Essential for students of theatre studies; Methuen Dramas Decades of Modern British Playwriting series provides a comprehensive survey and study of the theatre produced in each decade from the 1950s to 2009 in six volumes. Each volume features a critical analysis and reevaluation of the work of four/five key playwrights from that decade authored by a team of experts; together with an extensive commentary on the period .Edited by Dan Rebellato; Modern British Playwriting: 2000-2009 provides an authoritative and stimulating reassessment of the theatre of the decade; together with a detailed study of the work of David Greig (Nadine Holdsworth); Simon Stephens (Jacqueline Bolton); Tim Crouch (Dan Rebellato); Roy Williams (Michael Pearce) and Debbie Tucker Green (Lynette Goddard). The volume sets the context by providing a chronological survey of the decade; one marked by the War on Terror; the excesses of economic globalization and the digital revolution. In surveying the theatrical activity and climate; Andrew Haydon explores the response to the political events; the rise of verbatim theatre; the increasing experimentation and the effect of both the Boyden Report and changes in the Arts Councils priorities. Five scholars provide detailed examinations of the playwrights work during the decade; combining an analysis of their plays with a study of other material such as early play drafts and the critical receptions of the time. Interviews with each playwright further illuminate this stimulating final volume in the Decades of Modern British Playwriting series.
2013-11-12 2013-11-12File Name: B00GM4XV7W
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. ldquo;Ah; you never turned around to see the frownshellip;By John P. Jones IIIhellip;on the jugglers and the clowns when they did their tricks for you.rdquo; Despite his deplorable behavior since he won the Nobel Prize; his lyrics remain an essential touchstone of our culture. How do the down and out; the ldquo;lumpen-proletariat;rdquo; in Marxist rhetoric; view life; and those ldquo;aboverdquo; them; at least economically? Another one of my favorite songs with this theme was sung by Judy Collins: ldquo;Pirate Jenny.rdquo; Jenny is the one who scrubs the floors; and as she says: ldquo;Maybe once ya tipped me and it made ya feel swell.rdquo; Jenny dreams of obtaining the power for revenge; so that she is the one who provides the answer to the question from her ldquo;troopsrdquo;: ldquo;Kill them now; or later?rdquo; ldquo;Then theyrsquo;ll pile up the bodies; and Irsquo;ll say: lsquo;Thatrsquo;ll learn yarsquo;.rdquo; It took me almost three decades after first hearing these words to learn that the song was part of the Threepenny Opera; and I would obtain that knowledge watching a performance of it in Riyadh; of all places.Bertolt Brecht wrote this opera at the age of 30. It was first produced in 1928; during the purported glory days of the Weimar Republic. Brecht was a nascent communist; perhaps only a version of which that was defined by a character in John Steinbeckrsquo;s The Grapes of Wrath (Centennial Edition): ldquo;A Communist is any (S.O.B.) who wants 30 cents an hour when wersquo;re paying 25 cents.rdquo; The opera is set in London; and is consider to be an update of ldquo;The Beggarrsquo;s Operardquo; which was first produced in 1728. In part; the enduring fame of Brechtrsquo;s work is the result of the harsh Nazi reaction to it.Jonathan Jeremiah Peachum is proprietor of the Beggarrsquo;s Friend Ltd. A cynic if there ever was one. He provides prospective beggars with the best outfits to tug at the purse strings of passersby. MacHeath is ldquo;Mac the Knife;rdquo; (yes; of another song; once sung by Bobby Darin). He will marry Peachumrsquo;s daughter; Polly; although he is already married to at least other woman; Lucy; and has a string of other women; some ldquo;professionals;rdquo; on the line; which only reinforces that adage that at least some women find ldquo;bad boysrdquo; irresistible.Brechtrsquo;s work is slapstick; it is farce; it is even a bit juvenile. The laws; and their enforcers; no surprise; are corrupt. Brecht has to concoct a Deus ex Machina to prevent Mac from being hanged. Another enduring theme; and I felt that it was the anarchist Peter Kropotkin who had first formulated this lament; but I could not confirm it via Google and assorted ldquo;Quoterdquo; sites; is when Mac the Knife complains: ldquo;We lower middle-class artisans who toil with our humble jemmies on small shopkeeperrsquo;s cash registers are being swallowed up by big corporations backed by the banks. Whatrsquo;s a jemmy compared with a share certificate? Whatrsquo;s breaking into a bank compared with founding a bank?rdquo;Half of this Kindle version is notes; and the first 10% is a ramble by ldquo;The Editors;rdquo; much of which would have been appropriate ndash; if at all ndash; as an afterword. For the edition; and the opera itself; 4-stars.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. The right book for the musicalBy M. R. LeavittThe "best of" numbers from the original show. The scores are pretty easy to follow and the songs are just wonderful. Play "Mack the Knife" the way its supposed to be played!0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Historically interesting and amusing.By Cynthia KlinglerBefore I only knew Mac the Knife. Now I know why this is a classic.