Other performing arts Books

1311 products


  • Navigating the Maltese Mediascape

    Kite Group Ltd Navigating the Maltese Mediascape

    1 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    1 in stock

    £27.00

  • Contemporary Topics in Movement Arts - Theories

    Nova Science Publishers Inc Contemporary Topics in Movement Arts - Theories

    1 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    1 in stock

    £113.59

  • Moving Bodies Navigating Conflict

    Wesleyan University Press Moving Bodies Navigating Conflict

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisMoving Bodies, Navigating Conflict is a groundbreaking ethnographic examination of dance practice in Colombo, Sri Lanka, during the civil war (1983–2009). It is the first book of scholarship on bharata natyam (a classical dance originating in India) in Sri Lanka, and the first on the role of dance in the country’s war.

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Currency House Inc Platform Papers 55 Arts Politics Money

    Out of stock

    Book Synopsis

    Out of stock

    £11.39

  • Clown Scenes

    Ivan R Dee, Inc Clown Scenes

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisThe intimacy of the one-ring circus produced the classic clown routines that flourished until the mid-twentieth century and then disappeared with the rise of the grand circus. They have been lost until now. By seeking out the little band of surviving clowns who worked in the old tradition and setting down their scenes, Tristan Rémy, the eminent circus historian, has rescued a theatrical treasure. Thanks to Rémy’s persistence, the forty-eight scenes presented here contain not only the spoken words but the manner of line delivery and the physical turns. So they remain superbly suitable for performance. Most of them are written for just three actors—the white-faced clown, August the stooge, and the supercilious ringmaster. Sets are unnecessary. And their combination of the verbal with the physical has timeless appeal. Bernard Sahlins’s translation is masterfully attuned to present-day audiences. In his foreword, Mr. Sahlins notes that these scenes have been continually remounted in Europe, attesting to their fundamental vitality and universality. “Clearly there is a debt, witting and unwitting, owed to the clown of the ring by the great comedians of our century. With this book these scenes and the clowns who invented and played them now take their honored place in our theatrical legacy.”Trade ReviewA welcomed translation...a fascinating perspective on the world of clowns. -- Joel Schechter * Theater Magazine *Admirable and essential. -- Don Stacey * World's Fair *

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Currency Press Pty Ltd Platform Papers 63: On the Lessons of History

    Out of stock

    Book Synopsis

    Out of stock

    £11.69

  • Grandpa Magic: 116 Easy Tricks, Amazing

    Workman Publishing Grandpa Magic: 116 Easy Tricks, Amazing

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisFrom a professional magician and New York Times bestselling author, 116 tricks, stunts, and brainteasers that will engage the grandchildren and provide giggles, jaw-dropping awe, and wonderful memories. Guaranteed to make grandparenting even more fun, Grandpa Magic is sure to entertain—and crack up—the grandkids. From the old pull-a-quarter-from-behind-a-kid’'s-ear trick and “removing your thumb” to card tricks, stunts for the dinner table, and verbal puzzles that surprise and delight, there’s something for everyone. Step-by-step illustrations make them easy to learn.Trade Review“Grandpa Magic is the perfect way to awaken that childlike sense of wonder in all of us... including grandparents. It’s just the right cocktail of magic, mischief, and puzzles to confound children and delight the reader.” —Joshua Jay

    1 in stock

    £13.29

  • Taschen GmbH The Magic Book

    5 in stock

    Book SynopsisMagic has enchanted humankind for millennia, evoking terror, laughter, shock, and amazement. Once persecuted as heretics and sorcerers, magicians have always been conduits to a parallel universe of limitless possibility—whether invoking spirits, reading minds, or inverting the laws of nature by sleight of hand. Long before science fiction, virtual realities, video games, and the Internet, the craft of magic was the most powerful fantasy world man had ever known. As the pioneers of special effects throughout history, magicians have never ceased to mystify us by making the impossible possible. This book celebrates more than 500 years of the stunning visual culture of the world’s greatest magicians. Featuring more than 750 rarely seen vintage posters, photographs, handbills, and engravings as well as paintings by Hieronymus Bosch and Bruegel among others, The Magic Book traces the history of magic as a performing art from the 1400s to the 1950s. Combining sensational images with incisive text, the book explores the evolution of the magicians’ craft, from medieval street performers to the brilliant stage magicians who gave rise to cinematic special effects; from the 19th century’s golden age of magic to groundbreaking daredevils like Houdini and the early 20th century’s vaudevillians.Trade Review“An irresistible tour through centuries of wonder.” * The Globe and Mail *

    5 in stock

    £35.24

  • Cash

    HarperCollins Publishers Inc Cash

    7 in stock

    Book SynopsisHe was the Man in Black, a country music legend, and the quintessential American troubadour. He was an icon of rugged individualism who had been to hell and back, telling the tale as never before. In his unforgettable autobiography, Johnny Cash tells the truth about the highs and lows, the struggles and hard-won triumphs, and the people who shaped him.In his own words, Cash set the record straight -- and dispelled a few myths -- as he looked unsparingly at his remarkable life: from the joys of his boyhood in Dyess, Arkansas to superstardom in Nashville, Tennessee, the road of Cash''s life has been anything but smooth. Cash writes of the thrill of playing with Elvis, the comfort of praying with Billy Graham; of his battles with addiction and of the devotion of his wife, June; of his gratitude for life, and of his thoughts on what the afterlife may bring. Here, too, are the friends of a lifetime, including Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, and Kris Kristofferson. As powerf

