Best of
Theatre

1959

Act One


Moss Hart - 1959
    Issued in tandem with Kitty, the revealing autobiography of his wife, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Act One, is a landmark memoir that influenced a generation of theatergoers, dramatists, and general book readers everywhere. The book eloquently chronicles Moss Hart's impoverished childhood in the Bronx and Brooklyn and his long, determined struggle to his first theatrical Broadway success, Once in a Lifetime. One of the most celebrated American theater books of the twentieth centure and a glorious memorial to a bygone age, Act One if filled with all the wonder, drama, and heartbreak that surrounded Broadway in the 1920s and the years before World War II.

Rhinoceros and Other Plays


Eugène Ionesco - 1959
    A rhinoceros suddely apears in a small town, tramping through its peaceful streets. Soon there are two, then three, until the "movement" is universal: a transformation of average citizens into beasts, as they learn to "move with the times." Finally, only one man remains. "I'm the last man left, and I'm staying that way until the end. I'm not capitulating!" Rhinoceros is a commentary on the absurdity of the human condition made tolerable only by self-delusion. It shows us the struggle of the individual to maintain integrity and identity alone in a world where all others have succumbed to the "beauty" of brute force, natural energy and mindlessness.

The Zoo Story and Other Plays


Edward Albee - 1959
    They are "Death of Bessie Smith", "Zoo Story", "American Dream", and "Sand Box".

The Sound of Music


Richard Rodgers - 1959
    Entertainment Weekly says The Sound of Music has "an irresistible score that's always in tune!" Our deluxe revised Vocal Selections features 13 terrific songs by Rodgers & Hammerstein, a biography, plot synopsis, history of the show and photos! Includes: Climb Ev'ry Mountain * Do-Re-Mi * Edelweiss * Maria * My Favorite Things * So Long, Farewell * The Sound of Music * and more.

The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and Other Plays


Molière - 1959
    Actor, director, and playwright, Moli�re (1622-73) was one of the finest and most influential French dramatists, adept at portraying human foibles and puncturing pomposity. The School for Wives was his first great success; Tartuffe, condemned and banned for five years, his most controversial play. The Misanthrope is his acknowledged masterpiece, and The Clever Women his last, and perhaps best-constructed, verse piece. In addition this collection includes a spirited attack on his enemies and a defense of his theater, in the form of two sparkling short plays, The School for Wives Criticized and The Impromptu at Versailles.

American Dialects: A Manual for Actors, Directors, and Writers


Lewis Herman - 1959
    In each case, a general description and history of the dialect is given, followed by an analysis of vowel and consonant peculiarities, of its individual lilt and rhythm, and of its grammar variations. There are also lists of the idioms and idiomatic expressions that distinguish each dialect and exercises using them. American Dialects also includes musical inflection charts and diagrams showing the placement of lips, tongue, and breath.

Breath of Spring: A Comedy in Three Acts


Peter Coke - 1959
    A former army officer and other lodgers endeavour to return the stole. The plan is devised with care and all of them take such delight in the secretive scheme that they wonder why they don't do this more often. They form a syndicate for stealing and returning furs. Everything goes well until a loss is reported and the police come charging in. The maid is horrified to discover what has been going on behind her back, but agrees to employ her talents to bail the amateurs out of trouble if they agree to never touch another fur. She succeeds, the police leave, and life returns to its humdrum ways until someone remembers that it was only furs they had promised not to touch!

Brecht: A Choice of Evils


Martin Esslin - 1959
    A brilliantly perceptive study of the most ambiguous and perceptually fascinating figure of the twentieth-century European theatre

Jean Anouilh: Five Plays


Jean Anouilh - 1959
    

A Source Book in Theatrical History


A.M. Nagler - 1959
    A rich resource for students of theater and theater historians, this volume features an annotated collection of more than 300 unusually interesting and detailed articles. Passages by contemporary observers from ancient Greece to modern times include notes on acting, directing, make-up, costuming, stage props, machinery, scene design, and much more. "Most valuable. An inspiring guide." — Theatre Notebook.