Rodgers ＋ Hammerstein’s Cinderella
RODGERS + HAMMERSTEIN'S CINDERELLA: THE COMPLETE BOOK AND LYRICS OF THE BROADWAY MUSICA
Best Contemporary Monologues for Men 18-35
BEST CONTEMPORARY MONOLOGUES FOR MEN 18-35
Buyer & Cellar
Alex More has a story to tell. A struggling actor in L.A, he takes a job working in the Malibu basement of a beloved megastar. One day, the Lady Herself comes downstairs to play. It feels like real bonding in the basement, but will their relationship ever make it upstairs? BUYER & CELLAR is an outrageous comedy about the price of fame, the cost of things, and the oddest of odd jobs. "Jonathan Tolins has concocted an irresistible one-man play from the most peculiar of fictitious premises...This seriously funny slice of absurdist whimsy creates the illusion of a stage filled with multiple people, all of them with their own droll point of view." --THE NEW YORK TIMES "A gorgeous play: funny and beautifully observed and richly insightful." --Moises Kaufman "Tolins's writing is smart, sharp, and hilarious--and he paints a vivid picture that even a perfectionist like Barbra would have to applaud." --James Lapine
Entertainment Rigging for the 21st Century
From the basics of physical forces and mathematical formulas to performer flying and stage automation, Entertainment Rigging for the 21st Century provides you with insider information into rigging systems and the skills you need to safely operate them.
Wonder of Wonders
In the half-century since its premiere, Fiddler on the Roof has become a supremely potent cultural landmark, beloved by audiences the world over. Now, in a history as captivating as its subject, award-winning drama critic Alisa Solomon traces how and why the story of Tevye the milkman, the creation of the great Yiddish writer Sholem-Aleichem, was reborn as blockbuster entertainment and a cultural touchstone, not only for Jews and not only in America. It is first a story of the theater, as Solomon follows Tevye from his humble appearance on the New York Yiddish stage, through his adoption by leftist dramatists as a symbol of oppression, to his Broadway debut and his starring role in a major Hollywood picture. And it is a cultural story, of a show that spoke to the deepest conflicts and desires the world over: the fraying of tradition, generational tension, the loss of roots. Entertaining and original, Wonder of Wonders reveals the profound legacy of a show about tradition that itself became a tradition.
Directing
"Simon Usher is one of the most clear headed thinkers about theatre in this country. He taps onto a well of experience spanning four decades with grace and ferocious honesty. He writes with precision and wit and insight. There is no more essential book for anybody working in or hoping to work in theatre." Simon Stephens 'Only direct if you can do nothing else.' 'Directors: People with incurable cases of writer's block.' 'Direct plays whose authors know more than you do.' Not so much a how-to-direct book but reflections on a long career directing plays. Presented in the form of aphorisms, apercu, questions, maxims, dialogues and miniature essays aimed at the vocational rather than the career director. Usher emphasizes the reality of life as a theatre director. Directing vocationally is a state of mind, an attitude to life, a philosophical adventure. Directing: A Miscellany is about survival: how to remain creative in good times and bad; how to remain alive as a director in any circumstance. Commenting extensively on the process of acting, Shakespeare and the classics, working with writers and designers, directing techniques, the trials and tribulations of working with others, the book is an aid to reflection for readers.
The Playbook
Improvisation Games formats and notes. This book is perfect for improv groups who want to expand their collection of games. Teachers will love the variety of drama games for their classes. A few long form formats are also included as well as notes on improvisation.
Toronto Theaters and the Golden Age of the Silver Screen
The history, heritage, and architectural significance of Toronto's most notable theatres and movie houses. Movie houses first started popping up around Toronto in the 1910s and '20s, in an era without television and before radio had permeated
Theatre Sciences
Traditional theatre semiotics promoted a scientific approach to theatre studies, albeit viewing semiotics as the unique discipline of research. Theatre Sciences: A Plea for a Multidisciplinary Approach to Theatre Studies suggests instead a multi-disciplinary approach, including the following theoretical disciplines: narratology, mythology, pragmatics, ethics, theatre irony, theory of genres, aesthetics, semiotics, theory of non-verbal figures of speech, rhetoric, psychoanalysis, reception theory, history, and sociology -- with semiotics being only one among equals. These disciplines are presented from the perspective of their possible contributions to a sound methodology of theatre-texts analysis. Traditional theatre semiotics, moreover, holds the view that the actual performance on stage is the genuine text of theatre, instead of the play-script. Despite this paradigmatic shift, however, this viewpoint has failed to produce commendable analyses of such texts. The alternative presupposition put forward in this volume entails a series of novel perceptions of the theatre-text and its possible impact on the experiencing spectator, whose role in reading, interpreting and experiencing the theatre-text is not less crucial than that of the text itself. This view presupposes that the theatre-text is a description of a fictional world generated by the theatre medium. The author also contests the age-old view that a theatre/fictional-text reflects a simple narrative structure, and suggests instead a complexity that consists of seven layers: personified, mythical, praxical, naive, ironic, modal and aesthetic -- with each one of them re-structuring the previous layer. Professor Rozik also presents and describes a semiotic layer that lends communicative capacity to the description of a fictional world, and two additional metaphoric and rhetoric layers, which structure the theatre experience. The underlying purpose is to illustrate the application of the aforementioned disciplines to these fictional layers, and eventually their joint application to entire theatre / fictional texts. Organisation of the book reflects the structure of a university course.