    7 in stock

    £15.29

  • HarperCollins Publishers Inc Pretty Things

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisInvites us to step back into an era when the hourglass figure was in vogue and striptease was a true art form. This title reveals the personal journeys of yesteryear's icons of female sexuality and power, restoring their legacy to an age that has all but forgotten them - despite resurgence of the art of burlesque.Trade Review"This coffee table treasure serves as ... a fitting paean to this once-forgotten generation of women." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Liz Goldwyn illustrates an era in classic American entertainment with hundreds of archival photographs, costume sketches and newspaper clips." -- Time "Pretty Things is now the most comprehensive study on the era of burlesque." -- V Magazine "In Liz Goldwyn's Pretty Things, stripteasers bump and grind into the often dark reality of modern burlesque queens." -- Vanity Fair "The art of burlesque is lovingly documented through long-lost photographs as well as designer sketches and interviews." -- W magazine "[Pretty Things] celebrates the performers once dismissed as second-class citizens." -- Tatler

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Oxford University Press Inc The Art and Business of Songwriting

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisIn this valuable resource guide for both beginners and professionals, veteran songwriter, producer, arranger, vocalist, music director, and educator Larry D. Batiste shares practical advice and tips from his decades of experience in ways that are bound to help all readers improve their songwriting skills. Through this book, readers will learn the craft of professional songwriting, including the ins-and-outs of song structure, lyric and melody writing, and the essential elements of a hit song. From the start, Batiste incorporates exercises to help songwriters strike upon ideas for song titles, concepts, and stories that will appeal to their audience. He also discusses critical business aspects of songwriting, such as copyrighting, publishing, royalties, networking, and digital media. In addition to the fundamentals, the reader will learn how to build their songwriting career, generate income, build an online community and fanbase, release music independently, expertly place their songs,

    Out of stock

    £21.84

  • Performing the Nation

    The University of Chicago Press Performing the Nation

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisSince its founding in 1964 Tanzania has used music, dance and other cultural productions as ways of imagining and legitimizing the new nation. Focusing on the politics surrounding Swahili performance, Kelly Askew demonstrates the crucial role of popular culture in Tanzania's history.

    1 in stock

    £40.85

  • Clicko  The Wild Dancing Bushman

    The University of Chicago Press Clicko The Wild Dancing Bushman

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisDuring the 1920s and '30s, Franz Taibosh - whose stage name was Clicko - performed in front of millions as one of the stars of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. This title presents the story of Taibosh's journey from boyhood on a small farm in South Africa to top billing as one of the travelling World's Fair Freaks.Trade Review"An astonishing story that illuminates the history of a talented person who represented a fragile culture to the world. It entertains and astonishes us - but it also enriches our knowledge of a hardy and resourceful person and a fascinating slice of southern African history." - Alexander McCall Smith, from his Foreword"

    1 in stock

    £59.85

  • Sounding the Center  History  Aesthetics in Thai

    The University of Chicago Press Sounding the Center History Aesthetics in Thai

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisThis work investigates the power behind classical music and dance in Bangkok, the capital and sacred center of Buddhist Thailand. Focusing on the ritual of honouring teachers of music and dance, Deborah Wong reveals a complex network of connections among kings, teachers, knowledge and performance.

    1 in stock

    £76.00

  • Sounding the Center

    The University of Chicago Press Sounding the Center

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisThis work investigates the power behind classical music and dance in Bangkok, the capital and sacred center of Buddhist Thailand. Focusing on the ritual of honouring teachers of music and dance, Deborah Wong reveals a complex network of connections among kings, teachers, knowledge and performance.

    1 in stock

    £38.00

  • Columbia University Press Rasa

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisThe third book in a trilogy that includes Seeing the Divine and Hearing the Divine, this book articulates the religious sensibility underlying the traditional performing arts and examines the relationships between the arts and religion in India today.Trade ReviewThis volume is a gem that deserves wide distribution. It is destined to become a classic contribution to the literature on Hinduism and Indian civilization. Choice It thoughtfully explores an aesthetic of great depth and elegance. Dance Magazine This book is clear and accessible for the introductory reader. -- Mythili Kumar Asian Theatre Journal As a writer on dance, Schwartz really shines. -- Martha Ann Selby, University of Texas at Austin Journal of Asian Studies [Rasa] should prove a valuable classroom tool as well as a necessary addition to college libraries. -- Constantina Rhodes Bailly Hindu Studies Recommended to all those needing a sympathetic and intelligent introduction to the Indian performance arts and their appreciation. -- Edwin Gerow Journal of the American Oriental SocietyTable of ContentsPreface Transliteration and Romanization A Taste of Things to Come RASA in Theory: Text and Context A. Etymological Ingredients B. Sources of Inspiration C. A Written Recipe for the Arts D. Influences and Implications RASA in Practice: Drama, Dance, Music A. All The Stage Is But a World B. Dance As Mystery Bharata Natyam Shringara Rasa: What Love Has to Do With It Kathakali Kathak C. Good Taste In Music Transformations In Time And Space Glossary Bibliography

