The Oxford Companion to American Theatre - Hardcover

9780195072464: The Oxford Companion to American Theatre

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0195072464 ISBN 13: 9780195072464

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1992

First published in 1984, Gerald Bordman's Oxford Companion to American Theatre has established itself as the standard one-volume source on our national theatre. It has been hailed for its "wealth of authoritative information" (Back Stage), for its "fascinating picture of the volative American stage" (The Guardian), for its "well-chosen, illuminating facts" (Newsday). The distinguished actor Jose Ferrer wrote "I'm in awe of the scholarship and research that have gone into the making of this book." And The Los Angeles Times called it "the almost perfect gift book for both the student and the theatre lover."
Now Bordman has thoroughly revised this redoubtable volume, once again providing a completely up-to-date guide to the American stage from its beginnings to the present. Here are over 3,000 entries on playwrights, plays, actors, directors, producers, songwriters, famous playhouses, dramatic movements, and much more. Readers will find summaries of plays as varied as The Contrast, Francesca da Rimini, Arsenic and Old Lace, Our Town, and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; biographical sketches of Edwin Forrest and Bartley Campbell, Lillian Hellman and David Rabe, John Barrymore and Jessica Tandy, George Gershwin and Cole Porter; and entries on groups such as The Actors Studio, Christy's Minstrels, and the Provincetown Players. For the new edition, Bordman has added entries on such recent plays as Fences, M. Butterfly, The Heidi Chronicles, and The Piano Lesson, as well as biographies of Len Cariou, Dustin Hoffman, Raul Julia, Tommy Tune, and August Wilson, to name a few. And as in the previous edition, Bordman gives readers as broad a picture of American popular theatre as possible, offering extensive coverage not only of classic works (such as Death of a Salesman) but also many commercially successful plays (such as Brother Rat or Getting Gertie's Garter), plus entries on foreign figures and productions that have influenced our dramatic development (from Shakespeare to Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter).
Accessibly and attractively arranged in the two-column, A-Z format for which the Companion series is famous, this is a volume of enormous erudition, an essential reference for everyone who has a passion for the stage.

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About the Author:

Gerald Bordman is the author of many books, including American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle, Jerome Kern: His Life and Music, and Days to be Happy, Years to be Sad: The Life and Music of Vincent Youmans.

From Booklist:

Like a well-crafted revival of a beloved play, this new edition of a favorite reference book retains the flavor of the original production while significantly updating its content. The cast here is large and includes actors, choreographers, composers, dancers, designers, directors, lyricists, plays, playwrights, producers, theaters, and theater companies.

The text covers the American stage from its inception to the present, and the alphabetically arranged entries range in length from a few lines to a quarter of a double-columned page. Among the articles new to this edition are AIDS and the American theatre, Asian-American theatre and drama, Feminist theatre, 42nd Street redevelopment, Performance art, and Road tours. The authors note that to retain all the historical information of previous editions, individual articles have been condensed rather than eliminated. There is more variety here than on a vaudeville bill: hair and hairspray; urinetown and Uncle Tom's Cabin; and Tony 'n Tina's Wedding and The Tale of the Allergist's Wife are among the plays represented. Articles on individual theater artists often mention a biography or autobiography, a welcome enhancement to a ready-reference source such as this. To present as complete a picture of American theater as possible, entries on theaters beyond the Great White Way, such as the Arena Stage, the Goodman Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, American Conservatory Theatre, and the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, are included. Capsule histories of every Broadway theater as well as several Off-Broadway houses are another new and notable feature. The volume is recommended for all public and academic libraries and would be useful in high-school libraries with theater and drama collections. Carolyn Mulac
Copyright � American Library Association. All rights reserved

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