The Limits of Performance in the French Romantic Theatre
This volume analyses major French plays of the 1830s, focusing on their theatricality, and on the ways in which they expose the workings of the theatre rather than conceal them. It breaks new ground in nineteenth-century theatre scholarship while proposing a fresh direction in the study of text and performance.
The Oberon Book of Monologues for Black Actors
How many Black British plays can you name? Inspired by both classical and contemporary plays, The Oberon Book of Monologues for Black Actors gives readers an insight into some of the best cutting-edge plays written by black British playwrights, over the last sixty years. This collection features over twenty speeches by Britain's most prominent black dramatists. The monologues represent a wide-range of themes, characters, dialects and styles. Suitable for young people and adults, each selection includes production information, a synopsis of the play, a biography of the playwright and a scene summary. The aim of this collection is that actors will enjoy working on these speeches, using them to help strengthen their craft, and by doing so, help to ensure these plays are always remembered. These monologues for women are taken from speeches by Britain's most prominent black dramatists, including Barry Reckord, Lydia Adetunji, Roy Williams, Courttia Newland, Errol John, Ade Solanke, Trevor Rhone, Inua Ellams, Biyi Bandele, and Arinze Kene. Includes a foreword by actor Naomie Harris.
The Oberon Book of Monologues for Black Actors
Foreword by Kwame Kwei-Armah How many Black British plays can you name? Inspired by both classical and contemporary plays, The Oberon Book of Monologues for Black Actors gives readers an insight into some of the best cutting-edge plays written by black British playwrights, over the last sixty years. This collection features over twenty speeches by Britain's most prominent black dramatists. The monologues represent a wide-range of themes, characters, dialects and styles. Suitable for young people and adults, each selection includes production information, a synopsis of the play, a biography of the playwright and a scene summary. The aim of this collection is that actors will enjoy working on these speeches, using them to help strengthen their craft, and by doing so, help to ensure these plays are always remembered.
Three Renaissance Usury Plays
This book provides for the first time modern-spelling, fully annotated editions of three important Elizabethan and Jacobean 'usury plays' - The Three Ladies of London, Englishmen for My Money, and The Hog Hath Lost His Pearl. The edition includes an extensive scholarly introduction to the attitudes toward money-lending in early modern England, and to the authors, texts and historical contexts of these dramas. The plays included in this edition also represent examples of 'city plays' and 'alien plays', thus making them widely relevant to scholars and teachers in many areas of early modern studies. They are also gaining new appreciation in their own right. As befits a volume in the RPCL series, the edition is academically advanced to cater for specialised scholars. However, the introduction, editing and annotation remain accessible for undergraduates and theatregoers.
That Was Us
In the wake of Ireland's recent economic rise, fall, and associated social crises, theatre and performance have played vital roles in reflecting on the past, engaging the present, and imagining possible futures. That Was Us features a wide, rich range of critical essays and artist reflections that strive to make sense of some of the most significant shifts and trends in contemporary Irish theatre and performance. Focusing on artists connected to the Dublin Theatre Festival, the book addresses work by the Abbey Theatre, ANU Productions, Brokentalkers, The Corn Exchange, Druid, Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre, the Gate Theatre, Landmark Productions, Rough Magic Theatre Company, THEATREclub, Theatre Lovett, Pan Pan, The Stomach Box and THISISPOPBABY, among others. Some of the burgeoning forms and practices discussed include: site-specific and site-responsive theatre; testimonial, documentary, and biographical performance; dance theatre; theatre for children and families; new writing; and fresh takes on canonical writing staged at home or toured internationally. In bringing together critics and artists to think side by side, That Was Us is indispensable for anyone interested in contemporary practices and cultural politics. Contents 1. The Power of the Powerless: Theatre in Turbulent Times by Fintan Walsh ONE: Theatres of Testimony 2. ANU Productions and Site-Specific Performance: The Politics of Space and Place by Brian Singleton 3. Witnessing the (Broken) Nation: Theatre of the Real and Social Fragmentation in Brokentalkers' Silver Stars, The Blue Boy, and Have I No Mouth by Charlotte McIvor 4. You Had to be There by Louise Lowe TWO: Auto/Biographical Performance 5. Making Space: Female-Authored Queer Performance in Irish Theatre by Oonagh Murphy 6. The Writing Life by Helen Meany 7. Metaphysicians of Unnatural Chaos: Memories of Genesi by Soc穫etas Raffaello Sanzio by Dylan Tighe THREE: Bodies Out of Bounds 8. Insider and Outsider: Michael Keegan-Dolan in the Irish Dance Landscape by Michael Seaver 9. And the Adults Came Too! Dublin Theatre Festival and the Development of Irish Children's Theatre by Eimear Beardmore 10. Living Inspiration by John Scott FOUR: Placing Performance 11. Representations of Working-Class Dublin at the Dublin Theatre Festival by James Hickson 12. 