The Oxford Handbook of Early Modern Theatre by Richard Dutton

The Oxford Handbook of Early Modern Theatre by Richard Dutton

There was no single 'Elizabethan stage'. Early modern actors exploited various opportunities for patronage and profit between the 1570s and 1642, whether touring, or performing at inns, in country houses, in purpose-built theatres, at court, at the universities or at the inns of court. This authoritative and comprehensive collection of new essays explores the social, political, and economic pressures under which the playing companies of Shakespeare and his contemporaries operated. It shows how they evolved over time to meet new challenges such as the opposition of City of London authorities, the possibility of permanent location in London, the re-emergence of boy companies c. 1600, and the great increase in court performance which began under James I. Essays also explore the practical everyday business of playing: acquiring scripts and playhouses, dramatic authorship, the contribution of financiers and entrepreneurs, rehearsing, lighting, music, props, styles of acting, boy actors, and the role of women in an 'all-male' world. A number of contributors address the methodologies of theatre history itself, questioning its philosophical premises and evaluating the nature of the evidence we have, such as that from stage directions in play-books or from the visual records. The collection as a whole offers a challenging account of the world of the players in Tudor-Stuart England, revising old assumptions and so inviting us to explore anew the plays which were written for them and which are their greatest living legacy.

Each of the 36 richly detailed essays beckons to be read.. Many among this all-star line-up of distinguished contributors have published book-length studies on their respective academic specializations... Collectively, the essays accrue, building a comprehensive and coherent profile of the world of early modern theater * P.D. Nelsen, CHOICE *
A very valuable tool * William Proctor Williams, Notes and Queries *
Richard Dutton has assembled an impressive array of scholars * Annotated Bibliography of English Studies *
For anyone wishing to gain a solid understanding of the work being undertaken in the field, or indeed to join it, this is a formidable book which both demands and repays attention... In its range and length it is a valuable reference work; in its minutiae, it is replete with scholarly insights. * Gwilym Jones, Around the Globe. *

Richard Dutton has been Humanities Distinguished Professor of English at Ohio State University since 2003. Previously he was at Lancaster University in England for thirty years. Working on the borders of literary criticism and theatre history, he is best known for his work on early modern censorship, including Mastering the Revels: the Regulation and Censorship of English Renaissance Drama (1991) and Licensing, Censorship and Authorship in Early Modern England: Buggeswords (2000). Ben Jonson, 'Volpone' and the Gunpowder Plot (2008) is his third monograph on Jonson. His scholarly editing includes Jonson's Epicenehas an NEH Fellowship in 2008/9 to work on Shakespeare's revision of his plays for court performance.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780199287246
ISBN 10	0199287244
Title	The Oxford Handbook of Early Modern Theatre
Author	Richard Dutton
Series	Oxford Handbooks
Condition	Unavailable
Publisher	Oxford University Press
Year published	2009-05-14
Number of pages	744
Prizes	Winner of Winner of the 2012 Elizabeth Dietz Award Shortlisted for The Theatre Book Prize 2010.
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.