No comments about The Altruists.

2 comments about British Dramatists from Dryden to Sheridan.

1. 
   
   Dryden -- The Conquest of Grenada
   Villiers -- The Rehearsal
   Dryden -- All for Love
   Otway -- Venice Preserved
   Etherege -- The Man of Mode
   Wycherley -- The Plain Dealer
   Vanbrugh -- The Relapse
   Congreve -- The Way of the World
   Farquhar -- The Beaux' Stratagem
   Cibber -- The Careless Husband
   Steele -- The Conscious Lovers
   Addison -- Cato
   Rowe -- The Tragedy of Jane Shore
   Gay -- The Beggar's Opera
   Fielding -- Tom Thumb
   Lillo -- The London Merchant
   Garrick -- The Lying Valet
   Home -- Douglas
   Colman -- The Jealous Wife
   Cumberland -- The West Indian
   Goldsmith -- She Stoops to Conquer
   Sheridan -- The Rivals
   Sheridan -- The School for Scandal
   Sheridan -- The Critic
   
   plus two essays:
   
   Collier -- A Short View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage
   Goldsmith -- An Essay on the Theatre; or, A Comparison Between Laughing and Sentimental Comedy
   
   
   This handsome volume is actually a more convenient and more economical way to collect these 24 plays and additional essays than piecing together single plays in the New Mermaids, Regents Renaissance, or Revels series. In fact, many of the plays in this volume are not otherwise available.
   
   This book is an embarrasment of riches -- enjoy!



2. Desperation can be the source of wisdom. I've known for a year that this fall I'll be teaching restoration and 18th century drama. Worse, I volunteered to do so. Worse yet, as of yesterday I had only 7 weeks left in which to pick a text of plays. And absolutely worst of all, while trying to look up restoration and 18th century texts on the Web, I found my own course staring me in the face: "English 232, Smith College, Gillian Kendall". Yikes! It was definitely time to find a text.

   Nettleton saved me. I had been about to order a completely new edition of the plays (sample copy graciously sent to me by the publisher), albeit the edition was in many ways, well, let's say "not quite right for the course". Then I went to the library. Despite the recommendation of a friend -- a renowned 18th century expert -- I had been suspicious of Nettleton. The copyright on the edition I looked at was 17 years before I was born (sorry about the ageism, Mr. Nettleton). But the volume has everything. Lovely grandiose heroic drama (but not too much of it); Dryden's adaptation of Shakespeare's *Antony and Cleopatra*; five classic comedies of manners (the backbone of restoration drama), and a pleasant smorgasbord of the best of the 18th century.

   I have a text. My students have a text. Life is good.

5 comments about James Dean: The Mutant King: A Biography.

1. For the reviewer who gave a lengthy discussion on Elvis...enough already! So there may be a few factual errors...show me a bio that doesn't have a few and I'd be very surprised. This bio nails James Dean perfectly, and paints a picture that makes it easy to understand why he remains an icon over 50 years after his death. Well written it paints an indepth portrait of the person who represents so many different things to different people. Ignore the negative reviews on here.



2. If you're shopping for one and only one biography of the Boy Wonder, you'd do well to pass up on David Dalton's The Mutant King. The so-called "definitive Dean biography" it certainly is not. On the contrary, it's not even a good starter bio.
   
   Although a good read in places, there's a striking number of factual errors in the book--some of them downright gross-- not found in better Dean bios; and Dean's relationship with Rogers Brackett, the successful and well-connected 50's radio director who played a key role in Jimmy's success as an actor, is not a subject of discussion in Dalton's book. Brackett receives four or five mentions, nothing more. As well, failed actor Jack Simmons, undeniably a significant character late in Dean's life, is mentioned only once or twice in Dalton's book (he's not even in the index)--only to be misidentified as playing the part of Moose in Rebel Without a Cause! In fact, Simmons played the part of Cookie; the part of Moose was played by Jack Grinnage.
   
