A unique book of criticism that brings both theatre and film studies within a single theoretical framework Martin Esslin is the author of seminal critical studies such as The Theatre of the Absurd and Brecht: A Choice of Evils. Covering artists as diverse as Duchamp and Brecht, Busby Berkely and Congreve, Pinter and WC Fields, Esslin's approach is fresh and genuinely inquisitive, examining various prepared positions and testing the jargon. Taking each element of drama - the actor, the setting, the text, the music - and making provocative cross-references to stage and screen, Esslin offers a carefully argued "system" of his own, much fuller and more sensitive than anything that has gone before.

A unique book of criticism that brings both theatre and film studies within a single theoretical framework


About the Author
Martin Esslin was the author of such ground-breaking classics as The Theatre of the Absurd and Brecht: A Choice of Evils, as well as The Field of Drama in which he focused on the semiology of drama. He joined the BBC in 1940 and was head of Drama (Radio) from 1963-1977. He published many collections of essays including Brief Chronicles: Essays on Modern Drama and Mediations: Essays on Brecht, Beckett and the Media. His critical articles used to appear regularly in Plays and Players, Encounters and many other periodicals. He was also a well-known translator of plays, particularly by German-speaking dramatists. He died in 2012.


Book Information
ISBN 9780413192608
Author Martin Esslin
Format Paperback
Page Count 192
Imprint Methuen Drama
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 180g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 126mm * 12mm