{"product_id":"9781408185483","title":"Theatre in the Expanded Field : Seven Approaches to Performance","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eTheatre in the Expanded Field\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Alan Read\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eTheatre in the Expanded Field\u003c\/i\u003e is a fiercely original, bold and daring exploration of the fields of theatre and performance studies and the received narratives and  histories that underpin them. Rich with interdisciplinary reference, international, eclectic and broad-ranging in its examples, it offers readers a compelling and provocative reassessment of the disciplines, one that spans pre-history to the present day.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSixty years ago, in 1962, Richard Southern wrote a remarkable book called \u003ci\u003eThe Seven Ages of the Theatre\u003c\/i\u003e. It was unusual in its time for taking a trans-disciplinary, new-historical and avowedly internationalist approach to its subject - nothing less than a totalizing view of its field. \u003ci\u003eTheatre in the Expanded Field \u003c\/i\u003edoes not attempt to mimic Southern's work but rather takes his spirit of adventure and ambition as its frame for the contemporary moment of performance and its diverse pasts. Identifying seven ways of exploring the performance field, from pre-history to postdramatic theatre the book presents studies of both contemporary and historical works not as a chronological succession, but in keeping with their coeval qualities, as movements or 'generations' of connection and interaction, dissensus and interruption. It does this with the same purpose as Richard Southern's original work: to provide for the planning of responsive performance spaces 'now'. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIllustrated throughout with line-drawings, \u003ci\u003eTheatre in the Expanded Field \u003c\/i\u003eis as richly rewarding as it is ambitious and expansive in it vision.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e“In establishing his \"seven approaches to performance,\" Read uses Richard Southern's The Seven Ages of the Theatre (1962) as a template, providing rich, eclectic studies of performance, pre- to postmodern. Each of the approaches reads like a performance monologue, teasing out the thesis that performance, \"in the expanded field\" of all human interaction, serves as a cultural irritant, celebrating contingency and playfulness as essential to the human animal. Theoretically sophisticated, academically challenging, and often very entertaining, this book will engage, irritate, and amuse the intellectually scrupulous and playfully inclined. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty, professionals” —\u003ci\u003eW. W. Demastes, Louisiana State University, CHOICE\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781408185483\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Methuen Drama","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":40596896448718,"sku":"9781408185483","price":175.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/getimage_493c85d5-5f89-4453-986f-115f5dde03e3.jpg?v=1637868893","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781408185483","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}