"This streamlined, engaging text helps students understand the events, places and people that have influenced the history of theatre... Upon completing this book, readers will be able to: Identify the major time periods and geographic areas associated with the history of theatre; Distinguish relevant characteristics of theatre in diverse times and places; Describe the underlying cultural, economic, and political environments as they affected theatre in different times and places; Associate major participants who made theatre within their historical and regional context."--Publisher description.

A scholarly look at 4,500 years of theater, beginning with its Greek origins and concluding with a study of theater since 1970.

Japan boasts one of the world's oldest, most vibrant and most influential performance traditions. This accessible and complete history provides a comprehensive overview of Japanese theatre and its continuing global influence. Written by eminent international scholars, it spans the full range of dance-theatre genres over the past fifteen hundred years, including noh theatre, bunraku puppet theatre, kabuki theatre, shingeki modern theatre, rakugo storytelling, vanguard butoh dance and media experimentation. The first part addresses traditional genres, their historical trajectories and performance conventions. Part II covers the spectrum of new genres since Meiji (1868–), and Parts III to VI provide discussions of playwriting, architecture, Shakespeare, and interculturalism, situating Japanese elements within their global theatrical context. Beautifully illustrated with photographs and prints, this history features interviews with key modern directors, an overview of historical scholarship in English and Japanese, and a timeline. A further reading list covers a range of multimedia resources to encourage further explorations.

African American theater buildings were theaters owned or managed by blacks or whites and serving an African American audience. Nearly 2,000 such theaters, including nickelodeons, vaudeville houses, storefronts, drive-ins, opera houses and neighborhood movie theaters, existed in the 20th century, yet very little has been written about them. In this book the African American theater buildings from 1900 through 1955 are arranged by state, then by city, and then alphabetically under the name by which they were known. The street address, dates of operation, number of seats, architect, whether it was a member of TOBA (Theater Owners Booking Association), type of theater (nickelodeon, vaudeville, musical, drama or picture), alternate name(s), race and name of manager or owner, whether the audience was mixed, and the fate of the theater are given where known. Commentary by theater historians is also provided.

In this sweeping chronicle of plays and performances, key dramatists, major actors, and important critics take their bows, backed up by memorable quotations and more than 150 illustrations. “A real treat...includes a mixture of literary, archaeological, and historical evidence, and...metaphorical prose provides a pleasurable and insightful discussion of theater in a social context...an attractive, quality coffee-table book meant for browsing.”—Library Journal.

An updated and expanded second edition covering Polish history from medieval times to the present day.