Kansas-born Pauline Benton (1898-1974) was encouraged by her father; one of Americas earliest feminist male educators; to reach for the stars. Instead; she reached for shadows. In 1920s Beijing; she discovered shadow theatre (piyingxi); a performance art where translucent painted puppets are manipulated by highly trained masters to cast coloured shadows against an illuminated screen. Finding that this thousand-year-old forerunner of motion pictures was declining in China; Benton believed she could save the tradition by taking it to America. Mastering the male-dominated art form in China; Benton enchanted audiences eager for the exotic in Depression-era America. Her touring company; Red Gate Shadow Theatre; was lauded by theatre and art critics and even performed at Franklin Roosevelts White House. Grant Hayter-Menzies traces Bentons performance history and her efforts to preserve shadow theatre as a global cultural treasure by drawing on her unpublished writings; the recollections of her colleagues; the testimonies of shadow masters who survived Chinas Cultural Revolution; as well as young innovators who have carried on Bentons pioneering work.
#3449240 in eBooks 2013-08-22 2013-08-22File Name: B00EPE1UQA
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Great book. But like Ian saidBy Gee EmGreat book. But like Ian said; he left out a lot of bands that I wanted to know about.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Matthew S. HillExcellent read; very informative.3 of 4 people found the following review helpful. The interviews are not that goodBy Todd ZimmerIt could be Ian Glaspers fault; but I am more inclined to blame the bands interviewed. Sure; there is great stuff crammed between the covers. Demob; The Samples; Mau Maus; The Wall; The Defects and (especially) The Partisans interviews were real stand outs to me. Oh; and the Discharge feature is great. A lot of the bands though are pretty dim and dull though and all the bands that reformed in recent years will all tell you that it was for the love of punk rock and not for the money. That is just bogus.A big let down was the Exploited article. Glasper didnt even speak to Wattie and the U.K. Subs article doesnt even feature Charlie Harper. Those are silly omissions!I think this is the weaker of Glaspers books. I think "The Day the Country Died" seemed to go out of its way to speak with core members of the bands featured making for a more interesting read.