'Getting Known' Beckett, Ireland, and the Creative Industries by Trish McTighe 13. The Art of Perspective by Michael West FIVE: Touring Performances 14. Druid Cycles: The Rewards of Marathon Productions by Tanya Dean 15. Staging the National in an International Context: Druid at the Dublin Theatre Festival by Sara Keating 16. Viewed from Afar: Contemporary Irish Theatre on the World's Stages by Peter Crawley 17. A Dance You Associate With Your Family by Gary Keegan
Inside Act
INSIDE ACT: How Ten Actors Made It-and How You Can Too identifies what sets successful actors apart. It's about the inner choices, the inside acts of working actors-acts that have propelled them to thriving careers in one of the most competitive professions on the planet. Ken Womble interviews actors Debra Monk, Eric Ladin, Krysta Rodriguez, Tony Yazbeck, James Earl, Gary Beach, John Tartaglia, Robert Clohessy, Jose Llana and Richard Portnow about their inside acts. In riveting dialogues he explores the intriguing journeys that have led these actors to successful careers. Each actor interview is followed by two additional interviews with the actor's success team members-the agents, managers, directors, and coaches who know them well. Then Ken Womble identifies the actor's most frequently used actions, skills and beliefs-the keys to the actor's success.
European Theatre Performance Practice, 1400-1580
This volume brings together important records of medieval theatre practice between 1400 and 1580. The records are drawn from a wide range of spheres including civic, ecclesiastical, trade and guild records and consist of payments for materials, techniques and services; also included are some eye witness accounts. Alongside these records is a selection of the best contemporary research conducted into medieval performance practice, which features ground-breaking analysis and challenges current understanding, knowledge and authority in this field. These contributions of rigorous scholarship complement and support the work of the well-known Records of Early English Drama project and help to further illuminate contemporary fifteenth and early sixteenth-century theatre performance practice.
Two Voices
Finally a collection of duets from the best-selling author of "Winning Monologs for Young Actors" and her granddaughter. These humorous and thoughtful scenes present distinctive viewpoints on issues meant to provoke and inspire discussion as well as to entertain. Most roles can be played by either gender. The short length of each scene makes it easy for students to memorize their lines. Sample titles include "How Not to Get a Job," "Cutesy-Wutesy Doggie-Woggie," "The Alibi," "My Rotten Roommate," "Prince Not-So-Charming," "The Tooth Fairy Conspiracy," "Mall Survey," "Hair Salon Gossip," "That's How Rumors Start," "Backstage Pass," and "Goody, Two Shoes." Fifty-four scenes in all. For use in a wide variety of settings, from speech contests and auditions to acting practice or comedy revue shows. A valuable resource for teachers and theatre libraries.
Play Director’s Survival Kit
This expansive guide covers the where, when, and how for every step of school play production, including play selection and adaptation, auditions, casting and dealing with disappointed students, budgeting, coaching actors, setting up a production team, rehearsals, publicity, and promotion.
Marking Time
Marking Time: Performance, archaeology and the city charts a genealogy of alternative practices of theatre-making since the 1960s in one particular city - Cardiff. In a series of five itineraries, it visits fifty sites where significant events occurred, setting performances within local topographical and social contexts, and in relation to a specific architecture and polity. These sites - from disused factories to scenes of crime, from auditoria to film sets - it regards as landmarks in the conception of a history of performance. Marking Time uses performance and places as a means to reflect on the character of the city itself - its history, its fabric and make-up, its cultural ecology and its changing nature. Weaving together personal recollections, dramatic scripts, archival records and documentary photographs, it suggests a new model for studying and for making performance...for other artistic practices...for other cities. Marking Time is an urban companion to the rural themes and fieldwork approaches considered in 'In Comes I': Performance, Memory and Landscape (University of Exeter Press, 2006).
