This book is a collection of essays that capture the artistic voices at play during a staging process. Situating familiar practices such as reimagining, reenactment and recreation alongside the related and often intersecting processes of transmission, translation and transformation, it features deep insights into selected dances from directors, performers, and close associates of choreographers. The breadth of practice on offer illustrates the capacity of dance as a medium to adapt successfully to diverse approaches and, further, that there is a growing appetite amongst audiences for seeing dances from the near and far past. This study spans a century, from Rudolf Laban's Dancing Drumstick (1913) to Robert Cohan's Sigh (2015), and examines works by Mary Wigman, Madge Atkinson (Natural Movement), Doris Humphrey, Martha Graham, Yvonne Rainer and Rosemary Butcher, an eclectic mix that crosses time and borders.

World Scenography 1990-2005 is the second volume in a series of large-format, lavishly illustrated books documenting for posterity a collection of significant and influential theatrical set, costume, and lighting designs. This volume covers 1990-2005 and presents designs for 409 productions from 55 countries representing the work of hundreds of designers as researched by a group of more than 100 dedicated volunteers from around the globe. Like all performance-based art, stage design is ephemeral. If it is not recorded, it disappears. And if the designs are not contextualized through scholarship, their meanings will become obscure. World Scenography provides an outstanding visual and contextual record of the art of designing for the stage. The World Scenography series is an official project of OISTAT, the International Organization of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians.

How do theatre lighting designers decide what is 'the right light' for each moment of a production? What informs their choices? Why does the audience respond more strongly when the lighting feels 'right'? By interviewing nineteen prominent lighting designers and weaving their insights through his own narrative, Nick Moran aims to answer such questions. This book considers practice across different types of theatre, including opera, dance, musicals and drama. Rather than being a technical manual, it allows lighting designers to contribute contrasting and complementary ideas about how to approach lighting design. Moran argues that the best stage lighting is made with emotion, passion and soul, by creative artists willing to take risks. Includes interviews with: Neil Austin - Lucy Carter - Jon Clark - Natasha Chivers - Paule Constable - James Farncombe - Rick Fisher - Mark Henderson - David Howe - Michael Hulls - Mark Jonathan - Peter Mumford - Ben Ormerod - Bruno Poet - Paul Pyant - Nick Richings - Johanna Town - Hugh Vanstone - Katharine Williams

These three volumes represent the best Shakespeare criticism of the last fifty years. 140 articles have been included, with introductions by Stanley Wells, Terence Hawkes and Peter Holland under three main headings. The first volume covers Shakespeare's life and times, the texts of his plays and their staging in the period; the second consists of literary criticism applied to Shakespeare since World War II and the third includes performance-centered articles on staging and acting. The essays are reprinted from the Shakespeare Survey yearbook, selected and ordered by Catherine Alexander.

"This step-by-step, user friendly guide covers every aspect of stage management and can take any would-be stage manager at any level of theatre and turn them into an expert who will be the ultimate asset to your production."
-Tom Paster, Director of Musical Theatre, Northern Highlands Regional High School, NJ
"It's entertaining, informative and practical - a great resource for the "how-to" questions, and a terrific overview for anyone involved in the process of making theater."
-Les Gutman, Producing Director, Friendly Fire Theatre, NYC
Are you about to stage manage your first show and have no idea where to start? This book offers simplified guidelines for a complicated job and gives a step-by-step process for organizing auditions, rehearsals, the technical aspects, and performances. The author understands the pressures of the beginning stage manager and proceeds to calm those fears in a no-nonsense handbook. This "survival guide" gives detailed descriptions or examples of all the forms and lists the stage manager must use in production. An essential read for the novice stage manager in high school, college or community theatre.
About the Author
Mary Ellen Allison is a working stage manager with over thirty years of professional experience from Broadway to community theatre. Her credits include shows with award-winning theatre artists, such as: Horton Foote, Jean Stapleton, Allison Janney, Jim Dale, Andrew Lippa, and Frank Langella. She teaches stage management at Ramapo College of New Jersey and was named to Who's Who Among America's Teachers, 2003-2004.

