J.B. Priestley

by Gale; Maggie B.

• ISBN13: 9780415402422
• ISBN10: 0415402425
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781134143047
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-03-25
• Publisher: Routledge
• More Book Details

Summary

J. B. Priestley is the first book to provide a detailed and up to date analysis of the enormous contribution made by this playwright, novelist, journalist and critic to twentieth century British theatre. Priestley was often criticised for being either too populist or too experimental and this study unpicks the contradictions of a playwright and theatre theorist popular with audiences but too often dismissed by critics; describing and analysing in detail not only his plays but also their specific historical and contemporary productions. Using a combination of archive, review and critical materials, the book re-locates Priestley as a theatre theorist of substance as well as a playwright who challenged theatre conventions and assumptions about audience expectations, at a time when theatre was considered both conservative and lacking in innovation. Professor Maggie B. Gale is Chair of Drama at the University of Manchester, England. Her published works include British Theatre Between the Wars and The Cambridge Companion to the Actress.

Author Biography

Maggie B. Gale is Chair of Drama at the University of Manchester, England.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations
Life, politics and theory	p. 1
Life, career and politics	p. 3
The function and practice of theatre: visions, theories and critical responses	p. 27
Key plays	p. 59
The family, gender and sexual relations	p. 61
Time and the time plays	p. 89
Work and visions of dystopia/utopia	p. 107
Key plays/productions	p. 123
The Good Companions	p. 125
An Inspector Calls	p. 139
Johnson Over Jordan	p. 164
London productions and revivals of J.B. Priestley plays 1931-59	p. 184
Notes	p. 188
Bibliography	p. 194
Index	p. 204
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.