Marking Time
Marking Time: Performance, archaeology and the city charts a genealogy of alternative practices of theatre-making since the 1960s in one particular city - Cardiff. In a series of five itineraries, it visits fifty sites where significant events occurred, setting performances within local topographical and social contexts, and in relation to a specific architecture and polity. These sites - from disused factories to scenes of crime, from auditoria to film sets - it regards as landmarks in the conception of a history of performance. Marking Time uses performance and places as a means to reflect on the character of the city itself - its history, its fabric and make-up, its cultural ecology and its changing nature. Weaving together personal recollections, dramatic scripts, archival records and documentary photographs, it suggests a new model for studying and for making performance...for other artistic practices...for other cities. Marking Time is an urban companion to the rural themes and fieldwork approaches considered in 'In Comes I': Performance, Memory and Landscape (University of Exeter Press, 2006).
Fluxus
Focusing on the most definition-resistant art movement in history and departing from its two chief characteristics: intermediality and interactivity, this book develops an original theory of practice, the experiential philosophy of non-duality, which is the philosophy of dynamic co-constitutivity. This is done by tracing the performativity of intermedial works - works that fall conceptually between the art and the life media, such as Bengt af Klintbergs's event score: "Eat an orange as if it were an apple" - in five key areas of human experience: language, temporality, the sensorium, social rites and rituals, and systems of economic exchange. The main argument, woven with the aid of the Derridian blind tactics, the Gramscian production of social life and the Zen-derived interexpression of Kitaro Nishida, is that the practical philosophy of co-constitutivity arises from the logic of the intermedium. In pursuing this argument, the book does three things: (1) it theorises an oeuvre that has remained under-theorised due to its fundamentally non-discursive nature and in doing so reinstates Fluxus as an influential cultural, rather than a "merely" artistic paradigm; (2) it serves as a companion to thinking by doing since most Fluxus intermedia are ready-mades, and, as such, readily available in the everyday environment; and (3) it establishes the counter-hegemonic logic of fluxing while tracing its legacy in contemporary practices as diverse as the culture-jamming activism of The Yes Men, the paradoxical performance work of Song Dong and the pervasive game worlds of Blast Theory.
Playing Culture
Playing Culture represents one of the corner stones in the model of the Theatrical Event, as developed by the Working Group of the International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR). In this volume, thirteen scholars contribute to illuminate the significance and possibilities of playing within the framework of theatrical events. Playing is understood as an essential part of theatrical communication, from acting on stage to events far from theatre buildings. The playfulness characterizing academic traditions sets the tone in the introduction, illustrating the four sections of the book: Theories, Expansions, Politics and Conventions. The theoretical chapters depart from the classical Homo Ludens and offer a number of new perspectives on what play and playing implies in today's mediatized culture. The contributions to the second section on extensions, deal with playing in non-theatrical circumstances such as market places, passports and stock holders' meetings. The third section on the politics of playing focuses on wood-chopping women, saints and youngsters in South African townships - all demonstrating their social and political ambitions and purposes. The last section returns to the stage on which performers intend to represent, respectively, themselves, Bunraku puppets or the audience. Playing appears in many forms and in many places and constitutes a basic principle of theatre and performance. This book touches upon important theoretical implications of playing and offers a wide range of historical and contemporary examples.Playing Culture - Conventions and Extensions of Performance is the third book of the IFTR Working Group on The Theatrical Event. The first volume, entitled Theatrical Events - Borders Dynamics Frames was published in 2004, followed by Festivalising! Theatrical Events, Politics and Culture in 2007. The present volume continues to expand the vision of the Theatrical Event as a theory and model for the study of playing, theatre, performance and mediated events.
Writing Master Class
Writing 'Master Class' is a biography of David Pownall's play, Master Class (1983), from conception to coming of age. Threaded through the account of the inception and development of the piece are twists of authorial life-story necessary for the telling. Whereas a novel or poem can be kept a secret until it is properly finished, a play has to go out to meet the people early. On the day the script is put into the hands of actors, the soul of the thing passes out of the author's control. It can be bent, battered, warped - or improved within its being far beyond expectations. As a drama of dictatorship in art and the cleverness needed to evade its worst manifestations, Master Class has been at large for thirty years, produced in twenty countries, in some several times. What has been done to it, how it has fared, is touched upon but the main story in this book is the making of the piece. A fascinating insight into the playwright's craft.