    1 in stock

    £19.80

  • The Pop Musical Sweat Tears and Tarnished Utopias

    Columbia University Press The Pop Musical Sweat Tears and Tarnished Utopias

    2 in stock

    Book SynopsisAlberto Mira offers a new account of how pop music revolutionized the Hollywood musical. He shows that while the Hollywood system ceased producing large-scale traditional musicals, different pop strains—disco, rock ’n’ roll, doo-wop, glam, and hip-hop—renewed the genre, giving it a new life.Trade ReviewAlberto Mira’s timely volume superbly fills a gap in writing on the musical, focusing with originality, flair and thorough scholarship on a significant variant of the genre. He demonstrates how the Pop musical has taken the genre into new directions, for instance making it even more socially aware, revising its folk discourse, and exploring questions of sexual identity. In his analysis of the star qualities of Ann-Margret, the changing impact of Elvis Presley, re-appraisal of films like Bye Bye Birdie and The Rocky Horror Picture Show or, more generally, the way Pop musicals draw on and diversify the traditions of the classical musical, Mira ensures that this exciting volume will be essential reading for devotees as well as for scholars of the film musical, and the aesthetics, cultural and socio-political contexts of popular cinema. -- Peter William Evans, Queen Mary University of LondonWhile much has been written on the change in the musical's cinematic language in the postclassical period, the “pop musical” itself has not been sufficiently identified, theorized, or historicized. In The Pop Musical, Alberto Mira addresses this gap, insisting that the genre’s unique relationship with pop music plays a determining role in how these films make meaning. -- Desirée Garcia, author of The Movie MusicalTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: The Hollywood Musical Is Dead. Long Live the Hollywood Musical!1. Hollywood and the Rise of Pop Music: The Age of Elvis2. Embracing Pop: Integrating the Pop Musical3. Looking Back: The Pop Musical and the PastConclusion: Qualified JoysNotesBibliographyIndex

    2 in stock

    £16.19

  • PrettyFunny

    University of Texas Press PrettyFunny

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisFocusing on star writer/performer comedians—Kathy Griffin, Tina Fey, Sarah Silverman, Margaret Cho, Wanda Sykes, and Ellen DeGeneres—Pretty/Funny demonstrates that women’s comedy has become a prime site of feminism in the twenty-first century.Trade Review"Can a woman comic be pretty and funny? This academic (but readable) feminist take on six transgressive women laugh-getters - DeGeneres, Sykes, Silverman, Griffin, Cho and Fey- shows how each challenges the conventional role the culture assigns them" - Ms. Magazine "Focuses on Katy Griffin, Tina Fey, Sarah Silverman, Maragert Cho, Wanda Sykes, and Ellen DeGeneres" - Chronicle of Higher Education "Pretty/Funny compiles six case studies of famous female comedians who write their own material - Fey, Kathy Griffin, Sarah Silverman, Margaret Cho, Wanda Sykes and Ellen DeGeneres. Particularly, it focuses on how each woman's comedy challenges the pretty/funny binary that has shape-shifted as women making their own comedy expands [...] Race and sexuality fittingly play a big role in the book's analyses as well, looking at how these comedians' writing challenge and poke fun at how gender appears in sexism, racism, anti-semitism and homophobia. Pretty/ Funny is a fun and revealing book fit for anyone interested in the academic underpinnings of the anti-authoritarian bastard children (lady comics) of a cultural bastard child (comedy)." - Columbus Alive! "In her new book Pretty Funny: Women Comedians and Body Politics, Linda Mizejewski - Professor of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies at the Ohio State University in Columbus - rips apart the notion that there are no funny women, and pours scorn on the idea that funny women should be judged only by their appearance. Pretty/Funny is very accessible for the non-academic reader, and is an enjoyable stomp through the sexist battlefield of the comedy circuit." - What the Frock?Table of Contents Acknowledgments Introduction. Pretty/Funny Women and Comedy's Body Politics: Funniness, Prettiness, and Feminism Chapter One. Kathy Griffin and the Comedy of the D List Chapter Two. Feminism, Postfeminism, Liz Lemonism: Picturing Tina Fey Chapter Three. Sarah Silverman: Bedwetting, Body Comedy, and "a Mouth Full of Blood Laughs" Chapter Four. Margaret Cho Is Beautiful: A Comedy of Manifesto Chapter Five. "White People Are Looking at You!" Wanda Sykes's Black Looks Chapter Six. Ellen DeGeneres: Pretty Funny Butch as Girl Next Door Notes Bibliography Index

    1 in stock

    £40.50

  • Houdini The Elusive American Jewish Lives

    Yale University Press Houdini The Elusive American Jewish Lives

    7 in stock

    Book SynopsisAn exuberant biography of the world's greatest escape artistTrade Review"Vivid."—David Denby, New Yorker“[This book] examines the secrets of Houdini’s success.”—Simon Yaffe, Jewish Telegraph“Much has been written about the magician over the years but this book, part of a Jewish Lives series, delves not just into his tricks and star-studded life, but also probes his poor background and ferocious determination to succeed.”—Peter Gruner, Camden New Journal “[I]n this fascinating and most entertaining book, Begley chooses to print the history, and it is amazing enough in itself without the need for adding any myths or legends. Read it and be amazed.”—John Rimmer, Magonia Review of Books“Witty, intelligent, and sprightly, Adam Begley’s Houdini tells a story that is not only central to the American experience, but strangely pertinent to the fakery, fraudulence, and self-promotion dominating our news waves at present.”—Wendy Lesser, author of Jerome Robbins: A Life in Dance

    7 in stock

    £18.04

  • This Is Not Fame A From What I ReMemoir

    Hachette Books This Is Not Fame A From What I ReMemoir

    5 in stock

    Book SynopsisThe follow-up to stand-up comedian Doug Stanhope's acclaimed memoir Digging Up Mother, This Is Not Fame is an unfiltered, uncensored, hilarious, and deeply obscene narrative of anecdotes from the down-and-dirty traveling comedy circuit.

