Drama: Directing

In almost every area of production, German theatre of the past forty years has achieved a level of distinction unique in the international community. This flourishing theatrical culture has encouraged a large number of outstanding actors, directors, and designers as well as video and film artists. The dominant figure throughout these years, however, has remained the director. In this stimulating and informative book, noted theatre historian Marvin Carlson presents an in-depth study of the artistic careers, working methods, and most important productions of ten of the leading directors of this great period of German staging. Beginning with the leaders of the new generation that emerged in the turbulent late 1960s-Peter Stein, Peter Zadek, and Claus Peymann, all still major figures today-Carlson continues with the generation that appeared in the 1980s, particularly after reunificationOCoFrank Castorf, Anna Viebrock, Andrea Breth, and Christoph MarthalerOCoand concludes with the leading directors to emerge after the turn of the century, Stefan Pucher, Thomas Ostermeier, and Michael Thalheimer. He also provides information not readily available elsewhere in English on many of the leading actors and dramatists as well as the designers whose work, much of it for productions of these directors, has made this last half century a golden age of German scenic design. During the late twentieth century, no country produced so many major theatre directors or placed them so high in national cultural esteem as Germany. Drawing on his years of regular visits to the Theatertreffen in Berlin and other German productions, Carlson will captivate students of theatre and modern German history and culture with his provocative, well-illustrated study of the most productive and innovative theatre tradition in Europe."

"This Introduction is an exciting journey through the different styles of theatre that twentieth-century and contemporary directors have created. It discusses artistic and political values, rehearsal methods and the diverging relationships with actors and designers, treatment of dramatic material and approaches to audiences. Offering a compelling analysis of theatrical practice, Christopher Innes and Maria Shevtsova explore the different rehearsal and staging principles and methods of such earlier groundbreaking figures as Stanislavsky, Meyerhold and Brecht, revising standard perspectives on their work, as well as analysing a diverse range of innovative contemporary directors, including Ariane Mnouchkine, Lev Dodin, Peter Brook, and Peter Sellars. While tracing the different roots of directorial practices across time, and discussing their artistic, cultural and political significance, the authors provide significant examples of the major directorial approaches and reveal comprehensive patterns in the craft of directing and the influence and collaborative relationships of directors"-- Provided by publisher.