonys.

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Book SynopsisThe Complete Works: Modern Critical Edition is part of the landmark New Oxford Shakespeare--an entirely new consideration of all of Shakespeare''s works, edited afresh from all the surviving original versions of his work, and drawing on the latest literary, textual, and theatrical scholarship. In one attractive volume, the Modern Critical Edition gives today''s students and playgoers the very best resources they need to understand and enjoy all Shakespeare''s works. The authoritative text is accompanied by extensive explanatory and performance notes, and innovative introductory materials which lead the reader into exploring questions about interpretation, textual variants, literary criticism, and performance, for themselves.The Modern Critical Edition presents the plays and poetry in the order in which Shakespeare wrote them, so that readers can follow the development of his imagination, his engagement with a rapidly evolving culture and theatre, and his relationship to his literary contemporaries.The New Oxford Shakespeare consists of four interconnected publications: the Modern Critical Edition (with modern spelling), the Critical Reference Edition (with original spelling), a companion volume on Authorship, and an online version integrating all of this material on OUP''s high-powered scholarly editions platform. Together, they provide the perfect resource for the future of Shakespeare studies.Table of ContentsTHE COMPLETE WORKS

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Book SynopsisWith an introduction by Simon CallowJudgements about the quality of works of art begin in opinion. But for the last two hundred years only the wilfully perverse (and Tolstoy) have denied the validity of the opinion that Shakespeare was a genius.Who was Shakespeare? Why has his writing endured? And what makes it so endlessly adaptable to different times and cultures? Exploring Shakespeare's life, including questions of authorship and autobiography, and charting how his legacy has grown over the centuries, this extraordinary book asks how Shakespeare has come to be such a powerful symbol of genius.Written with lively passion and wit, The Genius of Shakespeare is a fascinating biography of the life - and afterlife - of our greatest poet. Jonathan Bate, one of the world's leading Shakespearean scholars, has shown how the legend of Shakespeare's genius was created and sustained, and how the man himself became a truly global phenomenon.'The best modern book on Shakespeare' Sir Peter HallTrade Review‘The best book about Shakespeare for a generation’ Philip Howard, The Times‘As brilliant an account of the Bard’s iconic universality as you could hope to find’ Michael Billington, Guardian‘Absolutely dazzling – illuminates the whole man and the influence he has in our lives’ Simon Callow, Sunday Express‘Occupies the territory of biography, literary criticism, theatrical and social history, and a journey across its landscape is one of constant delight and illumination’ Sir Richard Eyre, Financial Times, Books of the Year‘The theme of this wonderfully written, diverse book is diversity itself, and the range of the essays serves only to confirm the disparate nature of Shakespeare’s achievement’ Peter Ackroyd, The Times ‘The liveliest and most intelligent general book on Shakespeare I have read for a long time’ John Gross, Sunday Telegraph, Books of the YearAmbitious, exceptionally well informed and immensely engaging . . . Bate writes with unflagging energy, intelligence, with and enthusiasm * Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisNo Fear Shakespeare gives you the complete text of Richard III on the left-hand page, side-by-side with an easy-to-understand translation on the right.

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Book SynopsisDavid Roberts is Professor of English at Birmingham City University, UK. His recent books include Restoration Plays and Players (2014) and George Farquhar: A Migrant Life Reversed for (Methuen Drama, 2018).Table of ContentsIntroduction Further Reading The Way of the World

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Book SynopsisFederico García Lorca was born in 1898, in Andalusia, Spain. A poet and dramatist, and also a gifted painter and pianist, his early popular ballads earned him the title of 'poet of the gypsies'. In 1930 he turned his attention to theatre, visiting remote villages and playing classic and new works for peasant audiences. In 1936, shortly after the outbreak of Civil War, he was murdered by Nationalist partisans. His body was never found.Trade Review'Lorca is one of the few indisputably great dramatists of the twentieth century' Observer 'Lorca's great poetic play - the first of his ground-breaking folk trilogy of Spanish Life' Lyn Gardner, Guardian, 30.7.09 'Lorca's drama of forbidden passion, family feud and devouring maternal love and grief is succulent with symbolism' Sam Marlowe, The Times, 30.7.09 'Federico Garcia Lorca's Spanish love-and-death masterpiece...mixes up the rough and tumble of Andalucian peasant realism with surrealist images and stiff poetic formalism' Siobhan Murphy, Metro (London), 29.7.09

