A midsummer night's dream
By: edited by Trevor R. Griffiths.
Contributors: Griffiths, Trevor R.
Series: Shakespeare in production
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Cambridge [England]; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 234
Subjects: Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616. -- Criticism, Textual; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Film and video adaptations; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Stage history; Courtship -- Drama; Athens (Greece) -- Drama
Genres: Drama.
Description: This is a detailed account of the theatrical fortunes of A Midsummer Night's Dream on the British stage, from the 1590s to the 1990s. The substantial, illustrated introduction traces the rise of the play from theatrical neglect in the eighteenth century through the spectacular productions of the nineteenth century to its current high status. The authoritative text of the play is accompanied by notes on actors' interpretations, settings and textual alterations. The author considers the cultural changes which have affected the play's popularity as well as the conceptions of individual directors from David Garrick and George Colman, via Madame Vestris and Beerbohm Tree, Granville Barker and W. Bridges Adams to Peter Brook, Robert Lepage and Adrian Noble. The book shows theatre history as cultural history. It will be invaluable to students of Shakespeare in performance at graduate level, working in departments of English or drama/theatre and to those intrigued by the changing reputation of Shakespeare.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 215-221) and index.