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The Performance Studies Reader is a lively and much-needed anthology of critical writings on the burgeoning discipline of performance studies. It provides an overview of the full range of performance theory for undergraduates at all levels, and beginning graduate students in performance studies, theatre, performing arts and cultural studies. The collection is designed as a companion to Richard Schechner's popular Performance Studies: an Introduction (Routledge, 2002), but is also ideal as a stand-alone text. Henry Bial collects together key critical pieces from the field, referred to as 'suggested readings' in Performance Studies: an Introduction. He also broadens the discussion with additional selections. The structure and themes of the Reader closely follow those of Schechner's companion textbook. The articles in each section focus particularly on three primary areas in performance studies, theatre, anthropology and sociology/cultural studies.
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A fascinating look at how the Bible has inspired Broadway plays and musicals, from Ben-Hur to Jesus Christ Superstar
Bertolt Brecht is one of the most prolific and influential writer-directors of the twentieth century. This fascinating anthology brings together in one volume many of the most important articles written about Brecht between 1957 and 1997. The collection explores a wide range of viewpoints about Brecht's theatre theories and practice, as well as including three plays not otherwise available in English: The Beggar or The Dead Dog, Baden Lehrstuck and The Seven Deadly Sins of the Lower Middle Class. Editors Martin and Bial have brought together a unique compendium which covers all the key areas including: * the development of Brecht's aesthetic theories * the relationship of Epic theatre to ort...
Fresh approaches to theater historiography and performance studies that bring the two fields productively together
Performance Studies in Motion offers multiple perspectives on the current field of performance studies and suggests its future directions. Featuring new essays by pioneers Richard Schechner and Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, and by international scholars and practitioners, it shows how performance can offer a new way of seeing the world, and testifies to the dynamism of this discipline. Beginning with an overview of the development of performance studies, the essays offer new insights into: contemporary experimental and postdramatic theatre; participatory performance and museum exhibitions; the performance of politicians, political institutions and grassroots protest movements; theatricality...
In this second edition, the author opens with a discussion of important developments in the discipline. His closing chapter, 'Global and Intercultural Performance', is completely rewritten in light of the post-9/11 world. Fully revised chapters with new examples, biographies and source material provide a lively, easily accessible overview of the full range of performance for undergraduates at all levels in performance studies, theatre, performing arts and cultural studies. Among the topics discussed are the performing arts and popular entertainments, rituals, play and games as well as the performances of everyday life. Supporting examples and ideas are drawn from the social sciences, perform...
How simulated experiences—from living history to emergency preparedness drills—create meaning in performance
Relates the untold story of a traveling Yiddish theater company and traces their far- reaching influence
The book is an anthropological study of a phenomenon observed within the range of contemporary Polish Catholic religiosity. The Crucified focuses on two fundamental issues: passion plays and performance theory. It presents an analysis of material collected during five years of field research, which sheds light on the varied world of religious performances. The phenomenon of passion plays is extremely complex and to some extent heterogeneous, hence its in-depth analysis reveals much not only about its own nature, but also about the entire modern religiosity. As a result, the book is constructed in such a way as to focus on a single phenomenon, but with conclusions extending to a much wider ra...