Staging France between the World Wars : performance, politics, and the transformation of the theatrical canon / Susan McCready.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McCready, Susan, 1970- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Theater--France--History--20th century.

Theater.

Theater--Production and direction.

History.

France.

Theater--Production and direction--France--History--20th century.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xviii, 157 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham : Lexington Books, [2016]

Summary:

Staging France between the World Wars: Performance, Politics, and the Transformation of the Theatrical Canon aims to establish the nature and significance of the modernist transformation of French theater between the World Wars, and to elucidate the relationship between aesthetics and the cultural, economic, and political context of the period. Over the course of the 1920s and 1930s, as the modernist directors elaborated a theatrical tradition redefined along new lines- more abstract, more fluid, and more open to interpretation-their work was often contested, especially when they addressed the classics of the French theatrical repertory. This study consists largely of the analysis of productions of classic plays staged during the interwar years, and focuses on the contributions of Jacques Copeau and the Cartel because of their prominence in the modernist movement and their outspoken promotion of the role of the theatrical director in general. Copeau and the Cartel began on the margins of theatrical activity, but over the course of the interwar period, their movement gained mainstream acceptance and official status within the theater world. Tracing their trajectory from fringe to center, from underdogs to elder statesmen, this book illuminates both the evolution of the modernist aesthetic and the rise of the metteur en scène, whose influence would reshape the French theatrical canon. Book jacket.

Contents:

Introduction

Subject to interpretation

Mobilizing the canon

Molière

Racine et Shakespeare

The romantics

Hitting the mainstream

Conclusion.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: McCready, Susan, 1970- author. Staging France between the World Wars

ISBN:

9781498522786

1498522785

OCLC:

953708455