    5 in stock

    £20.90

  • Born a Crime

    Random House USA Inc Born a Crime

    Out of stock

    Book Synopsis

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • The Beautiful Ones

    Random House USA Inc The Beautiful Ones

    2 in stock

    Book Synopsis#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The brilliant coming-of-age-and-into-superstardom story of one of the greatest artists of all time, in his own words—featuring never-before-seen photos, original scrapbooks and lyric sheets, and the exquisite memoir he began writing before his tragic deathNAMED ONE OF THE BEST MUSIC BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST AND THE GUARDIAN • NOMINATED FOR THE NAACP IMAGE AWARD  Prince was a musical genius, one of the most beloved, accomplished, and acclaimed musicians of our time. He was a startlingly original visionary with an imagination deep enough to whip up whole worlds, from the sexy, gritty funk paradise of “Uptown” to the mythical landscape of Purple Rain to the psychedelia of “Paisley Park.” But his most ambitious creative act was turning Prince Rogers Nelson, born in Minnesota, into Prince, one of the greatest pop stars of any era. The Beautiful Ones is the story of how Prince became Prince—a first-person account of a kid absorbing the world around him and then creating a persona, an artistic vision, and a life, before the hits and fame that would come to define him. The book is told in four parts. The first is the memoir Prince was writing before his tragic death, pages that bring us into his childhood world through his own lyrical prose. The second part takes us through Prince’s early years as a musician, before his first album was released, via an evocative scrapbook of writing and photos. The third section shows us Prince’s evolution through candid images that go up to the cusp of his greatest achievement, which we see in the book’s fourth section: his original handwritten treatment for Purple Rain—the final stage in Prince’s self-creation, where he retells the autobiography of the first three parts as a heroic journey. The book is framed by editor Dan Piepenbring’s riveting and moving introduction about his profound collaboration with Prince in his final months—a time when Prince was thinking deeply about how to reveal more of himself and his ideas to the world, while retaining the mystery and mystique he’d so carefully cultivated—and annotations that provide context to the book’s images. This work is not just a tribute to an icon, but an original and energizing literary work in its own right, full of Prince’s ideas and vision, his voice and image—his undying gift to the world.

    2 in stock

    £20.98

  • Sixguns and Society A Structural Study of the

    University of California Press Sixguns and Society A Structural Study of the

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisExplains the Western's popularity. This study deals with the question of the Western as an American myth, will lead us into abstract structural theory as well as economic and political history. It takes you into the movies, and sagebrush of the cinema.Table of ContentsPreface 1. Introduction: The Myth and the Method 2. The Structure of Myth 3. The Structure of the Western Film 4. Myth as a Narrative of Social Action 5. Individuals and Values: The Classical Plot 6. Individuals Against Values: The Vengeance Variation 7. Groups and Techniques: The Professional Plot 8. Myth and Meaning Methodological Epilogue Appendix Bibliography Index

    1 in stock

    £22.50

  • University of California Press Spectacle of Deformity

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisIn 1847, during the great age of the freak show, the British periodical Punch bemoaned the public's 'prevailing taste for deformity'. This work argues that far from being purely exploitative, displays of anomalous bodies served a deeper social purpose as they generated popular and scientific debates over the meanings attached to bodily difference.Trade Review"This is a marvelously researched and engagingly written work of history." Bulletin Of The History Of Medicine "Spectacle of Deformity is a detailed and provocative history of the Victorian freak show in Great Britain." Victorian StudiesTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: Exhibiting Freaks 1. Monstrosity, Masculinity, and Medicine: Reexamining "the Elephant Man" 2. Two Bodies, Two Selves, Two Sexes: Conjoined Twins and "the Double-Bodied Hindoo Boy 3. The Missing Link and the Hairy Belle: Evolution, Imperialism, and "Primitive" Sexuality 4. Aztecs and Earthmen: Declining Civilizations and Dying Races 5. "When the Cannibal King Began to Talk": Performing Race, Class, and Ethnicity Conclusion / The Decline of the Freak Show Notes Bibliography

