Theatre Books

In 2002, two books were published with the titles of "Jane Austen and the Theater", one by Paula Byrne and the other by Penny Gay. As an avid reader of Jane Austen's novels, I was curious and read them both. Both books were good but for the casual reader like myself, I found Paula Byrne's the most enlightning and educational.

The first part of the book covers Jane Austen's life and her interest in the theater. This part of the book also educates the casual reader about dramatic technics such as dramatic presentation and dramatic dialogue.

The second part of the book shows how Jane used her knowledge and experience of the theater in her novels. In this part of the book she shows how Jane used theatrical motifs, especially comedic satir. Finally, I think Paula Byrne has given us some insight into where Jane got some of her ideas for her characters and stories.

This volume somehow manages to cover the whole complex history of Japanese theatre in a single volume. It has an excellent glossary and a well-organized bibliography. An useful introduction to Japanese theatre both for the serious student and for the neophyte. Extremely useful for courses in Asian Theatre or Japanese Culture.

This book is a great tribute to a superb actor Jason Robards.It was very enjoyable and worthwhile to read!

I first heard some of these works broadcast on our local radio station where they were originally produced. They immediately reached out, grabbed my attention, and I found myself immersed in new worlds of thought, and entertained like never before by an audio drama production. I really enjoyed the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, but I found these works to be much richer in audio textures, to have a much higher production value, and to have stories at least as exciting. When I heard the airing of "The Tuning", the friend I was with that evening and I were left with our jaws hanging open -- blown away by what we had heard. She was a big fan of science fiction and fantasy, and she also said that it was some of the best she has ever encountered (written or otherwise). When I finally managed to get copies of all of the works (6 tapes for a total of 5.5 hours of material), I spend many satisfying evenings listening at home and in my car driving to and from work. The only problem I have is now that I have these tapes, is that I use them as the bar against which I judge all other audio science fiction and fantasy.

My favourites for being thought provoking speculative fiction are "The Tuning" and "She Dreams of Atlantis". In "The Tuning", Artemus Tamerlane is a teenager who is trying to figure out a way of getting his "net access" (direct brain interface into a global networks for information and entertainment) upgraded to allow higher levels of interactivity; but he soon becomes embroiled in a battle for control of his abilities and of the conciousness of the entire species. "She Dreams of Atlantis" explores real technological and ethical issues facing society today through the metaphor of the fate of Atlantis and its repeating in the implementing of a global energy distribution system.

As a final note, "Spaxter" has to be the most entertaining of the set. It features Spaxter, a cynical interplanetary gumshoe who saves the world... again! This fast paced cyberpunk adventure is a non-stop action-packed ride across time and space.

I highly recommend this tape set to anyone who enjoys science fiction or fantasy, or who wants to listen to something great in their car during their daily commute.

Mr. Chisholm's book on the theatrical Jekyll and Hyde is long overdue. For over a century, theater and film readers have heard how the great actor Richard Mansfield's creation of Mr. Hyde, on stage, was mesmerizing. Here at last are the supporting facts.

The book is filled with reviews, annotations, and THREE scripts of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson tale.

Mr. Chisholm's exhaustive research is much appreciated.

Now if I could only get someone to mount a new production of this show for me....

This is without a doubt my favorite composer/lyricist of music. I have every score of Jerrys and I love each and every one. I have read this book 9 times so far, and find him to also be a great writer. Follow him in his own words through his life, he's had quite the life too, being lucky to score Hello Dolly at such a young age. He didn't just get lucky, his music is worthy of the fame of his shows. Mame, La Cage and Dolly are the three most popular, but the scores of Dear World, Grand Tour, Mrs. Santa Clause and especially Mack and Mabel are fantastic.

Jerry is honest with his readers, and talks about his downs as well as the ups. The 1960's, he had 3 hits (Dolly, Mame, Milk and Honey), and in the 1970's, 3 flops in a row, though it was not the scores that defeated these shows but production and management issues. Changes were made before Broadway and Jerry discusses this, but also takes the blame for giving in too much and letting his shows go through changes he didn't feel were right. This was probably his mistake with those shows, not putting his foot down and saying no to the producers and directors.

I really enjoy this book. You'll hear about dinners with Carol Channing, Angela Lansbury, his home on Fire Island and the guests he had there, the terrible months being hospitalized for hepatitis, and also his HIV and he talks about a few of his romances.

I wish the book were updated, because I'd love to hear him talk about the last few years. If you love Broadway, this is a wonderful book written with care and hard to put down.

I had heard of the writer's other play, "Our Lady of 121st Street," but I decided to pick up this one too, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. "Jesus Hopped the A Train" is a powerful play about the meaning of faith and some of the hypocrisy in people who use organized religion (or misuse it) for their own earthly goals. But the story is so much more than that. The character of Angel is wonderful, and as an actor myself I hope to get the chance to play him on stage while I'm young enough to do it. Stephen Adly Guirgis has a great talent for believable dialogue and unique characterization. Some have criticized his alleged weak plotting, but I think the overall pluses in his tales compensate for any negatives. Read his plays and judge for yourself.

While neither overtly vicious nor devoid of hope as his fellow "In Yer Face" dramatists, Penhall nonetheless gains access to our heart and proceeds to twist it in dimensions it was never intended to hold. When he lets go, our view of what constitutes love and union are warped beyond recognition. And I suspect Penhall considers the resulting disorientation not only beneficial, but ultimately necessary given our proclivity to establish relationships (aimed at understanding) but still based on desires we hardly are equipped to manage. Some Voices is especially powerful.

John Simon is, along with Robert Brustein and Stanley Kauffmann, one of America's three greatest drama critics, and my personal favorite. I've learned an enormous amount from him over the years, and so will you.

I have almost completed reading the Jolson Book, it is one of those books you put down and pick up again, it is Fantastic.