As relevant as when it was first published in 1968, groundbreaking director and cofounder of the Royal Shakespeare Company Peter Brook draws on a life in love with the stage to explore the issues facing a theatrical performance—of any scale. He describes important developments in theatre from the last century, as well as smaller scale events, from productions by Stanislavsky to the rise of Method Acting, from Brecht’s revolutionary alienation technique to the free form happenings of the 1960s, and from the different styles of such great Shakespearean actors as John Gielgud and Paul Scofield to a joyous impromptu performance in the burnt-out shell of the Hamburg Opera just after the war. Passionate, unconventional, and fascinating, this book shows how theatre defies rules, builds and shatters illusions, and creates lasting memories for its audiences.

    As a record of Grotowski's theatrical experiments, this book is an invaluable resource to students and theater practioners alike.

    By Patricia Gray. Based on the classic by J.R.R. Tolkien.Cast: approximately 26. Variable number of hobbits and other inhabitants of Middle Earth. It's unusual for a modern work to become a classic so quickly, but Tolkien's "ring" stories, which began with The Hobbit, clearly are in this very special category. They stir the imagination and intellect of everyone they touch. Bilbo, one of the most conservative of all Hobbits, is asked to leave his large, roomy and very dry home in the ground in order to set off as chief robber in an attempt to recover an important treasure. It's the last thing that any sensitive Hobbit would want to do, but great benefit eventually results—not only for Bilbo but for all of the Hobbits who inhabit Middle Earth—and the hearts of those children and adults who continue to enjoy this kind of magic. Multiple simple sets. Approximate running time: 120 minutes.

    The complete scripts to six Sam Shepard plays: The Unseen Hand, Forensic and the Navigators, The Holy Ghostly, Back Bog Beast Bait, Shaved Splits, 4-H Club.

    --Antiqbook.com -- Clifford Odets, S.N. Behrman, Robert Sherwood, John Steinbeck, William Saroyan--Five famous American plays of the 1930s: 1) "Awake and Sing"--Odets' rebellious and compassionate story of a struggling Jewish family in the Bronx. 2) "End of Summer"--Behrman's spirited comedy about a beautiful woman of the idle rich confronted with reality and the challenge of a new generation. 3) "Idiot's Delight"--Sherwood's prophetic and tragicomic commentary on the mad game of war. 4) "Of Mice and Men"--Steinbeck's famous story about two lonely, itinerant workers, a homeless halfwit and his friend George, whose dream ends in tragedy. 5) "The Time of Your Life"--Saroyan's delightful portrayal of a group of bizarre unfortunates who inhabit a San Francisco waterfront saloon. -- amazon.com

    

    Recommended for all collections." - Choice