My Cue to Fight is the first book of its kind to provide an in-depth examination of how the greatest playwright in the English language employed not only psychological brutality but also physical violence throughout his works. Written ideally for theatrical stage directors, fight directors, intimacy consultants, and actors as a technical scene-by-scene breakdown in staging combat during production of these plays, this publication is also for Shakespeare enthusiasts who want to learn more about the blood, sweat, and viscera hidden just underneath the poetry. A writer utilises violence, like song or dance, in moments where the story requires more than just words. But addressing how the violence will be staged tends either to be neglected or utterly gratuitous, both of which serve to separate the audience from the story and kill the whole venture. The answer rests in approaching violence the same way we do scenework. The plays of William Shakespeare seek to engage audiences with all of the characters' blood, tears, sweat, and guts. These works are not flowery poems meant to be mumbled in a classroom, or histrionically declaimed in frilly costumes. There is nothing light and fluffy about 'rape' and 'murder's rages', or 'carving' someone as a dish fit for the gods, or fighting till from one's bones one's 'flesh be hacked'. Making matters more complicated is the ambiguity and sometimes even complete lack of stage directions. Modern texts typically possess clear directions whenever violence is to occur in the action, but playscripts were quite different four centuries ago. Such denotations were both rare and inconsistent in Elizabethan and Jacobean printings. The potential violence we will examine is not appropriate for all productions or scene partners. We're here to question and inspire rather than provide catch-all solutions. Actors, directors, fight directors, and intimacy consultants must work together to find the most effective way for their production to communicate the playwright's story to the audience.

`I consider this book a precious report that permits one to assimilate some of those simple and basic principles which the self-taught at times come to know, yet only after years of groping and errors. The book furnishes information regarding discoveries which the actor can understand in practice, without having to start each time from zero. Thomas Richards has worked with me systematically since 1985. Today he is my essential collaborator in the research dedicated to Art as Vehicle.' - from the Preface by Jerzy Grotowski

This book traces the career of the Russian revolutionary theater director, Vsevolod Meyerhold, from his early years as a founding member of the Moscow Art Theater with Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko, through his Symbolist period, his experiments with commedia dell'arte and other popular forms, and his glittering triumphs in the tsarist imperial theaters. Leach examines Meyerhold at the height of his fame and influence after the Russian Revolution and during his demise in the Stalin era. He describes in detail Meyerhold's "system" of theater, which involved the audience, the place of the forestage, "biomechanics" and actor training, and the mise-en-scene. An exploration of Meyerhold's legacy, which can be detected in the work of Brecht, Eisenstein, Peter Brook and others, concludes the study.

Peter Jackson in Perspective: The Power Behind Cinema's The Lord of the Rings brings under one cover the dozens of essays and lectures that first began appearing on the website Hollywood Jesus in December of 2001. Since then, author Greg Wright (Tolkien in Perspective: Sifting the Gold from the Glitter, VMI 2003) has analyzed and anticipated the cinematic choices of director Peter Jackson with almost prophetic critical insight. He rightly attributes the success of The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King to the power of film itself, the power of Jackson's artistry and the original power of J.R.R. Tolkien's literary masterwork-and in so doing provides an educational, entertaining and respectful look at the process of bringing a much-loved novel to the screen. Like a sculptor of words and ideas, Jackson has pared away pieces of Tolkien's fanstastic epic to reveal both the essence of Tolkien and something entirely new, something uniquely his own. The essays in this volume are an invaluable guide to understanding both Jackson and Tolkien.

Draping Period Costumes provides you with the skill set you need to break away from two-dimensional patterns to drape three dimensional costumes. The basics of draping are explained in precise detail, followed by step-by-step draping projects from multiple historical periods. Packed with photographs that illustrate every seam, pleat, and tuck, you'll never be lost with this comprehensive guide. -Includes information on measurements, necessary tools, and basic rules of draping -Covers costumes for both men and women - Discusses appropriate period under garments and fabric choices Let expert draper Sharon Sobel teach you all you need to know to perfectly drape any period costume!