    1 in stock

    £56.80

  • Hokum The Early Sound Slapstick Short and

    University of California Press Hokum The Early Sound Slapstick Short and

    1 in stock

    Book SynopsisTakes a comprehensive view of short-subject slapstick comedy in the early sound era. Challenging the received wisdom that sound destroyed the slapstick tradition, the author explores the slapstick short's Depression-era development against a backdrop of changes in film industry practice, comedic tastes, and moviegoing culture.Trade Review"King thus explores a series of critical questions about how cultural forms dwindle and reemerge... his work points toward a new avenue of research worth looking into when considering alternative constructions of American film history; instead of breaking down the myths that haunt much of film scholarship, the development of these very myths may reveal more about cultural consciousness." * Film Quarterly *"King’s approach is thoroughly revisionist, a genre history as grounded in the archive and the trade press as it is in the screening room, one that seeks to dramatically expand which films matter. ... Hokum! is a triumph! King demonstrates what happens in an era of expanded access to archival texts that are now more widely available on DVD, the digitization of trade press reports, and the ongoing refinement of film historiography. At the risk of ending on an unapologetically bad pun, comedy has a new King. " * Journal for Cinema and Media Studies *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations and Audiovisual Media Acknowledgments Introduction PART I. CONTEXTS 1. “The Cuckoo School”: Humor and Metropolitan Culture in 1920s America 2. “The Stigma of Slapstick”: The Short-Subject Industry and Its Imagined Public PART II. CASE HISTORIES 3. “The Spice of the Program”: Educational Pictures and the Small-Town Audience 4. “I Want Music Everywhere”: Music, Operetta, and Cultural Hierarchy at the Hal Roach Studios 5. “From the Archives of Keystone Memory”: Slapstick and Re-membrance at Columbia Pictures’ Short-Subjects Department Coda: When Comedy Was King List of Abbreviations Notes Index

    1 in stock

    £27.00

  • University of California Press Jack Benny and the Golden Age of American Radio

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisThe king of radio comedy from the Great Depression through the early 1950s, Jack Benny was one of the most influential entertainers in twentieth-century America. A master of comic timing and an innovative producer, Benny, with his radio writers, developed a weekly situation comedy to meet radio's endless need for new material, at the same time integrating advertising into the show's humor. Through the character of the vain, cheap everyman, Benny created a fall guy, whose frustrated struggles with his employees addressed mid-century America's concerns with race, gender, commercialism, and sexual identity. Kathryn H. Fuller-Seeley contextualizes her analysis of Jack Benny and his entourage with thoughtful insights into the intersections of competing entertainment media and argues that transmedia stardom, branded entertainment, and virality are, in fact, the newest versions of key elements in the history of American popular culture.Trade Review“…a deeply researched and powerfully argued analysis of Benny’s persona, productions, distribution, advertising, and sponsorship from the early 1930s through the late 1950s. …It is a must-read for scholars seeking to understand the inner workings, products, and impact of mass media and intermedia develop­ment, consumer culture, and celebrity culture during the heyday of mid-twentieth-century American commercial radio broadcasting and how to write about such issues incisively and inclusively.” * The Journal of American History *"By discussing in depth the ways the show was and wasn’t distributed during and after its initial run (including the balance of radio stations carrying the show vs. TV stations carrying the show throughout the ‘50s), Fuller-Seeley makes the book itself an intermedia experience, encouraging readers to contribute to the vital work of media archiving." * Splitsider *"Kathryn H. Fuller-Seeley’s monograph on Jack Benny provides the first full-length scholarly account of the comedian’s influential broadcasting career, which began in 1932 and ended with his death in 1974. As well as discussing his film and television work, she presents an extremely detailed analysis of Benny’s long-running, but largely overlooked, multifaceted radio program (1932–1955) which she calls his ‘greatest achievement’." * Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1 • Becoming Benny: Th e Development of Jack Benny’s Character-Focused Comedy for Radio 2 • “What Are You Laughing at, Mary?” Mary Livingstone’s Comic Voice 3 • Masculine Gender Identity in Jack Benny’s Humor 4 • Eddie Anderson, Rochester, and Race in 1930s Radio and Film 5 • Rochester and the Revenge of Uncle Tom in the 1940s and 1950s 6 • Th e Commercial Imperative: Jack Benny, Advertising, and Radio Sponsors 7 • Jack Benny’s Intermedia Juggling of Radio and Film 8 • Benny at War with the Radio Critics 9 • Jack Benny’s Turn Towards Television Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Celluloid Democracy

    University of California Press Celluloid Democracy

    3 in stock

    Book SynopsisA free ebook version of this title is available through Luminos, University of California Press's Open Access publishing program. Visit www.luminosoa.org to learn more. Celluloid Democracy tells the story of the Korean filmmakers, distributors, and exhibitors who reshaped cinema in radically empowering ways through the decades of authoritarian rule that followed Korea's liberation from Japanese occupation. Employing tactics that ranged from representing the dispossessed on the screen to redistributing state-controlled resources through bootlegging, these film workers explored ideas and practices that simultaneously challenged repressive rule and pushed the limits of the cinematic medium. Drawing on archival research, film analysis, and interviews, Hieyoon Kim examines how their work foregrounds a utopian vision of democracy where the ruled represent themselves and access resources free from state suppression. The first book to offer a history of film activism in post-1945 South Korea

    3 in stock

    £27.00

  • Daemon Voices

    Random House USA Inc Daemon Voices

    2 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    2 in stock

    £17.06

  • Harvard University, Asia Center Opera Society and Politics in Modern China

    2 in stock

    Book SynopsisDrawing on a rich array of primary sources, Hsiao-t’i Li focuses on the reformed operas staged in Shanghai and Xi’an in the early 20th century. Extensive information on both traditional/imperial China and revolutionary/Communist China reveal simplications of these “modern” operatic experiences and changing features of Chinese operas over five centuries.