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Book SynopsisKaren Britland is Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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Book SynopsisExamines the ways in which Shakespeare used the law for dramatic effect and incorporated the passion for justice into his great tragedies and comedies, and considers the modern legal relevance of his work. This is a study in the field of literature and the law.Trade Review“An analysis that will interest Shakespeare scholars, enrich the working life of practicing lawyers, and help the lay reader understand why he enjoys Shakespeare in the first place.”—Cardozo Studies in Law and Literature“Thorough and lucid.”—Times Literary Supplement“Exhaustive scholarship and searching thought.”—New York Law Journal“Kornstein’s style is always lucid and often witty.”—Renaissance Quarterly“Highly recommended to all literate citizens, a genuine contribution to Shakespearean studies.”—Choice

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Book SynopsisNow in a second edition, Theatre Studies: The Basics is a fully updated guide to the wonderful world of theatre. The practical and theoretical dimensions of theatre â from acting to audience â are woven together throughout to provide an integrated introduction to the study of drama, theatre and performance. Topics covered include: dramatic genres, from tragedy to political documentary theories of performance the history of the theatre in the West acting, directing and scenography With a glossary, chapter summaries and suggestions for further reading throughout, Theatre Studies: the Basics remains the ideal starting point for anyone new to the subject.Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1: Performance Chapter 2: The TextChapter 3: Dramatic Form Chapter 4: Theatre and History Chapter 5: Acting Chapter 6: Directing Chapter 7: Scenography Chapter 8: The audience GlossaryIndexBibliography

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Book SynopsisFeatures witty illustrations and inspirational quotes. This title covers every work, from the comedies of Twelfth Night and As You Like It to the tragedies of Julius Caesar and Hamlet, and lost plays and less well-known works of poetry.

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Book SynopsisMenander, the dominant figure in New Comedy, wrote over 100 plays, of which one complete play, substantial portions of six others, and smaller but interesting fragments have been recovered. The complete play, Dyskolos (The Peevish Fellow), won first prize in Athens in 317 BC.Trade ReviewAn excellent guide to Menander… Arnott has given us fine texts, clear translations, brief and useful introductions, and the help that is needed to make sense [of the] fragments. -- David Konstan * Scholia Reviews *

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Book SynopsisFed up with the dreary round of life in Ballybeg, with his uncommunicative father and the humiliating job in his father''s grocery shop, with his frustrated love for Kathy Doogan who married a richer, more successful young man and with the total absence of prospect and opportunity in his life at home, Gareth O''Donnell has accepted his aunt''s invitation to come to Philadelphia. Now, on the eve of his departure, he is not happy to be leaving Ballybeg.With this play Brian Friel made his reputation and it is now an acknowledged classic of modern drama.

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Book SynopsisDavid Mamet was born in Chicago in 1947. He studied at Goddard College, Vermont - later becoming Art ist in Residence - and at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre in New York. His first and ma ny subsequent plays were first performed by the St Nicholas Theatre company, Chicago, of which he wa s a founding member and Artistic Director. In 1978 he became Associate Artistic Director of the Good man Theatre, Chicago, where American Buffalo had been first staged in 1975, subsequently winning an Obie Award and opening on Broadway in 1977 and at the National Theatre in 1978. His greatest hits, G lengarry Glen Ross and Oleanna followed in 1983 and 1993 respectively.Trade Review'David Mamet has a miraculous ear for the heightened music of American dialect - it makes poetry out of common usage' New York Post; The Cryptogram: 'Here is the finest American playwright of his generation at full stretch. The writing is tight, spare, and as accurate and ruthless as a scalpel' Sunday Times; Oleanna: 'An exploration of male-female conflicts [which] cogently demonstrates that when free thought and dialogue are imperilled, nobody wins' Independent The Old Neighborhood: 'Mamet, ranked with Miller, Albee and Shepard as America's finest living playwrights, distills the raw, rank flavour of people wading down streams of consciousness... A play of riveting disquiet' Evening StandardTable of ContentsCrytogram; Oleanna; the Old Neighborhood

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Book SynopsisA masterpiece of Russian drama, now in a student editionTrade ReviewIt is the element of might-have-been in Chekhov's characters that makes their sense of waste so tragic ... I know of no more moving climax in world drama. * Guardian *Michael Frayn has left his signature upon our contemporary enjoyment of Chekhov...this Uncle Vanya possesses all the scrupulous, subtly idiomatic life we have come to expect from his hand, allied with - and this is the true mark of Frayn - a fine sense of Chekhovian complexity. * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisThis Norton Critical Edition of the world’s first major work of literary criticism is based on James Hutton’s acclaimed translation. The text and explanatory and glossarial notes represent the work of the accomplished Hellenists James Hutton and Michelle

