A movement's promise : the making of contemporary Palestinian theater / Samer Al-Saber.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Al-Saber, Samer, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Theater, Palestinian Arab--History--20th century.

Theater, Palestinian Arab.

Theater--Political aspects--Palestine--History.

Theater.

Theater--Censorship--Palestine--History.

Arab-Israeli conflict.

Theater--Political aspects--History.

Theater--Censorship--History.

Physical Description:

vi, 321 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, [2025]

Summary:

"Starting in the 1970s, Palestinian theater flourished as part of a Palestinian cultural spring. In the absence of local radio, television, and uncensored journalism, theater production became the leading form of artistic expression, and Palestinian theater artists self-identified as a movement. Although resistance was not their sole function, these theater makers contributed to an active cultural resistance front. With this book, Samer Al-Saber tells the story of the Palestinian Theater Movement over nearly three decades, as they created plays and productions that articulated versions of Palestinian identity, critiqued social norms, celebrated and extended Palestinian cultural values, and challenged the power disparity created by the Occupation. The struggles between Palestinian theater artists and Israeli authorities form the central relationships in this history. Al-Saber juxtaposes the agency of Palestinian theater artists, in their determination to perform against immense challenges, with the power of Israeli authorities to grant or deny permission to theatrical productions. The legal structure of institutionalized censorship prevented Palestinian artists from expressing their chosen message, and the theater movement's search for permission to perform illuminates the disparity in power between the occupier and the occupied. In writing the first history of the Palestinian Theater Movement, Al-Saber amplifies necessary voices in this Palestinian cultural history, told from below"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction : a movement's promise

In the shadow of war, before 1967 and after

At the cross and a theater for many reasons, 1967-1970

A movement is born : Balalin lights the darkness, 1970-1973

Wrestling with commitments, division, and arrests, 1973-1977

A movement reconstituted : El-Hakawati's trinity, Sanabel's cause, and a league of their own, 1977-1981

Uncertainty, censorship, and the permission to perform, 1981-1984

A movement actualized : the building, the revival, the march, and El-Hakawati era, 1984-1986

Intifada in the streets and crisis in the theater, 1987-1990

A movement transformed : Al-Kasaba's star-crossed lovers, 1990 to Oslo

Conclusion : besieged NGOs and a movement in lore.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version Al-Saber, Samer Movement's promise

ISBN:

9781503642584

1503642585

9781503643277

1503643271

OCLC:

1456753379

Publisher Number:

90104330500

CIPO000255392