The Concise Oxford Companion to American Theatre by Gerald Bordman

The Concise Oxford Companion to American Theatre by Gerald Bordman

When Gerald Bordman's Oxford Companion to American Theatre appeared in 1984, the distinguished actor Jose Ferrer proclaimed, "I'm in awe of the scholarship and research that have gone into the making of this book." The Los Angeles Times Book Review called it "the almost perfect gift book for both the student and the theatre lover," while Back Stage hailed it as "a major reference work [that] provides a wealth of authoritative information." The book quickly established itself as the standard one-volume resource on the American stage. Now Bordman gives us an abridgement of his massive original volume, eliminating many entries on minor plays and figures but preserving those articles that are of the widest general interest. The major achievements of playwrights Eugene O'Neill, Clifford Odets, Arthur Miller, Edward Albee, and many more are represented in hundreds of biographical sketches and summaries of individual plays. Also here are entries on performers ranging from Edwin Booth to John Barrymore, from Jessica Tandy to James Earl Jones. Extensive coverage is given to that most American of theatrical forms, the musical, and the often neglected achievements of the nineteenth century are also represented. In addition, this volume updates information on contemporary topics and includes a number of new articles. Altogether there are more than 2,000 entries, accessibly and attractively arranged in the two-column, A-Z format for which the Companion series is famous. Affordable, compact, and eminently "companionable," this work retains those qualities of erudition and entertainment that so distinguished the parent volume and makes them available to a much wider readership.

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.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780195051216
ISBN 10	0195051211
Title	The Concise Oxford Companion to American Theatre
Author	Gerald Bordman
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Oxford University Press Inc
Year published	1987-10-29
Number of pages	448
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.