   Incredibly, without a scintilla of proof, Dalton maintains on page 194 that Dean met idol Montgomery Clift. The truth is, they never met, and there isn't another Dean biographer who claims they did. And I've read them all, with the exception of one or two scribblers not worth reading. If luminaries Dean and Clift had ever met, you may be sure that such authors as Donald Spoto, Randall Riese, Val Holley, Joe Hyams, etc. would have known about their rendezvous and discussed it in their books on Dean. What IS fact is that Dean sought Clift out repeatedly, only to be rebuffed with each attempt to meet him. After Dean died, Clift saw his movies on a number of occasions, "and every time he'd get drunk and cry and cry about the fact he'd denied this young man the opportunity of seeing him and talking to him." (Dennis Hopper; cited in Randall Riese's The Unabridged James Dean: His Life and Legacy From A to Z; p. 88)
   
   I found Dalton's writing style off-putting in a number of places. Following are three samples.
   
   1) On page 63 Dalton writes: "Jimmy's college days in California slip out of focus from reel to reel in a hazy flashback where grainy rooms and sandy beaches swallow him up with their tiny grey mouths." (The thought of such rooms and beaches swallowing him up with "their tiny grey mouths" is just goofy.)
   
   2) On page 67, Dalton has: "While adept at pulling friends into his personal atmosphere, Jimmy was less successful in packs." So far, fine, but then he writes: "The very structure resisted his form of magnetism, their diffused mass offering him no focal point and their number giving them bearings with which to get a bead on his oscillating nature." (Oh Please.)
   
   3) On page 68 we find: "By the end of the semester [at UCLA] Jimmy's interests were mainly in the theater. His [frat] brothers resented the fact that he spent so little time in their sweaty realm and found his obsession a little suspicious, for they were as gossipy about genders as a Latin grammar." (As gossipy about genders as a Latin grammar, I submit, makes no sense whatsoever.)
   
   Buyers should also beware that Dalton has a weakness for the unheard-of term--like "omphalos," "orthicon," and "strega." I still can't quite fathom what Dalton means by the "adenoidal fury" with which Dean slammed his fists into a juvenile detective's desk in Rebel Without a Cause. The same peculiar, senseless use of "adenoidal" is found in his picture book, James Dean: American Icon, where he speaks of the filming of Rebel as being "unabashedly adenoidal." ??? (Get his Icon for the wealth of photos; the text is mostly indigestible. Here's a good example, taken from page 53: "Jimmy's body is a universe where gravitational pull stems from instability; fascination from asymmetrical shifts and awkward physical contortions formed under internal stress. An athlete of transference, he was a victim of that supreme infection, identification.")
   
   One last point about Dalton's bio: Discussion of Dean's bisexuality is just about nil.
   
   The book I would recommend to someone who wants to read just one biography of James Dean is Donald Spoto's Rebel: The Life and Legend of James Dean. It's objective, well-written, almost entirely accurate, intimate, and absorbing. Spoto, by the way, has authored a number of internationally best-selling biographies of such greats as Dietrich, Monroe, Olivier, and Hitchcock.
   
   (NOTE: Inattentively, I gave this book a 4-star rating; my intention was to give it a 2.)



3. In the slew of Dean Biographies I've read, this came to me third. And I was in general, very privelaged to read it. It is concise, thorough, factual, and eloquent. Favorite parts in all Dean bios are his chilhood years, his 3 years before success, and experiences while making his 3 films- and this book does wonderful justice to those times. You'll learn about his sex, loves, and hot&cold personality. There were a few(only a few) moments where some details lagged and dragged slightly. Those thoughts, however, disapeared instantly with the next sentence I would come upon in the book. It's in my top three Dean bios list-probably #3. Please let yourself discover Jimmy. Buy this and several other of his bios and take them on a vacation(or some time and place where you can commit yourself to them)and devoure them."James Dean-Boulevard of Broken Dreams", and "Live Fast Die Young", are two other necessaries. This is a must read. Happy Readings!



4. Dalton's biography of James Dean is a very good book about the cinemic legend. He seems to have interviewed many people who were close to Dean, and he focuses as much on the real man as on the icon. Dalton also writes quite well.

   The only problem I have with this book is I wonder how carefully it was fact-checked. There was at least one blatant gaffe in the book, which alleged that James Dean was a big fan of Elvis Presley. Now every Elvis fan knows Presley was a huge fan of James Dean, even to the point where he is said to have memorized all of Dean's lines in the classic "Rebel Without a Cause." The question I have is, was Dean really a fan of Elvis?

   On page 195 of the paperback 1983 edition, a friend of Dean's is quoted as saying how much James Dean loved the Elvis hit "Hound Dog," and how Dean loved to wake people up in the middle of the night by calling them on the phone and playing the record when they said "Hello." It's a compelling tale.