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Book SynopsisJONATHAN BATE Professor of Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature, University of Warwick, UK, and the editor of The RSC Shakespeare: The Complete Works. He has held visiting posts at Harvard, Yale and UCLA and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, a Fellow of the British Academy, an Honorary Fellow of St Catherine's College, Cambridge, and a Governor and Board member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. A prominent critic, award-winning biographer and broadcaster, he is the author of several books on Shakespeare, including The Genius of Shakespeare (Picador), which was praised by Sir Peter Hall, founder of the RSC, as the best modern book on Shakespeare. In June 2006 he was awarded a CBE by HM The Queen 'for services to Higher Education'. ERIC RASMUSSEN is Professor of English at the University of Nevada, USA, and the Textual Editor of The RSC Shakespeare: The Complete Works. He is co-editor of the Norton Anthology of English Renaissance Drama and has edited volumes in both the

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Book SynopsisA play that chronicles the adventures of the star-crossed lovers Oriole and Student Zhang. It is suitable for students of Chinese cultural and literary traditions.Table of ContentsPREFACE FOREWORD by Cyril Birch TABLE OF CHINESE DYNASTIES DRAMA TIS PERSONJE INTRODUCTION 1. The Status ofWang Shifu's Story cfthe Western Wing in Chinese Literature 2. Author and Authorship 3. The Pedigree of the Materials 4. Exceptions to the Rules 5. An Introduction to the World of The Western Wing TRANSLATION Book the First An Introduction to the Story of Oriole Cui and Student Zhang [Eight Satiric Songs Against The Western Wing] The Story cf the Western Wing Play I, Burning Incense and Worshiping the Moon Play II, Icy Strings Spell Out Grief Book the Second [Untitled] to the Tune "Basheng Ganzhou" The Story of the Western Wing Play III, Feelings Transmitted by Lines of Poetry Play IV, A Clandestine Meeting ofRain and Clouds Play V, A Reunion Ordained by Heaven [Publisher's Advertisement] APPENDICES Appendix I, A Pair cfBattling Quacks Appendix II, A Noontime Dream in the Garden Grove GLOSSARY SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX

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Book SynopsisFrom The Two Gentlemen of Verona in the early 1590s to The Two Noble Kinsmen at the end of his career around 1614, Shakespeare wrote at least eighteen plays that can be called ''comedies'': a far higher number than that for any other genre in which he wrote. So what is a Shakespearean comedy? We associate these plays with such themes as mistaken identities, happy marriages, and exuberant cross dressing, but how representative are these of the oeuvre as a whole? In this Very Short Introduction, Bart van Es explores the full range of the playwright''s comic writing, from the neat classical plotting of early works like The Comedy of Errors to the corrupt world of the so-called problem plays, written in the middle years of Shakespeare''s life. Examining Shakespeare''s influences and sources, van Es compares his plays to those of his rivals, and looks at the history of the plays in performance, from the biographies of Shakespeare''s original actors to the plays'' endless reinvention in modern stage productions and in films. Identifying the key qualities that make Shakespearean comedy distinctive, van Es traces the changing nature of Shakespeare''s comic writing over the course of a career that spanned nearly a quarter century of theatrical change.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.Trade ReviewAimed at a general readership, the slim volume is nonetheless carefully researched and full of original ideas and connections. * Kevin Curran, Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 *cover[s] an impressive amount of literary and historical ground, and convey[s] a suitably sizeable serving of Shakespeare knowledge. * Shakespeare Magazine *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; World ; Wit ; Love ; Time ; Character ; Endings ; Further Reading ; Index

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisJONATHAN BATE is Professor of Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature, University of Warwick, UK, and the editor of The RSC Shakespeare: The Complete Works. He has held visiting posts at Harvard, Yale and UCLA and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, a Fellow of the British Academy, an Honorary Fellow of St Catherine's College, Cambridge, and a Governor and Board member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. A prominent critic, award-winning biographer and broadcaster, he is the author of several books on Shakespeare, including The Genius of Shakespeare (Picador), which was praised by Sir Peter Hall, founder of the RSC, as the best modern book on Shakespeare. In June 2006 he was awarded a CBE by HM The Queen 'for services to Higher Education'. ERIC RASMUSSEN is Professor of English at the University of Nevada, USA, and the Textual Editor of The RSC Shakespeare: The Complete Works. He is co-editor of the Norton Anthology of English Renaissance Drama and has edited volumes in both t

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