description: "This is an extremely intelligent, interesting, and well written book." -- Murder Is Academic "... compelling analysis of the comedy thriller... " -- Theatre Studies "... almost as much fun to read as is seeing the actual plays discussed... " -- Journal of Popular Culture The phenomenal success of such plays as Deathtrap and Sleuth heralded the advent of a new form of detective play -- the comedy thriller. Carlson takes the wraps off the comedy thriller and reveals its postmodern effects. He looks at all the elements of the thriller -- openings, settings, characters, plot lines, the role of the audience, and endings -- and shows how they work to overturn the conventions of realism in detective drama.
language: English
title: Deathtraps: The Postmodern Comedy Thriller
titlecomplete: Deathtraps: The Postmodern Comedy Thriller
ratings_count: 3
publisher: Indiana Univ Pr