This major work brings together, for the first time in a single volume, all the recognized sources of Marlowe's dramatic work. Many of the forty-two texts presented here are of outstanding interest in their own right. Together they illuminate the cultural milieu which fostered Marlowe's talent, and deepen our appreciation of his dramatic methods.
* Each of the texts is accessibly presented for the modern reader and is fully annotated.
* Works in Latin or foreign vernaculars are translated, many for the first time, and modern spelling and punctuation are used throughout.
* The sources for each play are examined individually and are thoroughly edited.
Few libraries provide the range of sources contained in this one volume. The editors include texts of works such as the English Faust-Book from which Marlowe borrowed heavily, and provide substantial extracts from other books with which he was no doubt familiar.
This book is an invaluable resource for all those interested in Marlowe and the development of Elizabethan theatre.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203379837

This 1996 book is a study of Oscar Wilde's Salome, a play now regarded as central to his artistic achievement. Often drawing on little-known sources, the authors provide a detailed stage-history of this controversial work, and its transformation into opera, dance and film. Beginning with Sarah Bernhardt's aborted production of 1892, the book surveys Salome's principal realisations in the European theatre, including Lugne-Poe's Parisian premiere of 1896, Reinhardt's Berlin productions of 1902-3, attempts at presentation in pre-revolutionary Russia, and the play's impact on the English stage between 1911 and 1990. A separate chapter explores a wealth of further interpretations, including Aubrey Beardsley's challenging illustrations, Strauss's operatic version and the provocative films created by Alla Nazimova and Ken Russell.

This major work brings together, for the first time in a single volume, all the recognized sources of Marlowe's dramatic work. Many of the forty-two texts presented here are of outstanding interest in their own right. Together they illuminate the cultural milieu which fostered Marlowe's talent, and deepen our appreciation of his dramatic methods. * Each of the texts is accessibly presented for the modern reader and is fully annotated. * Works in Latin or foreign vernaculars are translated, many for the first time, and modern spelling and punctuation are used throughout. * The sources for each play are examined individually and are thoroughly edited. Few libraries provide the range of sources contained in this one volume. The editors include texts of works such as the English Faust-Book from which Marlowe borrowed heavily, and provide substantial extracts from other books with which he was no doubt familiar. This book is an invaluable resource for all those interested in Marlowe and the development of Elizabethan theatre.

This volume brings together a wide selection of primary source materials from the theatrical history of the Middle Ages. The focus is on Western Europe between the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of markedly Renaissance forms in Italy. Early sections of the volume are devoted to the survival of Classical tradition and the development of the liturgical drama of the Roman Catholic Church, but the main concentration is on the genesis and growth of popular religious drama in the vernacular. Each of the major medieval regions is featured, while a final section covers the pastimes and customs of the people, a record of whose traditional activities often only survives in the margins of official recognition. The documents are compiled by a team of leading scholars in the field and the over 700 documents are all presented in modern English translation.

This is the only volume available to bring together a wide selection of primary sources from the theatrical history of the Middle Ages. The focus is on Western Europe between the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Renaissance forms in Italy. Coverage includes the survival of Classical tradition and development of the liturgical drama, the growth of popular religious drama in the vernacular, and the pastimes and customs of the people. Each of the major medieval regions is featured and documents are presented in modern English translation.

This 1996 book is a study of Oscar Wilde's Salome, a play now regarded as central to his artistic achievement. Often drawing on little-known sources, the authors provide a detailed stage-history of this controversial work, and its transformation into opera, dance and film. Beginning with Sarah Bernhardt's aborted production of 1892, the book surveys Salome's principal realisations in the European theatre, including Lugne-Poe's Parisian premiere of 1896, Reinhardt's Berlin productions of 1902-3, attempts at presentation in pre-revolutionary Russia, and the play's impact on the English stage between 1911 and 1990. A separate chapter explores a wealth of further interpretations, including Aubrey Beardsley's challenging illustrations, Strauss's operatic version and the provocative films created by Alla Nazimova and Ken Russell.

'After years of sham heroics and superhuman balderdash, Caste delighted everyone by its freshness, its nature, its humanity.' Thus, after watching a revival in 1897, did Shaw generously recognize the impact made thirty years earlier by Tom Robertson's best-known play. Yet, in spite of the acknowledged importance of these seminal dramas, they are not easily accessible in print, and this edition therefore comprises four of Robertson's most successful comedies: Society (1865), Ours (1866), Caste (1867) and School (1869). Beginning his career as a theatrical hack-of-all-trades, Robertson ultimately found his niche with the Bancrofts at the Prince of Wales's Theatre, establishing a vogue for comedies of everyday Victorian life, and creating vehicles for casts whose particular talents he learnt to exploit. The playwright's distinctive trademarks - fairytale contrivance and domestic realism, tender romance and mild debunking of convention - offered a refreshing change from the prevailing genres of burlesque and melodrama. William Tydeman's substantial introduction follows each phase of Robertson's creative development, stressing the historical significance of his works as well as their intrinsic merits as drama.

Popular and scholarly works on the Elizabethan stage have long familiarised readers and playgoers with the main features of a typical Shakespearian playhouse, yet medieval stage conditions remain far less well known, despite the amount of research in this area recently. In this survey of findings and theories (some unavoidably controversial), William Tydeman covers central aspects of western European theatre from the Dark Ages to the building of the first public theatres towards the end of the sixteenth century. The book begins by examining the ancient rituals from which drama sprang, the legacy bequeathed by the Roman stage to popular entertainers of the Middle Ages, and the r le of the histrionic impulse in Christian worship. Subsequent chapters describe in some detail the varying methods of medieval staging - indoors, processional, and al fresco - settings, costumes, and effects, the way performers were chosen and organised, how the plays were financed and how their audiences responded. Half-tone and line illustrations clarify various points of theatrical detail in the text.

Each Macmillan Casebook concerns a classic of English Literature or a significant modern work. (Occasional volumes in the series will deal with closely related works.) Each Casebook brings together the best of modern criticism, along with a generous selection of earlier review and comment and any useful information that readers might need. The Introduction discusses the critical reputation of the work from the time of its publication to the present day. Each volume aims to give its readers a heightened sense of the interest and vitality of the work under discussion, and of the value of a critical response.