Programme Notes
Programme Notes: Case Studies For Locating Experimental Theatre is a collection of commissioned essays, case studies and interviews reflecting the exciting and complex relationships between 'mainstream' stages and 'experimental' theatre practices. The first edition of Programme Notes, published in 2007, featured contributions by Lyn Gardner, Tim Etchells, Neil Bartlett, Stella Hall, John McGrath, Alan Rivett, Mark Borkowski, Rose Fenton, Brian Logan, Lucy Neal, Keith Khan, Simon Casson, Louise Jeffreys, Judith Knight and Toni Racklin. This revised and expanded edition includes the original contributions whilst illustrating some of the seismic shifts that have taken place across the theatre landscape of the UK since 2007 through new profiles of the work of Manchester International Festival, National Theatre Scotland, BAC (Battersea Arts Centre) and Forest Fringe. New contributors: Marina Abramovic, Alex Poots, Amanda Coogan, Vicky Featherstone, Mary Brennan, David Micklem, David Jubb, Andy Field and Deborah Pearson. 'This small, cutely presented volume may turn out to be the most significant British Theatre book published this year.' Plays International on the first edition, 2007
Chickenshed
In 1974, musician and composer Jo Collins met Mary Ward, a teacher and director. With a shared belief in harnessing the creativity in everyone and anyone, they started a theater company. In a chicken shed. The rest, as they say, is history. Forty years on, Chickenshed is a unique theater company that makes beautiful, challenging, pioneering, and inspirational theater, and the concept of inclusion that seemed so obvious to Jo and Mary is now an international movement with a mission to change the world. Thousands of people have enjoyed Chickenshed shows, major figures such as Princess Diana and Judi Dench have supported their work, and many lives have been changed by the company's ability to bring together young people from all backgrounds, races, and abilities. Chickenshed: An Awfully Big Adventure charts the story of this incredible theater company, to commemorate its 40th anniversary.
On Stage With Kevin Kling
From 21A, the one-man show that launched a career and a whole new perspective on riding the bus, to a sneak peek at the new Minnesota Public Radio-sponsored Gulliver Unraveled, On Stage with Kevin Kling gives readers a behind-the-curtain view of one of Minnesota's most popular storytellers. This collectible volume contains the full text of three of Kevin Kling's stage pieces--21A, Ice Fishing, and Scarecrow on Fire--as well as excerpts from Of Mirth and Mischief and Back Home. Previously unpublished poems, short pieces, and a conversation between the Fitzgerald eater's Tony Bol and the writer provide a window into Kling's creative and collaborative process. Kevin Kling has been telling his o? -kilter stories with humor, heart, and thoughtful philosophizing for over twenty years, and this book brings readers right on stage with the master. Kevin Kling, well-known playwright, storyteller, and author, has been an artist in residence for the past three years at Minnesota Public Radio's Fitzgerald eater. Of Mirth and Mischief, Back Home, and Gulliver Unraveled, all featured in this volume, were created in conjunction with this program.
Journey's End
R C Sherriff's Journey's End is a syllabus text and the most famous play about World War One. First staged in 1928, this book tells the story of what went into the making of this extraordinary and powerful trench drama. It outlines Sherriff's career from humble insurance clerk to infantry officer and his unforgettable 10 months on the western front before he was invalided home, lucky to be alive. Sherriff poured into his first professional play his personal experience of living in a front-line dug-out. Using his diary and letters home, the book charts his emotional life under fire and relates it directly to the play, its events and its characters. It also tells the story of Journey's End's incredible box office success across the world, a triumph which made its shy young author famous overnight. Taking in the history of the show right up to the most recent productions, Journey's End: The Classic War Play Explored is a meditation on Journey's End's achievement as a war document, its fascination for audiences when it was first staged and its continuing grip on theatregoers and students today.
Audition Monologues for Young Women 2
All of the monologues in this book are from recently produced plays by award-winning, well-known, and emerging new playwrights. These challenging character studies are suitable for competitive auditions, acting or literature classes, forensic contests, and more. The selections are for actresses from 13 to 20 years of age. Individual chapters are divided into "thematic" ages that introduce characters at a particular event or time in their lives. A valuable resource for any auditioning female actor or theatre student. Features monologues from: The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, Trojan Barbie by Christine Evans, Laughing Wild and Miss Witherspoon by Christopher Durang, The Mineola Twins by Paula Vogel, God in Bed by Glenn Alterman, Random Women and Enigma by Carolyn Carpenter, My Battle with Bulimia by Peter Langman, and many more.
The Moth
From the hit podcast and radio show, a collection of soul-bearing stories from The Moth's archives. A wedding toast hone horribly awry. A rapper's obsession with a Sarah McLachlan song. A death-defying stunt in a bullring. The fight to save Mother Teresa's life. These are the spellbinding tales from The Moth's storytellers. Inspired by friends telling stories on a porch, The Moth was born in small-town Georgia, garnered a cult following in New York City, and then rose to national acclaim with the wildly popular podcast and Peabody Award-winning weekly public radio show The Moth Radio Hour. A beloved read for Moth enthusiasts and all who savor well-told, hilarious, and heartbreaking stories.