Questo lavoro da uno sguardo minuzioso sulla ricezione teatrale dei maggiori episodi della Gerusalemme Liberata, studiata qui di riflesso attraverso il successo delle sue riscritture per il palco in Italia ed Europa. Frutto di un'indagine paziente sulla miriade di forme drammatiche musical-teatrali del secolo XVII, ripercorre la storia in gran parte inedita dei trascorsi barocchi di Rinaldo ed Armida, di Sofronia ed Olindo e di Tancredi, Clorinda ed Erminia. Ne risulta un'affascinante panoramica dei tentativi di drammatizzare il grande poema del Tasso che costituiscono un capitolo minore ma non certo trascurabile della storia del teatro e dello spettacolo barocchi. Tale storia e infatti ricca di sviluppi imprevedibili, di volgarizzamenti popolareggianti ma anche di riscritture originali da parte di autori noti (Chiabrera, Sempronio e Rospigliosi) come anche di epigoni oscuri. Il lavoro e corredato da un catalogo ragionato che include piu di 80 opere drammatiche del XVII secolo realmente derivate dalla Liberata o falsamente attribuite ad essa. Il catalogo costituisce uno strumento prezioso per qualsiasi indagine futura intorno alla ricezione teatrale del capolavoro epico di Torquato Tasso.

In 1994 the Arts Council of Great Britain brought together a number of theatre directors as part of the City of Drama celebrations. This is a collection of interviews and discussions with directors who have helped shape the development of theatre in the last 20 years. They include Peter Brook, Peter Stein, Augusto Boal, Jorge Lavelli, Lluis Pasqual, Lev Dodin, Maria Irene Fornes, Jonathan Miller, Jatinder Verma, Peter Sellars, Declan Donnellan, Ariane Mnouchkine, Ion Caramitru, Yukio Ninagawa and Robert Wilson. In addition to the art and craft of directing, there are discussions on multiculturalism; the "classical" repertoire; theatre companies and institutions; working in a foreign language; opera; Shakespeare; new technologies; the art of acting; design; international festivals; politics and aesthetics; the audience; and theatre and society. Finally, there is an epilogue by Peter Brook, Jonathan Miller and Oliver Sacks. -- .

Emphasising the artistry behind the decisions made by theatrical sound designers, this guide is for anyone seeking to understand the nature of sound and how to apply it to the stage. Through tried-and-tested advice and lessons in practical application, The Art of Theatrical Sound Design allows developing artists to apply psychology, physiology, sociology, anthropology and all aspects of sound phenomenology to theatrical sound design. Structured in three parts, the book explores, theoretically, how human beings perceive the vibration of sound; offers exercises to develop support for storytelling by creating an emotional journey for the audience; considers how to collaborate and communicate as a theatre artist; and discusses how to create a cohesive sound design for the stage.

Stage Lighting: The Fundamentals is written specifically for introductory stage lighting courses. The book begins with an examination of the nature of light, perception, and color, then leads into a conversation of stage lighting equipment and technicians. Lamps, luminaries, controls/dimming, and electricity form the basis of these chapters. The book also provides a detailed explanation and overview of the lighting design process for the theatre and several other traditional forms of entertainment. Finally, the book explores a variety of additional areas where lighting designers can find related future employment, such as concert and corporate lighting, themed design, architectural and landscape lighting, and computer animation. New for this edition: enlarged full-color illustrations, photographs, light plots and examples of lighting design; updated information on LED lighting and equipment; expanded discussion of the practical use of color as a designer; expanded discussion of psychological/perceptual effects of color; new discussion of color mixing through light sources that make use of additive mixing; expanded discussion of industry professions; expanded discussion and illustrations relating to photometrics; expanded discussion and examples of control protocols and new equipment; and updated designer profiles along with the addition of still more designer profiles.

From the stages of Broadway and London to university campuses, Paris, and the bourgeoning theaters of Africa, Greek tragedy remains constantly in production. This global revival, in addition to delighting audiences, has highlighted both the promise and the pitfalls of staging ancient masterpieces in the modern age. Addressing the issues and challenges these performances pose, renowned classicist Simon Goldhill responds here to the growing demand for a comprehensive guide to staging Greek tragedy today.
In crisp and spirited prose, Goldhill explains how Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles conceived their works in performance and then summarizes everything we know about how their tragedies were actually staged. The heart of his book tackles the six major problems facing any company performing these works today: the staging space and concept of the play; the use of the chorus; the actor's role in an unfamiliar style of performance; the place of politics in tragedy; the question of translation; and the treatment of gods, monsters, and other strange characters of the ancient world. Outlining exactly what makes each of these issues such a pressing difficulty for modern companies, Goldhill provides insightful solutions drawn from his nimble analyses of some of the best recent productions in the United States, Britain, and Continental Europe.
One of the few experts on both Greek tragedy and contemporary performance, Goldhill uses his unique background and prodigious literary skill to illuminate brilliantly what makes tragedy at once so exciting and so tricky to get right. The result will inspire and enlighten all directors and performers--not to mention the growing audiences--of ancientGreek theater.