    2 in stock

    £35.66

  • Romeo and Juliet

    Simon & Schuster Romeo and Juliet

    10 in stock

    Book SynopsisSynopsis coming soon.......

    10 in stock

    £8.54

  • The Merchant of Venice Folger Shakespeare Library

    Simon & Schuster The Merchant of Venice Folger Shakespeare Library

    5 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    5 in stock

    £6.99

  • Othello Folger Shakespeare Library

    Simon & Schuster Othello Folger Shakespeare Library

    7 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    7 in stock

    £6.99

  • Much Ado About Nothing

    Simon & Schuster Much Ado About Nothing

    7 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    7 in stock

    £8.54

  • Scenes from the Revolution Making Political

    Pluto Press Scenes from the Revolution Making Political

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisAn exploration of radical political theatre in Britain from 1968 to present day.Trade Review'This is an indispensable archive of resistant performance practice, combining memoir, dramatic and critical writing. Wiltshire, Cowan, and their collaborators confront Project Austerity's culture of contempt and despair by recovering and asserting British theatre's history of critical refusal' -- Victor Merriman, author of ' 'Because We are Poor': Irish Theatre in the 1990s''Believe that 1960s theatre making is dead duck pass? Reader, best start re-thinking. Editor/authors Kim Wiltshire and Billy Cowan forge an original and powerfully mind-bending take across 50 years of radicalised performing. Essential territory for driving future performance toward politicised hope' -- Baz Kershaw, Emeritus Professor of Theatre and Performance, University of Warwick'Recommended' -- CHOICETable of ContentsIntroduction: A Very Brief History of Political Theatre in the Twentieth Century up to 1968 - Kim Wiltshire and Billy Cowan Prologue by Lyn Gardner Scene 1: Agitprop and Political Theatre Introduction - Kim Wiltshire Interview with Rod Dixon (Red Ladder) and Kathleen McCreery (Red Ladder and Broadside Mobile Workers' Theatre) - Kim Wiltshire Apartheid: The British Connection (Extract), Broadside Mobile Workers' Theatre - Kathleen McCreery Contemporary Protest Theatre in South Africa - David Peimer The Lost Art of Agitprop and the Return of Socialist Praxis - Rebecca Hillman Scene 2: Working-Class Theatre Introduction - Kim Wiltshire Blood Red Roses at the Liverpool Everyman - Bob Eaton Ways of Seeing: Class, Gender and the Universal, from Blood Red Roses to The Sum - Lizzie Nunnery Plugging into History: Time Travel with John McGrath and 7: 84 - Lindsay Rodden Scene 3: Theatre in Education Introduction - Anthony Jackson Farewell to Erin (Extract), Belgrade TIE Company Interview with Tony Hughes (M6 Theatre Company) and Justine Themen (Belgrade TIE Company) - Billy Cowan Everyone's Got a Story to Tell ... and Their Own Way of Telling It - Julia Samuels (20 Stories High) Scene 4: Women's Theatre Introduction - Kim Wiltshire Interview with Sue Parrish (Sphinx) and Mica Nava (Women's Theatre Group) - Kim Wiltshire Work To Role (Extract), Women's Theatre Group The Work of Open Clasp and Why Women-centred Theatre is Still Relevant Today - Catrina McHugh (MBE) and Jill Heslop Forty Years of Women-centred Theatre-Making - Anna Hermann with Kim Wiltshire A Conversation on Sexual Assault in Theatre - Mighty Heart and Kim Wiltshire Scene 5: Queer Theatre Introduction - Billy Cowan Men (Extract), Don Milligan and Nol Greig Interview with Julie Parker (Drill Hall, 1981-2011) - Billy Cowan Interview with Ruth McCarthy (Outburst Queer Arts Festival, Belfast) - Billy Cowan We Who are Here Together: (Re-)making Queer Theatre - Chris Goode Scene 6: Theatre and Race Introduction - May Sumbwanyambe A Tainted Dawn (Extract) - Sudha Bhuchar and Kristine Landon-Smith The Personal is Always Political - Sudha Bhuchar Pokfulam Road Productions: A Political Theatre Company? - Jingan Young Epilogue: Where Next for Political Theatre? - Billy Cowan and Kim Wiltshire Further Reading Notes on Contributors Index

    Out of stock

    £68.00

  • An Iron Girl in a Velvet Glove

    The History Press Ltd An Iron Girl in a Velvet Glove

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisThe first-ever biography of a trailblazing star of yesteryear, 'a colourful tale, full of grit and glamour' (Kate Adie)

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • From a Gin Palace to a Kings Palace

    The History Press Ltd From a Gin Palace to a Kings Palace

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisThis witty, warm and altogether delightful look at the history of music hall in Preston will fascinate lovers of musical history everywhere. Travelling from back-street alehouses to palatial theatres and featuring internationally recognised stars of the genre and some unusual local acts - including a very well received lecture on ''the joy of oysters'' - this is a must for anyone who has ever felt the pull of the stage.