103 Monologues for Middle School Actors
Another great collection of monologues in the style of 102 Monologues for Middle School Actors by the same author. She knows how middle schoolers think and act, and she portrays their character traits in performance. With such a wide variety of topics, there is a monologue to fit any student's personality or preference. These monologues may be used for auditions, class assignments, drama workshops, or discussion starters. The characters speak as middle schoolers live, and this series is a favorite for classrooms and workshops!
Improv Ideas 2
You've loved their first two best-selling books on improv for the classroom, so these two fabulously creative and entertaining devotees to theatre have done it again! All the best from those two top-selling books is still here, yet this book is organized into three sections to help you even more: warm-ups, characterization, and narrative/plot. Each chapter contains an easy-to-read chart of all the activities that indicates how much preparation time is needed, what skills the game enhances, the difficulty, the length of the exercises, and more to help you plan your lessons at a glance. The side margins of each game include all the information from above and how many students are needed for each activity, the equipment required, the time it takes to set up the game, and how long the students will need to prepare. Each game is introduced with simply-worded directions and examples, and is followed by hints for evaluation and critique. Finally, the appendix includes multiple charts that align the games with the National Standards for Theatre Education. This book is an invaluable resource for inspiring your drama class!
Dramatic Critic
Charles Morgan was the dramatic critic of The Times for most of the years between 1922 and 1939. The reviews for this small selection are taken from thousands written for The Times and from his weekly articles for the New York Times on the London theatre. Morgan was widely regarded as the most influential critic of his day. His fellow critic, James Agate, wrote 'When Morgan is on form he has us all beat.' Though most were written overnight for the following day's paper, they were given space allowed to no modern critic. Beautifully written, they bring to life many of the great actors and actresses and the dramatists, old and new, as the theatre moved from the frivolous Twenties into the shadow of another war and towards the modern theatre of today. As they mirror the development of English theatrical taste in the inter-war years, they are as much a delight to read, both witty and erudite, as they are an important historical record.
Stand-Up or Die
Originally part of the UK alternative comedy scene, Andy de la Tour spent many years on the circuit, performing with the likes of Rik Mayall, Ben Elton, Alexei Sayle and French and Saunders. After a 20-year break from stand-up he returned to New York City, the genre's spiritual home, to start all over again in the back-rooms and dive bars of the Big Apple. This is one man's journey through New York's underground comedy scene. From 'Rubber Bullets' in lower Manhattan to the 'Hot Tub' in Brooklyn, Andy takes the stand. Can he make them laugh? Will New Yorkers stomach his outsider's take on Obama, the Tea Party and 9/11? Andy's a long way from home and dying is not an option.
The Oberon Book of Modern Monologues for Women
Monologues are an essential part of every actor's toolkit. Actors are required to perform monologues regularly throughout their career: preparing for drama school entry, showcasing skills for agents or auditioning for a role. Following on from the bestselling first volume (2008), this book showcases selected monologues from some of the finest modern plays by some of today's leading contemporary playwrights. These monologues contain a diverse range of quirky and memorable characters that cross cultural and historical boundaries. The pieces are helpfully organised into age-specific groups: 'Teens', 'Twenties', 'Thirties' and 'Forties plus'.
The Oberon Book of Modern Monologues for Men
Monologues are an essential part of every actor's toolkit. Actors are required to perform monologues regularly throughout their career: preparing for drama school entry, showcasing skills for agents or auditioning for a role. Following on from the bestselling first volume (2008), this book showcases selected monologues from some of the finest modern plays by some of today's leading contemporary playwrights. These monologues contain a diverse range of quirky and memorable characters that cross cultural and historical boundaries. The pieces are helpfully organised into age-specific groups: 'Teens', 'Twenties', 'Thirties' and 'Forties plus'.
The Legacy of Opera
The Legacy of Opera: Reading Music Theatre as Experience and Performance is the first volume in a series of books compiled by the Music Theatre Working Group of the International Federation for Theatre Research. The series explores the widening of the meaning of the term "music theatre" to reflect new ways of thinking about this creative practice beyond the genres circumscribed by discourses of theatre studies and musicology. Specifically it interrogates the experience of music theatre and its performance energies for contemporary audiences who engage with the emergence of new expressive idioms, new performative paradigms, new technologies and new ways of thinking. The Legacy of Opera considers some of the ways in which opera's influence has informed our understanding of and approach to the musical stage, from the multiple perspectives of the ideological, historical, corporeal and artistic. With contributions from international scholars in music theatre, its chapters explore both canonic and experimental examples of music theatre, spanning a period from the seventeenth century to the present day.