Historical Wig Styling: Victorian to the Present, 2nd edition, is a guide to creating beautiful, historically accurate hairstyles for theatrical productions and events. This volume covers hairstyles from the Victorian era through the contemporary styles of today. Chapters begin with an overview of historic figures and styles that influenced the look of each period, followed by step-by-step instructions and photographs showing the finished look from every angle. The book also explores the necessary supplies and styling products needed to create the perfect coif, tips for proper wig handling, a brief history of the makeup for each historical period, and basic styling techniques useful when working with wigs or real hair. New hairstyles featured in this edition include: - Civil War era women - Late Victorian African-American men - 1910s' Full width style women - 1920s' glossy waves - 1940s' Victory rolls - 1950s' Poodle updos - 1960s' flips With over 1,000 full-color images and detailed instructions on how to create iconic hairstyles and makeup, Historical Wig Styling: Victorian to the Present, 2nd edition, is an excellent resource for professional costume designers and wig makers, as well as for students of Costume Design and Wig Making and Styling courses.

An inclusive history of the professionalization of American scenic design The figure of the American theatrical scenic designer first emerged in the early twentieth century. As productions moved away from standardized, painted scenery and toward individualized scenic design, the demand for talented new designers grew. Within decades, scenic designers reinvented themselves as professional artists. They ran their own studios, proudly displayed their names on Broadway playbills, and even appeared in magazine and television profiles. American Scenic Design and Freelance Professionalism tells the history of the field through the figures, institutions, and movements that helped create and shape the profession. Taking a unique sociological approach, theatre scholar David Bisaha examines the work that designers performed outside of theatrical productions. He shows how figures such as Lee Simonson, Norman Bel Geddes, Jo Mielziner, and Donald Oenslager constructed a freelance, professional identity for scenic designers by working within their labor union (United Scenic Artists Local 829), generating self-promotional press, building university curricula, and volunteering in wartime service. However, while new institutions provided autonomy and intellectual property rights for many, women, queer, and Black designers were not always welcome to join the organizations that protected freelance designers' interests. Among others, Aline Bernstein, Emeline Roche, Perry Watkins, Peggy Clark, and James Reynolds were excluded from professional groups because of their identities. They nonetheless established themselves among the most successful designers of their time. Their stories expand the history of American scenic design by showing how professionalism won designers substantial benefits, yet also created legacies of exclusion with which American theatre is still reckoning.

Sound provides a lively and engaging overview of relevant critical theory for students and researchers in theatre and performance studies. Addressing sound across history and through progressive developments in relevant technologies, the volume opens up the study of theatrical production and live performance to understand conceptual and pragmatic concerns about the sonic. By way of developed case studies (including Aristophanes's The Frogs, Shakespeare's The Tempest, Cocteau's The Human Voice, and Rimini Protokoll's Situation Rooms), readers can explore new methodologies and approaches for their own work on sound as a performance component. In an engagement with the burgeoning interdisciplinary field of sound studies, this book samples exciting new thinking relevant to theatre and performance studies. Part of the Theory for Theatre Studies series which introduces core theoretical concepts that underpin the discipline, Sound provides a balance of essential background information and new scholarship, and is grounded in detailed examples that illuminate and equip readers for their own sonic explorations. Volumes follow a consistent three-part structure: a historical overview of how the term has been understood within the discipline; more recent developments illustrated by substantive case studies; and emergent trends and interdisciplinary connections. Volumes are supported by further online resources including chapter overviews, illustrative material and guiding questions. Online resources to accompany this book are available at: https://bloomsbury.com/uk/theory-for-theatre-studies-sound-9781474246460/

Scenography Expanded is a foundational text offering readers a thorough introduction to contemporary performance design, both in and beyond the theatre. It examines the potential of the visual, spatial, technological, material and environmental aspects of performance to shape performative encounters. It analyses examples of scenography as sites of imaginative exchange and transformative experience and it discusses the social, political and ethical dimensions of performance design. The international range of contributors and case studies provide clear perspectives on why scenographic design has become a central consideration for performance makers today. The extended introduction defines the characteristics of 21st-century scenography and examines the scope and potentials of this new field. Across five sections, the volume provides examples and case studies which richly illustrate the scope of contemporary scenographic practice and which analyse the various ways in which it is used in global cultural contexts. These include mainstream theatre practice, experimental theatre, installation and live art, performance in the city, large-scale events and popular entertainments, and performances by and for specific communities.