   Unfortunately, this story cannot be true. By the end of 1955, Elvis had signed on to RCA and had obtained Col. Tom Parker as manager. Elvis was still a regional performer in 1955, and his Sun recordings (today big collectors' items) sold only modestly in the South. Elvis did make appearances on "The Louisiana Hayride," and he made some other appearances on local and regional television programs, but it wasn't until January 1956, when he made his first national television appearance on the Dorsey Brothers program "Stage Show," that he became a sensation. Furthermore, Elvis did NOT record "Hound Dog" until July of 1956, almost a year after Dean's death. Now it is possible Dean might have heard "The Louisiana Hayride" or bought any of Elvis' five Sun singles, but more likely he, like most of America in 1955, had never heard of Elvis. This blatant error, while only taking up one paragraph in the book, calls into question how accurate the rest of the book is. Dalton doesn't call this tall tale into question, so the gullible reader is led to believe Dean was a big fan of Elvis. Since I haven't seen a newer edition of this book, it's possible the error was corrected, but I doubt it.

   Because people's memories can fade or they can simply exaggerate, most biographies have to be read with caution. Even though I enjoyed the book and refer to it often, it is certainly no exception.




5. James Dean is in own words is a walking contradiction. This book offers rich insights into his condition. They will surprize you, and also you will begin to understand why the legend is alive and thriving today. James Dean was a very modern persona. Though the book contains all the facts you would want to know about his life, it goes further, showing how James Dean carefully made himself into what he means to us. Don't skip this one.

1 comments about Hollywood Warts 'n' All.

1. I enjoyed this book very much. It is entertaining and prompted me to look up stars and movies mentioned in the book.

5 comments about Se7en (BFI Modern Classics).

1. The movie Se7en was an instance of a piece of work taking a tired and worn out genre to a whole new level, raising the bar for the genre thereafter. Both the plot and its execution were more intelligent, thought provoking and tightly presented than we are used to for movies with a subject matter open to cheapness and melodramatics.
   
   Richard Dyer analyzes the movie in this monograph published as part of the British Film Institute's Modern Classics series. The movie incorporates the number seven into the details and this book maintains that pattern by presenting the analysis in seven chapters. It begins and ends on strong ground, providing the reader some excellent interpretations of key scenes that will allow a viewer to better appreciate the subtleties of the characters' interactions.
   
   Dyer takes the position that the concept of sin infuses the movie and that this sin is inescapable. The movie is very unAmerican in tone, without even the promise of a happy ending. Interestingly, the producers did want to use a happier ending but this was thankfully vetoed, as Dyer points out, by Brad Pitt, who insisted on the original, darker ending.
   
   The pervasiveness of sin is demonstrated by the two characters representing goodness. Tracy, the wife, is the embodiment of good in the film and we all know what happens to her. Somerset, the older detective, also represents goodness, and although he gets out in one piece, he is unable to stop evil from taking its course. Instead, he can only watch on.
   
   Dyer missteps a couple times in this analysis. One instance of the number seven cropping up relates to the detail that Somerset is seven days from retirement. This is a tired cliche in movies. Dyer attempts to portray this as simply one more instance of the number seven playing in the details. But this cliche is so worn out that it instead feels artificial in a movie this strong.
   
   More problematic is Dyer's devolvement into academic race and gender analyses, a topic even more worn out and cliched than the cop about to retire in a few days time. Although the killer's body count includes four men and three women, Dyer interprets the movie as misogynistic, a conclusion so ridiculous that it takes an intellectual to reach it. He digs himself in deeper by referring to this misogyny as "unthinking." For those not used to academic jargon, allow me to translate. This means that the rest of us uninitiated may not see it, but thankfully we have academic eggheads, who can read sexism into the word "the," to enlighten us. Andrea Dworkin, whose contempt for men was near pathological, is quoted in support.
   
   Even more wince inducing is Dyer's analysis of race. Like much writing of this sort, it is so convoluted that it is difficult to know exactly what to make of it. Perhaps a taste will be sufficient. Most serial killers are white males, a starting point for Dyer on this issue. Dyer's analysis refers not only to the whiteness of serial killing but also (actual phrase) the "serial killingness of whiteness." Sheesh.
   
