Shakespeare and Political Theatre in Practice

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What makes a Shakespeare production political Can Shakespeare's plays ever be truly radical

Revealing the unspoken politics of Shakespeare's plays on stage, Andrew Hartley examines their nature, agenda, limits and potential. In considering key theoretical issues, analysing a wide range of productions, and engaging in a collaborative debate with Professor Ayanna Thompson, Hartley highlights a more consciously political approach to making theatre out of Shakespeare's scripts and to experiencing it as an audience. Dynamic and provocative, this book is a crucial text for students and theatre practitioners alike.

Reviews

'Engaging, illuminating and finely balanced, this book offers a great model for any student, critic or performer of Shakespeare who wants to think seriously about the politics of what they are seeing and making.' - Paul Prescott, Associate Professor of English, University of Warwick, UK 'Are all politics local Hartley reminds us that theatre productions are - material, multi-vocal, co-created and contingent, made for and out of all the particular contexts brought to the event. There are many joys to be had in this incisive, honest and eminently readable book, but uppermost is its detailed linking of political and artistic concerns.' - Kevin Ewert, Director of Theatre Program and Professor of Theatre, University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, USA 'An exciting new series which brings the study of Shakespeare performance into energizing engagement with current explorations of performance as practice.' - Peter Holland, McMeel Family Professor in Shakespeare Studies, University of Notre Dame, USA 'This innovative series will provide information and incentive for students of either Shakespeare or Theatre.' - John Russell Brown, founding series editor of The Shakespeare Handbooks

Author Bio

Andrew James Hartley is the Robinson Professor of Shakespeare Studies at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, USA. He is author of The Shakespeare Dramaturg and Julius Caesar, was the editor of the performance journal Shakespeare Bulletin from 2003-13, and is an Associate Artist at Georgia Shakespeare.