With sound becoming more important in cinema exhibition and DVD release, this book offers user-friendly knowledge and stimulating exercises to help compose a story, develop characters and create emotion through skilful creation of the sound track. Psychoacoustics, music theory, voice study and analysis of well-known films expand perception, imagination and the musical skills of the reader.

The Theater of Trauma is a groundbreaking re-reading of the relations between psychology and drama in the age of Eugene O'Neill, Susan Glaspell, and their many brilliant contemporaries. American modernist Theater of Trauma drew its vision from the psychological investigation of trauma and its consequences - among them hysteria and dissociation - made by French and American psychiatrists such as the great Pierre Janet, Alfred Binet, William James, Morton Prince, and W.E.B. Du Bois; the European and American « dissociationist culture that developed around their work; and the resulting trauma of World War I. American dramatists' deep resistance to Freud's suppression of trauma challenges the equation of Freud and modernism that has become commonplace in modernist criticism.

Ming Cho Lee is considered to be the most influential stage designer in the United States in the past forty years, and one of the most respected designers in the world. His work with theater, opera, and dance companies in the 1960s, particularly the New York Shakespeare Festival, the New York City Opera, and the Joffrey Ballet, transformed the very nature of the design in America and introduced a scenic vocabulary and spatial aesthetic that underlies scenographic styles to the present day.

Lavishly illustrated with over five hundred images in both color and black and white, this book chronicles Lee's career from his early training as a water-colorist in China, his designs for over three hundred productions, and his esteemed forty-year career at the Yale School of Drama as a mentor to an entire generations of scenic designers. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, the highest national award given in the arts awarded by the President of the United States, Lee's work has been showcased at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, and in early 2014, the Yale School of Architecture hosted a major retrospective of his work. His other awards include a Tony Award, Outer Circle Critics' Award, and three Drama Desk Awards.

Arnold Aronson has taught at Columbia University since 1991 and has previously worked in the theater departments at Hunter College, The University of Michigan, Cornell University, and The University of Virginia. He served as the editor of "Theatre Design & Technology" from 1978 to 1988 and is the author of "American Set Design." In 2007, he served as the first non-Czech General Commissioner of the Prague Quadrennial of Stage Design and Theatre Architecture.

This is the first major collection of critical responses to performance lighting and includes contributions from award-winning lighting designers, researchers and artists. Showcasing recent examples of work - with case studies of lighting practices in Britain, Europe, the US and China - combined with theoretical and analytical approaches to practice, this will enrich your understanding of the role and potential of light in performance and related creative practices. This volume explores three core themes and provides a framework for thinking through the role of light in performance: 1. Experience - considers both the audience's experience of light and the ways in which light influences the experience of performers 2. Creativity - examines both the creative, performative capacities of light in performance, as well as the creative practices of lighting designers 3. Meaning - offers an expanded view of performance aesthetics by examining the capacity of light to influence and generate meaning within performance. The case studies are drawn from a wide-array of lighting practice, including: Jennifer Tipton on the role of light as a structural language in performance; Jesper Kongshaug on the lighting of Copenhagen's Tivoli Gardens; Lucy Carter on her work in installation and dance; Psyche Chui on the productive fusion of Western lighting techniques with contemporary Chinese opera; Katharine Williams on the role of light in feminist political theatre made by RashDash; and Paule Constable on storytelling with light in a range of productions, including War Horse, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time and Angels in America.

Sewing Techniques for Theatre: An Essential Guide for Beginners distills the intimidating art of sewing down into simple, quick, and effective lessons to prepare readers for an entry-level position in a costume shop. The lessons follow an hour-by-hour structure, offering detailed instructions to creating 11 sewing samples, a scrub shirt, and a tote bag. Embedded in the projects' directions are lecture materials on safety, irons, fabric, and patterns. With a wealth of hands-on exercises, review questions, photographs, and step-by-step instructions for compiling a portfolio, this guide teaches aspiring costume technicians about the culture and machinery of the costume shop, and equips them with the necessary skills to begin their career as members of a costume shop team.