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Game of Thrones In Memoriam

    Running Press,U.S. Game of Thrones In Memoriam

    5 in stock

    Book SynopsisAfter four seasons, HBO's award-winning dramatic series based on George R. R. Martin's bestselling fantasy novels, Game of Thrones, is hotter than ever, reaching over 19 million viewers per episode. Game of Thrones: In Memoriam, a photo- and fact-filled memorial to the characters who have met their end thus far, will be a must-have for the show's dedicated fan base.

    5 in stock

    £10.99

  • Fellini The Sixties Turner Classic Movies

    Running Press,U.S. Fellini The Sixties Turner Classic Movies

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisStyle. Beauty. Passion. Vision.These are just a few of the words often used to describe the films of the single most celebrated director in Italy, and one of the most important directors the world has ever known,Federico Fellini. Fifty years since their initial releases, his films of the 1960s still inspire, shock, and delight. More than just encapsulating the ''60s, these films also helped define the style of the decade. With a staggering twelve Academy Award nominations between his four feature films during this period, Fellini reached the heights of fame, film artistry, and worldwide prominence. Studied, analyzed, and re-released over the years, these films continue to amaze each new generation that discovers them. Their impeccable style makes them timeless. Their images make them unforgettable. Their passion brings them to life. And their singular vision makes them unique in all of cinema. Fellini: The Sixties is a stunning photographic journey through the director''s most iconic Trade Review"Italy's most celebrated filmmaker gets a royal salute in Fellini: the Sixties, a lavishly illustrated tribute to director Federico Fellini and his iconic, often shocking movies of that era, including La Dolce Vita, 81/2 and Fellini Satyricon." -Parade.com "For Federico Fellini aficionados, the lavishly illustrated new book Fellini: The Sixties is the equivalent of a mouthwatering plate of spaghetti and a glass of the best Chianti. It's a fantastic voyage into the magical world of one of cinema's greatest masters..." -LA Times

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • University of Toronto Press Reformers On Stage Popular Drama and Propaganda

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisExamines the social and religious messages of plays presented across the Low Countries, showing how they promoted or opposed calls for reform, religious and otherwise and argues that dramatists reshaped reform ideas to accommodate their own concerns.

    Out of stock

    £68.85

  • Madonna

    University of Toronto Press Madonna

    4 in stock

    Book SynopsisHow do bad girls get away with it? How did Madonna, subject of public outcry for her controversial performances and her book Sex, become a superstar of pop culture and a role model for teenage girls? Why now, as star of Evita and a new mother, is she becoming a mainstream hero?Karlene Faith says that Madonna signifies the times we live in. We are, in a sense, all responsible for who Madonna is. As fans, moral critics, media journalists, or university scholars, we mediate what she means to our society. And Madonna, as a shrewd career woman, has known how to exploit our attentions with her multiple talents. Her representation of sexual practices and values has not taken place in a political or social vacuum. She has counted on our readiness to witness the smashing of cultural taboos. Feminist reactions to Madonna have been divided. In her early career Madonna was a teenage role model, applauded as a liberated sex crusader. Later, she raised eyebrows by portraying cynicTrade Review'This book will be better at getting Much TV students to successfully learn about academic feminism that the usual dead-dry fare. In her discussion of the meaning of Madonna, Faith pulls in all the big guns of feminist theory and aims them at a living post-modern Bitch, rather than the pale and quite ghosts of writers life Woolf and Austen.' -- Caroline Harvey The Vancouver Sun

    4 in stock

    £25.19

  • Rust Belt Burlesque  The Softer Side of a Heavy

    Ohio University Press Rust Belt Burlesque The Softer Side of a Heavy

    7 in stock

    Book SynopsisRust Belt Burlesque traces the history of burlesque in Cleveland from the 1800s to the present, while also telling the story of Bella Sin, a Mexican immigrant who largely drove Northeast Ohio’s burlesque comeback. Over 100 color photos provide a peek into the raucous Ohio Burlesque Festival that packs the Beachland Ballroom every year.Trade Review“This is no eat-your-vegetables history book. Scholarship and entertainment go hand in hand to make the most of a fun, racy topic. O’Brien does a brilliant job of illuminating the past and introducing readers to the the current crop of entertainers, and Perkoski’s photos knock it out of the park.”

    7 in stock

    £17.99

  • Sick in the Head

    Random House USA Inc Sick in the Head

    2 in stock

    Book SynopsisBefore his name became synonymous with a new style of comedy; before he had written, directed, or produced his first movie or TV show; before he and his roommate Adam Sandler were performing stand up at dive bars in LA; before all that, Judd Apatow was a kid in Syosset, Long Island who was utterly obsessed with comedy. At 16, he started hosting a radio show for his local high school station, and he would call up the biggest comics of the day - comics like Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Steve Allen, Sandra Bernhard; none of whom, by the way, had any idea they were talking to a kid in his parents'' garage -- and talk to them about what got them into comedy, and what made them stay in. Thirty years later, Apatow is still that comedy nerd, and still interviewing comics about what drives them and why they do what they do. That obsession has made him one of the most recognizable and influential comedic filmmakers working today. This book is a collection of 30 years worth of conversations -- always funny, often poignant, and incredibly intimate -- that not only span Apatow''s career, but his adult life. Featuring interviews with luminaries like Mel Brooks and Chris Rock and modern icons like Louis CK and Amy Schumer, this is a book for fans of comedy, from the nerdiest fan of all--

