Acting, direction, stagecraft, theatre architecture and design, the extraordinary evolution of dramatic literature – here is an all-embracing and richly illustrated history, global in scope and ranging from the ancient origins of the theatre to the fascinating variety of forms that it has taken in our own age.

A history of Italian theatre from its origins to the the time of this book's publication in 2006. The text discusses the impact of all the elements and figures integral to the collaborative process of theatre-making. The distinctive nature of Italian theatre is expressed in the individual chapters by highly regarded international scholars.

A comprehensively updated new edition of Christopher Duggan's acclaimed introduction to the history of Italy.

Award-winning lecturer Kenneth R. Bartlett applies his decades of experience teaching the Italian Renaissance to this beautifully illustrated overview. In his introductory Note to the Reader, Bartlett first explains why he chose Jacob Burckhardt's classic narrative to guide students through the complex history of the Renaissance and then provides his own contemporary interpretation of that narrative. Over seventy color illustrations, genealogies of important Renaissance families, eight maps, a list of popes, a timeline of events, a bibliography, and an index are included.