   Again, the book has strong points and anyone interested in a better understanding of the movie Se7en will benefit from reading it. Simply be aware that Dyer cannot break away from the identity politics so rife in academics and that this detracts from, but does not negate, the utility of this book. It is an example that the best of the British Film Institute books are from social critics and writers outside the academic arena.



2. If, as I have suggested, the most successful in the BFI Classics and Modern Classics series are those written by critics and academics, than the very best are those by teachers. I would recommend Richard Dyer's brilliant monograph not just to admirers of David Fincher's celebrated film, but to anyone interested in getting the most out of their film-viewing. With facility and clarity, Dyer describes the mechanics of film-making - editing, sound-design and music, script, casting choices and performance style, camera movements and narrative pace, cinematography, mise-en-scene and imagery, location - and shows how they are all used to create meaning in 'Se7en'.

   Dyer calls 'Se7en' 'a landscape of despair, a symphony of sin', a film 'extraordinarily un-American in its pessimism'. Appropriately dividing his study into 7 sibilantly-titled chapters, he examines it from an exhaustive number of angles. 'Se7en' is an archetypal serial killer movie that focuses on white male alienation in contemporary urban society, but is also a denial of the genre, refusing to demonise the murderer, suggesting he is simply an over-enthusiastic law-enforcer with the same attitude to the corruption of modern urban life as the policemen. Dyer shows how, through dialogue, script-structure and editing, the killer is connected to both detectives pursuing him. He shows how Andrew Kevin Walker's brilliantly constructed script both imposes order on unmanagable violence and despair, and denies it (I can't say how just in case you haven't seen the film). He examines the notion of 'sin' in a post-modern, post-religious world, with the minimal possibilities of salvation - religion, culture, human goodness - offered. He is particularly good on his own areas of expertise - star personae, race and sexuality.

   Dyer thinks 'Se7en' is a Great Movie that does what Art should, exagerrating or heightening negative feelings about the world we live in that we suppress daily to survive. He treats 'Se7en' so seriously he even includes a 'map' to the narrative like those you get with Dante's 'Divine Comedy', and compares its climactic power to 'King Lear'. But for all his tireless analysis of the film, Dyer simply reinforces what it says on the surface. There is no subtext - every element, from script to theme to technical cinematic realisation simply reflects what we see, the direction dutifully and literally realising the script. Surely a classic film is one open to alternative interpretations, one that can be read against the grain, opening up a space for different kinds of viewing or viewers, one that on each re-viewing will reveal something new, deepening or complicating our first impressions? Nothing Dyer writes with such eloquence or enthusiasm convinces me that 'Se7en' is such a film.




3. the author has some truly fascinating observations about this movie (ie. 7 motif that appears throughout) and goes into great depth about many aspects of this film (ie. the editing of certain scenes and the effect of a specific technique). he also mentions several anecdotal bits of info that are interesting. for example, the studio wanted to soften and Hollywood-ize the ending but Brad Pitt had it in his contract that they could not change the original ending. this is a really good read if you're a fan of the film and also a solid sourcebook if your a film student. it also doesn't hurt that the author has since contributed to several of the audio commentaries on the special edition DVD of the film!



4. For any fan of the film "Seven" this book is a great companion piece that discusses different aspects and ideas about the movie, which stood out among the action/horror genre as outstanding. Though sometimes long-winded the book is very interesting in anaylizing the movie and features great color photos.



5. If you are not religeous, then don't let that turn you away from this BFI Modern Classic. The whole book is a fascinating look into all of the different aspects of the film. Each chapter goes greatly in depth to the details in the film that matter.

2 comments about The Art of Play: The New Genre of Interactive Theatre.

1. Yes, I'm biased. I've worked with Gary for several years. But, I have not found another book that states so clearly the goals and purpose of interactive theatre. The techinique is invaluable, whether you choose to follow as written or modify to your own style. Most importantly, the book stresses how INCLUSIVE interactive theatre should and can be. Extremely valuable to those interested in working Renaissance Festivals. I would also recommend the book to educators looking for a new, theatrical way to spark their students' curiosity.
   
   "The Art of Play" should be the foundation upon which you build your approach to interactive theatre.