Parade's End
This was the first time I felt as involved in film as in working in theatre. My immersion in Parade's End from the writing to the finishing touches took up the time I might have given to writing my own play but, perhaps to an unwarranted degree, I think of this Parade's End as mine, such was the illusion of proprietorship over Ford's characters and story.--Tom Stoppard, from the Introduction Tom Stoppard's BBC / HBO dramatization of Ford Madox Ford's masterwork takes a prominent place in the ranks of his oeuvre. Parade's End is the reinvention of a masterwork of modernist English literature produced by one of the most critically acclaimed and respected writers working today. Parade's End is the story of Christopher Tietjens, the "last Tory," his beautiful, disconcerting wife Sylvia, and the virginal young suffragette Valentine Wannop: an upper class love triangle before and during the Great War. Parade's End is a three-part drama, directed by the BAFTA-winning Susanna White, and featuring internationally renowned actors including Benedict Cumberbatch, Rebecca Hall, and Adelaide Clemens. This edition includes bonus scenes which were not broadcast, an introductory essay by Stoppard, and a selection of stills from the production as well as photographs taken on location.
Female Performance Practice on the Fin-de-siFcle Popular Stage of London and Paris
This study focuses on seven women who used the fin-de-si癡cle's popular stage as a space to develop their experimental performance practices: acts that won them international fame and critical acclaim. The diverse entertainment careers of Maud Allan (1873-1956), Jane Avril (1868-1943), Lo簿e Fuller (1868-1926), Sylvia Grey (1866-1958), Yvette Guilbert (1867-1944), Letty Lind (1862-1923) and Cissie (Cecilia) Loftus (1876-1943) encompassed song, dance, impersonation and acting. In accounts, reviews, autobiographical writings, interviews and other cultural products associated with them it is clear that individual female celebrities understood their work as creative, professional and original performance practice. The absence of their creative work from studies of performance history reveals much about hierarchical approaches to cultural environments, gender and physical, non-scripted performances that demands to be interrogated.
In the Heights
(Applause Libretto Library). Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Book by Quiara Alegria Hudes. Conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda, In the Heights is an exciting musical about life in Washington Heights, a tight-knit community where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open, and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music. During its acclaimed Off-Broadway and Broadway runs and now a hit movie musical, In the Heights became an audience phenomenon and a critical success. It's easy to see why: with an amazing cast, a gripping story, and incredible dancing, In the Heights is an authentic and exhilarating journey into one of Manhattan's most vibrant communities. And with its universal themes of family, community, and self-discovery, In the Heights can be enjoyed by people of all ages and backgrounds. Among the musical's many accolades are two Drama Desk Awards, a Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album, and a nomination for the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Find out what it takes to make a living, what it costs to have a dream, and what it means to be home... In the Heights.
Drama Projects for the Middle School Classroom
There's so much more to drama class than just teaching students how to act! Working on individual and group projects devoted to drama components helps students learn everything that the world of drama encompasses. From costumes, scenery, and props to memorization, character development, and creative writing, there is a vast array of skills to develop and explore. This book is an excellent resource for any drama teacher who wants to provide alternative ways to develop unique drama-related skills. Sixteen projects each contain an objective, an overview, a project timeline, idea variations, tips and tricks, fun facts, and more. Most tasks can be modified to be individual or group projects and can take from one to five class periods, depending on how much time you want to devote to a particular topic or component. A few chapters even include fun worksheets for the students to complete independently or in a group.
Just Me
This unique collection of contemporary monologues covers a wide range of teenage experience. With 50 monologues for girls and 50 for guys, almost every possible comedic and/or dramatic situation is brought to life with characters who speak as teenagers today. With so many humorous, quirky characters and themes of self-awareness from which to choose, there's a perfect monologue for everyone of middle school and high school age. Monologues include: "I Want a Job," "The Piano Recital," "High Fiber," "The Goth," "Jagged Jasmine," "The Tattoo Artist," "I Want a Prom Date," "The Family Reunion," "About Race," plus 91 more. These monologues may be used for auditions, class assignments, or discussion starters. A valuable resource for every theatre library.
Fractured Fairy Tales for Student Actors
These royalty-free scenes are laugh-out-loud funny and clever, to boot! Based on familiar nursery rhyme characters, Ewen put a comedic spin on their situations. For instance, ESPN newscasters are interviewing Jack at the track where he is training for candlestick jumping. The 20 scenes are evenly split between five-minute scenes for 2 to 3 characters and ten-minute scenes for 5 to 20 characters. Most of the characters may be played by either gender, and several scenes can be expanded to accommodate an entire classroom. Unlike most scene books, the table of contents indicates the cast size and genders along with a one-line summary. Easy to use and fun for all ages, you'll love the colorful characters and creative situations in these short, hysterical scenes.
Gielgoodies!
