Utopian Drama
eBook - ePub

Utopian Drama

In Search of a Genre

  1. 240 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Utopian Drama

In Search of a Genre

About this book

Shortlisted for The TaPRA David Bradby Monograph Prize 2023 As the first full-length study to analyse utopian plays in Western drama from antiquity to the present, Utopian Drama: In Search of a Genre offers an illuminating appraisal of the objectives of utopianism as manifested in drama through the ages, and carefully ascertains the added value that live performance brings to the persuasion of utopian thought. Siân Adiseshiah scrutinises the distinctive intervention of utopian drama through its examination alongside the utopian prose tradition – in this way, the book establishes new ways of approaching utopian aesthetics and new ways of interpreting utopian drama. This book provides fresh understandings of the generic features of utopian plays, identifies the gains of establishing a new genre, and ascertains ways in which this genre functions as political theatre. Referring to over 40 plays, of which 18 are examined in detail, Utopian Drama traces the emergence of the utopian play in the Western tradition from ancient Greek Comedy to experimental contemporary work. Works discussed in detail include plays by Aristophanes, Margaret Cavendish, George Bernard Shaw, Howard Brenton, Claire MacDonald, Cesi Davidson, and Mojisola Adebayo. As well as offering extended attention to the work of these playwrights, the book reflects on the development of utopian drama through history, notes the persistent features, tropes, and conventions of utopian plays, and considers the implications of their registration for both theatre studies and utopian studies.

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Yes, you can access Utopian Drama by Siân Adiseshiah in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Media & Performing Arts & Literary Criticism in Drama. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Half-Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Series Page
  5. Title Page
  6. Contents
  7. Acknowledgements
  8. Introduction: dramaturgies of hope
  9. 1 Utopia, genre, drama
  10. 2 Genealogical beginnings: Old Comedy, longing, and laughter
  11. 3 Temporary utopias of female community
  12. 4 The enhanced utopian subject
  13. 5 Utopia and the triumph of ordinary life
  14. 6 Utopian conversations
  15. Epilogue
  16. Bibliography
  17. Index
  18. Copyright