Spanish Golden-Age plays take their place at the forefront of world theatre. Oscar Wilde once observed that `it is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors'. This thought is borne out in this volume, which brings together two different and often mutually exclusive constituencies: the academic critic and the theatre practitioner. In looking at the ways in which theatre is a barometer of society, the essays in this book form part of a larger theoretical inquiry into performance as interpretation, contingent upon the cultural context. Engaging with theoretical approaches to culture, and theoreticians from Elam to Brook, and from Derrida to Bakhtin, the author analyzes in detail productions of plays by Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina, and Calderon dela Barca, as well as an adaptation of Rojas' Celestina, on the Spanish, or French, or Anglo-American stage. Two chapters deal with appropriations of Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice in translation on the Spanish andFrench boards. As they read performance in [trans]national productions, these essays are not only at the cutting-edge of theatre studies on the `foreign' stage, but they also bring Spanish Golden-Age plays, long neglected byprofessional directors of the classics because of the lack of a continuous performance tradition, closer to assuming their rightful place amongst `the great theatre of the world'. SUSAN L. FISCHER is Professor of Spanish and Comparative Literature at Bucknell University.
Reviews
[O]f major interest to those who study translation, broadly conceived.an exciting and innovative collection for readers in theater studies, translation, and performance. * BULLETIN OF THE COMEDIANTES *
[T]his compilation represents a compelling example of the importance of the performative context for the study of theatre [...] Fischer's descriptions of lighting, staging, and costumes and the 15 black-and-white photographs of performances also prove valuable for researchers. Recommended. * CHOICE *



Book Information
ISBN 9781855661813
Author Susan L Fischer
Format Hardback
Page Count 392
Imprint Tamesis Books
Publisher Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Weight(grams) 992g