Classic-ing on the Australian mainstream stage : The place and phenomenon of classic in Australian mainstream theatre 1995-2016 (Szene & Horizont. Theaterwissenschaftliche Studien)

McClements Wyss, Susan

J.B. Metzler（2025/02発売）

• 製本 Paperback:紙装版/ペーパーバック版／ページ数 210 p.
• 商品コード 9783662681770

Full Description

This book evaluates classic drama as an active creation. To classic is a complex theatrical practice that animates program choice, casting and staging, audience reception and critical response. Analysis of six distinct examples of pre-determined and self-nominated classic productions on the Australian mainstage is informed by postcolonial theory, specifically the settler dilemma of Indigenous cultural authority. What happens to the political edge of postcolonial aspiration within the status of classic? Close consideration of staging and casting, theatre historical perspectives, and interviews with key artists, expands the concept of classic as a dimension of theatrical and not only of dramatic reception. This book responds to a polarised debate that focused on auteur directors and the relative value of new vs classic plays. Rather than adopting a position, the study undertakes a deeper assessment of the phenomenon and place of the dramatic classic in Australian mainstream theatre.    

Contents

Acknowledgements.- Introduction: The Concept of the Classic.- The Classic, Postcolonial Resonance and Australia.-  Australian Postcolonial Classic: Shakespeare's Role-.- An Actor as Classic-er.-  An Unearthed Classic: The Golden Age-.- An Instant Classic: The Secret River-. Conclusion: The Practice of Classic-ing-.- Afterword: Performing Classic in Australia from 1788 to 1994-.- Appendix: Production Histories