Theater: The Lively Art - Softcover

Wilson, Edwin; Goldfarb, Alvin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0072407182 ISBN 13: 9780072407181

Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill (Tx), 2001

Synopsis

This brief edition combines a thorough study of the elements of theatre with a brief look at theatrical history and contemporary theatre. It is designed for use in courses also requiring students to read play scripts. It grounds students in the elements by examining the interplay between the audience, the critics, performers, directors, playwrights, designers, and the genres. The book covers various national theatres, such as those from Japan, Spain and India, and integrates effective pedagogical aids, such as you-are-there vignettes and timelines opening each historical chapter, learning objectives, chapter summaries, and a glossary.

About this title

From the Publisher:

Free Study Aids: Each copy of The Lively Art comes with the complimentary Theatergoer's Guide, as well as the Making the Grade study skills CD-ROM.
Colorful Photo Program: Every illustration in The Lively Art is in full color and represents a current production. Additionally, a photo essay from the Illinois Shakespeare Festival production of All's Well That Ends Well documents the process of creating a piece for the theater from the building of the set through the closing curtain.
Historical Coverage: The thorough coverage of the historical development of theater is enhanced by a timeline of each period (Greco-Roman, Medieval, Renaissance, etc . . .) that illustrates the relationship between theatrical developments and cultural and historical events. Additionally, each historical section is introduced with a narrative description of attending a performance of the period. These sections give students an appreciation of the development of the experience of the theater, in addition to the development of the form and content.
Play Synopses: Another popular supplement to the historical information is the synopses of plays from each period. Among the plays included are Sophocles' "King Oedipus," Kiyotsugo's "Sotoba Komachi," Molière's "Tartuffe," Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard," Brecht's "Mother Courage and Her Children," and Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun."
Getting Started in the Theater: A popular and retained feature of previous editions, these boxed sections include first-person descriptions by actors, designers, directors, and others of their introduction to, first jobs in, and love for, the theater.
Coverage of Traditional Asian Theater: Addressing the three major Asian theatrical traditions - those of India, China, and Japan - The Lively Art describes the performance techniques, spaces, forms, and styles that define each.
Making Connections: These boxes relate popular culture and familiar artforms to theater performance. For instance, Acting on Stage and in Front of the Camera and Popular Performance Spaces.
Theater on the Web: Exercises and links that conclude each chapter. The material ties the content of each chapter to links on the World Wide Web.
The Wilson-Goldfarb Approach: Edwin Wilson and Alvin Goldfarb address the role a majority of students play - that of audience member. This unique approach encourages students to be active theatergoers as they learn the fundamentals of bringing a production to the stage.

About the Author:

Edwin Wilson, as teacher, author, director, and critic, has worked in many aspects of theater. Educated at Vanderbilt University, the University of Edinburgh, and Yale University, he received a master of fine arts degree from the Yale Drama School, as well as the first doctor of fine arts degree awarded by Yale. He has taught at Yale, Hofstra, Vanderbilt, Hunter College, and the CUNY Graduate Center. At Hunter he served as chair of the Department of Theatre and Film and head of the graduate theater program. At CUNY he directed the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center devoted to theater research, publication, and communication. From 1972 to 1994 he was the theater critic of The Wall Street Journal. He is the author of The Theater Experience and a co-author, with Alvin Goldfarb, of Living Theatre: A History, as well as coeditor of The Anthology of Living Theater; all published by McGraw-Hill. He edited and wrote the introduction for Shaw on Shakespeare. He has been a member of the New York Drama Critics Circle, of which he served as president, and has been on the selection committees of the Pulitzer Prize in drama and the Tony awards. He serves on the board of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and the John Golden Fund, and has for many years served on the board of the Theatre Development Fund, of which he was president for two terms. Alvin Goldfarb is President and Professor of Theatre at Western Illinois University. Dr. Goldfarb also served as vice president and provost, dean of Fine Arts, and chair of Theatre at Illinois State University. Dr. Goldfarb holds a Ph.D. in theater history from the City University of New York and a master's degree from Hunter College. He is the coauthor of Living Theatre:A History and coeditor of The Anthology of Living Theater with Edwin Wilson. Dr. Goldfarb is also the coeditor, with Rebecca Rovit, of Theatrical Performance during the Holocaust: Texts, Documents, Memoirs, which was a National Jewish Book Award finalist. He has published numerous articles and reviews in scholarly journals and anthologies. Dr. Goldfarb served as a member of the Illinois Arts Council and president of the Illinois Alliance for Arts Education. He has received service awards from the latter organization as well as from the American College Theater Festival. Dr. Goldfarb also received an Alumni Achievement Award from the City University of New York Graduate Center's Alumni Association.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill (Tx)
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0072407182
• ISBN 13: 9780072407181
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 419