Jacqueline Martin analyzes the evolution of rhetoric and its influence on vocal delivery in theatres of the past, and discusses new approaches to the voice in 20th-century performances. She examines the often conflicting ideologies of key theorists whose ideas have influenced modern acting styles, including Stanislavsky, Brecht, Artaud, Grotowski and Brook. Martin throws light on the role of the director with a detailed analysis of the Shakespeare productions of three European directors, Bergman, Mnouchkine, and Stein, where discursive speech still plays an important part. She also looks at experiments with non-verbal theatre which deconstruct the text, such as the postmodern productions of Chaikin, Schechner, Foreman and Wilson. In a final chapter on actor training Martin compares a number of training institutions in Britain with their European counterparts, setting them against the British Shakespearean ideal.