Dramaturgy: A Revolution in Theatre

by Mary Luckhurst

• ISBN13: 9780521849630
• ISBN10: 0521849632
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-02-20
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

In the first exhaustive history of the origins of dramaturgs and literary managers--people who act as advisers and play-doctors at today's theatres, Mary Luckhurst examines the major theorists and practitioners, arguing that Brecht, Granville Barker and Tynan have central roles in this history. Contentious figures, often accused of sinister intent, the numbers of dramaturgs have multiplied considerably in the last decades. This study inquires as to the political and cultural agendas behind this revolution, and whether dramaturgs are mentors or censors.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations	x
Acknowledgements	xi
List of abbreviations	xiii
Introduction	1	(23)
Gotthold Lessing and the Hamburg Dramaturgy	24	(21)
Dramaturgy in nineteenth-century England	45	(33)
William Archer and Harley Granville Barker: constructions of the literary manager	78	(31)
Bertolt Brecht: the theory and practice of the dramaturg	109	(43)
Kenneth Tynan and the National Theatre	152	(48)
Dramaturgy and literary management in England today	200	(63)
Conclusion	263	(5)
Select bibliography	268	(18)
Index	286