THEA 204 / ENGL 234, Performance History II: 1600-1900 (Anna Griffith)

A Cultural History of Theatre presents an authoritative survey from ancient times to the present. The set of six volumes covers a span of 2,500 years, tracing the complexity of the interactions between theatre and culture.
1. A Cultural History of Theatre in Antiquity (500 BCE-1000CE)
2. A Cultural History of Theatre in the Middle Ages (1000-1400)
3. A Cultural History of Theatre in the Early Modern Age (1400-1650)
4. A Cultural History of Theatre in the Age of Enlightenment (1650-1800)
5. A Cultural History of Theatre in the Age of Empire (1800-1920)
6. A Cultural History of Theatre in the Modern Age. (1920-2000+)

Defining Documents in World History: The 17th Century provides detailed, thought-provoking analysis of Galileo Galilei: Starry Messenger Mayflower Compact Japan's Closed Country Edict Treaty of Westphalia John Locke: An Essay on Human Understanding . Articles begin by introducing readers to the historical context surrounding the document, followed by a description of the author's life and circumstances in which the document was written. Next, a detailed analysis of the document provides an in-depth examination of the issues surrounding the document and its historical significance. An historical timeline and bibliography of supplemental readings will suport readers in understanding the broader historical events and subjects in the period. [From Publisher]

E. Taylor Atkins shows how Japan is one of the earliest sites for the development of mass-produced, market-oriented cultural products consumed by urban middle and working classes. The best-known traditional arts and culture of Japan-- no theater, monochrome ink painting, court literature, poetry and indigenous music--inhabited a world distinct from that of urban commoners, who fashioned their own expressive forms and laid the groundwork for today's 'gross national cool.' Popular culture was pivotal in the rise of Japanese nationalism, imperialism, militarism, postwar democracy and economic development. [From Publisher]

Engaging concepts that span divisions of chronology and continent, these essays address topics ranging from mechanist biology, painted geographies, and revolutionary opera to Americanization,& theatrical subversion of marriage, and plantation architecture. Weaving together many disparate threads of the historical tapestry we call the Enlightenment, this volume illuminates our understanding of the interconnectedness of the eighteenth centuries. [From Publisher]

For the first time, it demonstrates the wide range of theatrical activity in which women were involved during the Renaissance period. It includes full-length plays, a translated fragment by Queen Elizabeth I, a masque, and a substantial number of historical documents. [From Publisher]

A collection of the most significant Elizabethan and Jacobean texts on the morality of the theater. Includes attacks on the stage by moralists, defences by actors and playwrights, letters by magistrates, mayors and aldermen of London, and extracts from legislation. Demonstrates just how heated debates about the theater became in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. A general introduction and short prefaces to each piece situate the writers and debates in the literary, social, political and religious history of the time. [From Publisher]

Gathered from a rich variety of sources, including imperial and municipal edicts, contracts, architectural descriptions, playbills, stage directions and actors' memoirs among others, the book sheds light on one of the most fascinating areas of cultural life in the German- and Dutch-speaking countries. Explanatory passages put these documents into their historical context, and numerous illustrations bring the material even more vividly to life. Also included is the source location for each document and a substantial bibliography. [From Publisher]