2. The Art of Play is a marvelous tool to accompany any artisitic endeavor that involves actors dealing directly and intimately with their audience. I found the techniques in the book to be clear and useful. Nothing extraneous or difficult to understand. Suddenly the world of intereative improvisation makes sense to me. I would recommend this book and it's companion, "Acting Interactive Theater" to anyone who is at all involved with this very popular method of entertainment. This second book really lays out the entire rehearsal process, complete with 150 excercises to get your troupe into shape. Mr. Izzo knows what he is talking about and very obviously has the experience from which to draw his worthy opinions. I have told all of my contemporaries in the interactive theater community as well as teaching colleauges to purchase this book and put it to use immediately. Never before has a book been so clear on this particular area of theater and improvisation. Sincerely, Niomi Lundy, Artistic Director, Parade of Fools Improv and Dinner Shows, New York, NY

No comments about After Fellini: National Cinema in the Postmodern Age.

1 comments about Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage.

1. Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage is an exceptional creation that explores women in dance. Banes gives in-depth historical and social reference for the dances in this book. This context allows the reader to more fully understand the characters on stage and the women off stage. She shows us the significance of the ever-changing "marriage plot" and how it affected choreography and influenced women to break through the social barriers in their lives. It is very educational and inspiring to read about women changing the course of art in Europe and America during the 19th and 20th centuries. I recommend Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage to anyone interested in dance history and the woman's rising power in the arts.

2 comments about Tartuffe and the Bourgeois Gentleman (Dual-Language).

1. Well, I can't fault the quality of "Tartuffe" itself. It's a charming, well-written play that still holds up after the passings of time. Also, the inclusion of the French and English absolutely corresponding to each other does make this a decent French teaching aid.

   However, the translation is sorely lacking. There is no attempt to make any sort of verse translation, resulting in a flat, uninspired prose work. Beyond that, however, much of the phrasing is awkward and stilted. It seems to be faithful to the French original, but a great deal is lost when the only aim is to provide a literal rendering.

   In short, this book is more useful for stimulating the appetite for the much better Richard Wilbur translation. This edition may serve its purpose as a teaching tool, but it is a less than impressive read on its own.




2. Translator Stanley Appelbaum has done an excellent job of preparing a readable, but reasonably literal translation of two very different but often-performed plays by Moliere. And his brief introduction gives sufficient background to help the reader jump into the reading of the plays. I chose this edition as a way to brush up on my college French prior to my trip to Paris, so I especially appreciated having the French and English on facing pages with each line perfectly lined up. The generous white space around the text was great for taking notes. Sometimes the simplest book designs are the best! Kudos to Dover Press.

4 comments about Acting Under the Circumstances: Variations on a Theme of Stanislavski : A Step-By-Step Approach to Playing a Part (Career Development Series).

1. What I like about Brestoff's approach is that it focuses on actions or intentions. A lot of beginning, and not so beginning, actors focus on feelings or emotions. But we're called ACTORS, not FEELERS. Brestoff emphasizes playing actions or intentions. Emotions will follow, but they won't be pre-programmed, but organic to the acting moment.
   
   It's most useful for actors who are not beginners, but have the basics under their belt.
   
   I use this as a suggested 2nd year text at Humber College's School of Creative and Performing Arts in Toronto where I am on the faculty in the Acting for Film and TV program.



2. I've taught acting for five years and studied it much longer. The process in this book cuts through all the jargon and intellectual sturm and drang and gets down to the craft of acting and scene preparation. I had been working in a similiar fashion for years as an acting coach and director, but it wasn't until I read Brestoff's approach that my own process was clarified.
   It has changed the way I teach, direct and write.



3. Right from the start, please know that I am the author's (slightly older) brother. Despite this, my appreciation for Richard's book is genuine, because I appreciate that actors are professional communicators. And aren't we all in the communication business, whether at home with spouse and kids or in the office? I'm a business litigation attorney, and I have to be able to synthesize and get to the nub of complex factual circumstances, just as Richard teaches actors to do. I've tried using Richard's techniques in what my profession, and they work! So, my view is that no matter what you do, Richard's book is invaluable, because it will provide you with a technique for being insightful about your "circumstances," and getting other people to understand whatever it is you are saying to them.



4. Richard Brestoff's Acting Under The Circumstances tells actors how to play their parts using intellect and creative intuition. From learning quickly and settling into a role to performing at peak efficiency during a reading, this provides an important and basic step-by-step approach to acting.