'A glorious compendium of John's scintillating irreverences and fabulous faux pas... He was one of the greatest of all theatrical personalities, and these utterly characteristic throwaway squibs bring him vividly back to life.' Simon CallowThis delicious feast of "Gielgoodies", compiled by Gielgud's biographer, reveals a less well-known side to this celebrated man of the theatre: his lightning wit, his love of scandal and gossip, his wicked delight in putting down his fellow-artists, his relish of bawdy humour. Full of startling new material, drawn from many unpublished letters and Jonathan Croall's extensive interviews, the book also celebrates the man who dropped a thousand bricks. Gielgud's excruciating gaffes were legendary, and here are both the famous and the unknown, collected in all their glory. Whether committed backstage, in the wings or in rehearsals, on film sets or in television studios, they bring this merry and much-loved man vividly to life.
Great Moments in the Theatre
'A magnificently readable tour of theatrical history conducted by our best-informed living critic.' - Michael Billington 'Benedict Nightingale's characteristically witty, insightful and enthusiastic reports make you wish you'd been sitting next to him during his greatest moments in the theatre.' - Ian McKellen Starting with the first performance of Aeschylus' The Oresteia in 458 BC, ending with the premiere of Jez Butterworth's Jerusalem in London of 2009 AD, Benedict Nightingale collects in one volume what he believes to be the greatest moments in theatre. Each informative and entertaining entry is between 650 and 850 words in length, covering a remarkable diversity of theatrical openings and events, many of historical interest and importance, and many more witnessed by Nightingale himself during his 50-year reviewing career. The plays and shows that Nightingale crisply, authoritatively and readably brings alive range from Sheridan's School for Scandal to Tom Stoppard's Arcadia, from Gogol's Government Inspector to the Ian McKellen Macbeth, from Synge's Playboy of the Western World, which provoked serious riots in the Dublin of 1907, to Lionel Bart's Twang!! in 1965, possibly the most disastrous musical ever. Throughout the book Nightingale celebrates leading dramatists and performers, directors and composers. Everywhere he shares the fulfilment and fun he has found in the art-form he loves.
The Wyen Experience
James Earl Jones voicing Darth Vader in Star Wars had a set of pipes a radio news anchor in the 1970s might envy. CBS News legend Edward R. Murrow wrote in a style many radio news writers tried to copy. Their skills were honed over time. While few ever reach the stature of a Jones or Murrow, radio broadcasters rely on stations where they can develop these skills. In the seventies, one such place was WYEN-FM in Des Plaines, Illinois. In The WYEN Experience, author Stew Cohen tells the story of this mom-and-pop radio station--106.7 on the dial--that opened in 1971 and was built on a genuine passion for radio. It flourished through the 1970s, stumbled in the early 1980s, and then sold to a new owner. He provides an insider's look into the happenings of this station that entertained thousands with its music and announcers--including Ed Walters, the driving force behind WYEN; the lives of many of the talented broadcasters who worked here; Cohen's personal coverage of some of the biggest stories of the time; and his interviews with some greats from the entertainment industry. Cohen describes an era that lived with pay phones, typewriters, turntables, transistor radios, and boom boxes; in The WYEN Experience he brings to life to both the times and the radio station.
The Wyen Experience
James Earl Jones voicing Darth Vader in Star Wars had a set of pipes a radio news anchor in the 1970s might envy. CBS News legend Edward R. Murrow wrote in a style many radio news writers tried to copy. Their skills were honed over time. While few ever reach the stature of a Jones or Murrow, radio broadcasters rely on stations where they can develop these skills. In the seventies, one such place was WYEN-FM in Des Plaines, Illinois. In The WYEN Experience, author Stew Cohen tells the story of this mom-and-pop radio station--106.7 on the dial--that opened in 1971 and was built on a genuine passion for radio. It flourished through the 1970s, stumbled in the early 1980s, and then sold to a new owner. He provides an insider's look into the happenings of this station that entertained thousands with its music and announcers--including Ed Walters, the driving force behind WYEN; the lives of many of the talented broadcasters who worked here; Cohen's personal coverage of some of the biggest stories of the time; and his interviews with some greats from the entertainment industry. Cohen describes an era that lived with pay phones, typewriters, turntables, transistor radios, and boom boxes; in The WYEN Experience he brings to life to both the times and the radio station.
Voice Acting for Dummies
Make a career out of your voice? Easy. Voice acting is like acting, but just using your voice! It's a unique career where the actor's voice can be heard worldwide-in commercials, on audiobooks, in animated movies, documentaries, online videos, telephone systems and much, much more. The point is to bring the written word to life with the human voice. With step-by-step explanations and an abundance of examples, Voice Acting For Dummies is the ultimate reference for budding voice actors on auditioning, recording, producing voice-overs, and promoting themselves as a voice actor. Creating a voice acting demo Finding your signature voice Interpreting scripts Using audio editing software Promoting your voice acting talents If you're an aspiring voice actor or an actor or singer considering a career transition, Voice Acting For Dummies has everything you need to let your voice talents soar.
