Eugene O'Neill in China: An International Centenary Celebration

(Hardback)

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The year 1988 was notable for being the centennial of playwright Eugene O'Neill's birth and a time of unprecedented democratization in the People's Republic of China and rapprochement with the West. In this optimal climate, a remarkable festival and conference devoted to O'Neill was held in Nanjing, China, orchestrated mainly by Haiping Liu, who secured the funds and cooperation necessary to lure noted O'Neill scholars and theatre artists from around the world. Liu selected and edited papers for publication after the conference, but he realized that this would be a difficult task conducted from China. At his invitation Lowell Swortzell, a conference participant, became co-editor, and in the dark days following the upheaval in China in 1989, Swortzell assumed much of the burden of editing, organizing, clearing rights, and generally readying the final volumes. The essays included capture the intellectual and artistic stimulation of the conference. Organized in divisions similar to the order in which the papers were delivered, they explore the major areas of O'Neill scholarship by some of the most renowned scholars from the United States, Western and Eastern Europe, Japan and China. They emphasize O'Neill's international reputation and productions, particularly in Asia. Included is an open forum discussion of the festival productions, as well as photographs. The circumstances of the festival and conferences are a story unto themselves, and in their individual introductions, the co-editors relate some of the background and convey some of the flavour of the events - providing insights into the continued appeal of O'Neill in China and the world.

Reviews

This book is one of several fine books coming out of the 1988 centenary of Eugene O'Neill's birth. It is a series of essays that were presented as papers at a conference in Nanjing, China, by outstanding O'Neill scholars from throughout the world. Their papers represent the latest scholarship on O'Neill from a wide range of viewpoints. Part 1 reveals the extent to which O'Neill was influenced by Taoism in his writing (his home in California is called Tao House). Part 2 of the book is "O'Neill in Comparison," and there are fine papers relating O'Neill's art to that of other playwrights. Essays in Part 3 provide information on O'Neill's characterization of women, the blacks in his plays, and elements of his playwriting technique. Part 4 considers various aspects of O'Neill's plays in production, and Part 5 looks at productions of his plays in Sweden, China, and Japan. This is a rich collection of 30 essays by writers who understand O'Neill and theatrical production. The thorough index indicates the range of subjects in the book, including Absurd drama, Brecht, Kierkegaard, O'Casey, Robards, and Tao Wang (Beyond the Horizon). There were also fascinating photographs of a Chinese production of The Emperor Jones. The book could very well serve students (community college through graduate) as an introduction to O'Neill and his plays.-Choice
"This book is one of several fine books coming out of the 1988 centenary of Eugene O'Neill's birth. It is a series of essays that were presented as papers at a conference in Nanjing, China, by outstanding O'Neill scholars from throughout the world. Their papers represent the latest scholarship on O'Neill from a wide range of viewpoints. Part 1 reveals the extent to which O'Neill was influenced by Taoism in his writing (his home in California is called Tao House). Part 2 of the book is "O'Neill in Comparison," and there are fine papers relating O'Neill's art to that of other playwrights. Essays in Part 3 provide information on O'Neill's characterization of women, the blacks in his plays, and elements of his playwriting technique. Part 4 considers various aspects of O'Neill's plays in production, and Part 5 looks at productions of his plays in Sweden, China, and Japan. This is a rich collection of 30 essays by writers who understand O'Neill and theatrical production. The thorough index indicates the range of subjects in the book, including Absurd drama, Brecht, Kierkegaard, O'Casey, Robards, and Tao Wang (Beyond the Horizon). There were also fascinating photographs of a Chinese production of The Emperor Jones. The book could very well serve students (community college through graduate) as an introduction to O'Neill and his plays."-Choice

Author Bio

HAIPING LIU is Professor and Chair of English at Nanjing University, China. The organizer of the festival and conference Eugene O'Neill--World Playwright held in China in June 1988, he has published books and articles on O'Neill in both English and Chinese, including Eugene O'Neill on Drama (1988). LOWELL SWORTZELL is Professor of Educational Theatre at New York University. His publications on O'Neill and other subjects in drama have appeared in professional journals and collections. A specialist in children's theatre, he is editor of several collections of plays and author of books in that field, including the International Guide to Children's Theatre and Educational Theatre (Greenwood Press, 1989), winner of the Distinguished Book Award of the American Alliance for Theatre in Education and named a Choice Outstanding Academic Book.