James Fisher is head of the Theatre Department at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has published a dozen books and directed and/or acted in 150 theatre productions. He is the 2007 recipient of the Betty Jean Jones Award for Excellence in the Teaching of American Theatre from the American Theatre and Drama Society and in 2010 he was elected to membership in the National Theatre Conference.
Fisher (theater, Univ. of North Carolina, Greensboro) here presents
a broad survey of plays, playwrights, institutions, and cultural
changes that have had an impact on the remarkable 80-year
theatrical history covered in these two volumes. As usual with such
texts, decisions had to be made as to what to include and, just as
important, what to exclude. The “Reader’s Note” that opens
Volume I discusses the guidelines used to make such decisions. Of
great value to students and general readers is the 20-page
chronology, highlighting theatrical events and historical contexts.
It is followed by an informative and readable 17-page
introduction. Since this is a dictionary, not an encyclopedia,
entries are relatively short and to the point, ranging from
one-third of a page (“Bishop, Andre”) to one page (“Chekov on the
U.S. Stage”). BOTTOM LINE This set serves as an excellent
companion to Fisher and Felicia Hardison Londré’s Historical
Dictionary of American Theater: Modernism (Scarecrow,
2007). An excellent resource for those needing definitions,
clarifications, and a starting point for further research.
*Library Journal*
Part of the publisher’s Historical Dictionaries of Literature and
the Arts, these volumes complement
Historical Dictionary of American Theater: Modernism (2007). This
particular set is focused on live
American stage, not delving into musicals, television, and film.
The dictionary provides information about the who, what, why, when,
and how of American theater during the period 1930–2010. The author
has more than 30 years of teaching theater and leading a theater
department in higher education and has written two plays in
addition to numerous articles, papers, and more. The dictionary is
organized into three major sections: introductory information
(acronyms and abbreviations and a chronology as well as an overview
broken down by historical events or decades), the dictionary
entries, and a bibliography. Entries are arranged alphabetically
and include boldface words cross-referencing other entries in the
dictionary. Ranging in length from a few paragraphs to several
pages, the entries are written in a manner that does not assume a
lot of prior knowledge about American theater. Major plays,
playwrights, performers, theater companies and producing
organizations, movements, and themes are among the topics that are
covered. In the categorized bibliography, a table of contents
assists the researcher in finding sources. Recommended for academic
and public libraries.
*Booklist*
This two-volume set highlights the prominent people, movements,
events, and organizations that shaped American theater from 1930 to
2010. Fisher offers a well-executed introductory essay that
references the cultural changes that influenced the theatrical
experiences of the period. Supplementing the essay is a chronology
featuring detailed impacts of events on theater year by year. The
1,500-plus entries are well chosen and informative, though infused
with a sometimes rather complicated cross-referencing convention.
An extensive bibliography including comments from the author
completes this work. This volume is part of the "Historical
Dictionaries of Literature and the Arts" series, which consists of
three works. According to the foreword, the first in the series,
which is yet to be published, will deal with the beginnings of
theater to 1880. The second volume in the series covers 1880 to
1930. This is an excellent resource for theater practitioners and
for scholarly researchers. ... Recommended.
*CHOICE*
This book is a tool for students, researchers, and anyone wanting
to know more about the history of American theater.
*Monmouth University Magazine*
The dictionary has over 1,700 entries, including playwrights,
actors, directors, producers, designers, critics, agents, technical
developments, genres, companies, and unions. There are entries on
all kinds of theatre, individual plays, and major themes. Play
entries include brief plot summaries, critical responses, leading
actors and noted revivals. ... For students of contemporary
American drama, this book will be an excellent source of
reference.
*s*
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