    2 in stock

    £17.85

  • Dashiell Hammett and the Movies

    Rutgers University Press Dashiell Hammett and the Movies

    Out of stock

    Book SynopsisTrade Review"In this ambitious book, Mooney seeks to give a broad-based sense of the influence of Dashiell Hammett’s writings on Hollywood film, demonstrating both great knowledge of and enthusiasm for Hammett’s work." -- William Luhr * Saint Peter's University *"William Mooney's comprehensive survey of Dashiell Hammett's afterlife in the movies combines a logical core Sam Spade would admire with a story that moves as fast as the Continental Op." -- Thomas Leitch * author of Film Adaptation and Its Discontents *"In this ambitious book, Mooney seeks to give a broad-based sense of the influence of Dashiell Hammett’s writings on Hollywood film, demonstrating both great knowledge of and enthusiasm for Hammett’s work." -- William Luhr * Saint Peter's University *"William Mooney's comprehensive survey of Dashiell Hammett's afterlife in the movies combines a logical core Sam Spade would admire with a story that moves as fast as the Continental Op." -- Thomas Leitch * author of Film Adaptation and Its Discontents *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1 Three Early Films: Roadhouse Nights (1930), City Streets (1931), and Mister Dynamite (1935)2 The Thin Man (1934)3 After The Thin Man: From Sequel to Series4 Woman in the Dark (1934) and Watch on the Rhine (1943)5 The Maltese Falcon (1931), Satan Met a Lady (1936), andThe Maltese Falcon (1941)6 The Glass Key (1935 and 1942)7 Hammett in Retrospect: Miller’s CrossingConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex

    Out of stock

    £999.99

  • Hitchcocks British Films

    Wayne State University Press Hitchcocks British Films

    15 in stock

    Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1977 and long out of print, Maurice Yacowar's Hitchcock's British Films was the first volume devoted solely to the twenty-three films directed by Alfred Hitchcock in his native England before he came to the United States. As such, it was the first book to challenge the assumption that Hitchcock's mature period in Hollywood, from the late 1940s to the early 1960s, represented the director's best work. In this traditional auteurist examination of Hitchcock's early work, author Maurice Yacowar considers Hitchcock's British films in chronological order, reads the composition of individual shots and scenes in each, and pays special attention to the films' verbal effects. Yacowar's readings remain compelling more than thirty years after they were written, and someon Downhill, Champagne, and Waltzes from Viennaare among the few extended interpretations of these films that exist. Alongside important works such as Murder!, the first The Man Who Knew Too Much, Secret AgTrade ReviewFor anyone interested in Alfred Hitchcock this is a must for the collection and will invite a new look at those rarer and the lesser known of his films...""- Chris Hick, Filmwerk;""Hitchcock's British Films remains the most illuminating and comprehensive discussion of Hitchcock's work before he moved to California. It is lucid, well balanced in its understandings of the films, informative (especially regarding Hitchcock's use of the novels and plays that were sources of most of his screenplays), and comprehensive.""- Lesley Brill, professor of English at Wayne State University and author of The Hitchcock Romance: Love and Irony in Hitchcock's Films and Crowds, Power, and Transformation in Cinema (Wayne State University Press, 2006);""How welcome to see Hitchcock's British Films back in print. For a long time it was the only full-length treatment of Hitchcock's formative period, and Yacowar's analyses of specific films remain so well judged, articulate, and penetrating that his book has scarcely dated since the day it was published over thirty years ago.""- Thomas Leitch, professor of English at the University of Delaware, co-editor of the forthcoming A Companion to Hitchcock Studies, and author of Perry Mason (Wayne State University Press, 2005)

    15 in stock

    £19.46

  • Performing Utopia Enactments  Seagull Titles CHUP

    Seagull Books London Ltd Performing Utopia Enactments Seagull Titles CHUP

    15 in stock

    Book SynopsisIn her landmark study Utopia in Performance: Finding Hope at the Theatre, Jill Dolan departed from historical writings on utopia, which suggest that social reorganization and the redistribution of wealth are utopian efforts, to argue instead that utopia occurs in fragmentary utopian moments, often found embedded within performance. While Dolan focused on the utopian performative within a theatrical context, this volume, edited by Rachel Bowditch and Pegge Vissicaro, expands her theories to encompass performance in public life from diasporic hip-hop battles, Chilean military parades, commemorative processions, Blackfoot powwows, and post-Katrina Mardi Gras to the Philadelphia Mummers Parade, Festas Juninas in Brazil, the Renaissance Fairs in Arizona, and neoburlesque competitions. How do these performances rehearse and enact visions of a utopic world? What can the lens of utopia and dystopia illuminate about the potential of performing bodies to transform communities, identities, values

    15 in stock

    £26.50

  • Basic Rhythmic Training

    Hal Leonard Corporation Basic Rhythmic Training

    4 in stock

    Book Synopsis

    4 in stock

    £11.50

  • What is Performance Art

    Power Publications What is Performance Art

    2 in stock

    Book SynopsisAn anthology of critical reflections on performance art from Australian scholars, curators and artists, 1970s to 2000s.

    2 in stock

    £21.25

  • Losing It

    Muswell Press Losing It

    Out of stock

    Book Synopsis

    Out of stock

    £7.12

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