Satire
by Joel Schechter, Simon Shepherd
Satire reconsiders the entertainment, political dissent and comic social commentary created by innovative writers and directors since this theatrical form took the stage in ancient Athens. From Aristophanes to the 18th-century plays of John Gay and Henry Fielding, to the creations of Joan Littlewood, Bertolt Brecht, Vsevolod Meyerhold, Erika Mann, Brendan Behan and Dario Fo, practitioners of theatrical satire have prompted audiences to laugh at corruption, greed, injustice and abusive authority.In the theatre these artists jested at prominent citizens, scandals and fashions. In retrospect it can be seen that their topical references, allegories and impersonations also promoted intervention in public discourse and events outside the theatre, as satire extended its reach beyond the stage into society.Satire focuses on three exemplary satiric plays: The Knights by Aristophanes, The Beggar's Opera by John Gay and The Hostage by Brendan Behan under Joan Littlewood's direction. Detailed discussion of these three innovative works reveals both changes and continuities in stage satire over the course of its long, hilarious history. The survey concludes with a discussion of stage satire as an endangered art in need of preservation by actors, directors and theatre historians.
Hardcover
English
Brand New
Author Biography
Joel Schechter is Professor Emeritus of Theatre and Dance at San Francisco State University, USA. He is the author of Durov's Pig: Clowns, Politics and Theatre; The Pickle Clowns; Satiric Impersonations from Aristophanes to the Guerrilla Girls; Messiahs of 1933; Eighteenth-Century Brechtians: Theatrical Satire in the Ages of Walpole and he is the editor of Popular Theatre: A Sourcebook.
Table of Contents
Series Preface1) Introduction: What Was Satire? Looking Back at an Endangered Art Form2) Aristophanes and After: Origins and Legacy of Ancient Athenian Satire3) John Gay and Swiftian Stage Satire in the Long-Eighteenth Century4) Joan Littlewood's Brendan Behan, and the Making of Modern Satire5) Conclusion: The Endangered Future of SatireReferencesIndex
Promotional
How has satire been used by theatre artists and what have been its targets? In this short authoritative book, Joel Schechter considers changes and continuities in the form and function of satire from ancient Greek drama to the work of dramatists and artists in the present day.
Promotional "Headline"
How has satire been used by theatre artists and what have been its targets? In this short authoritative book, Joel Schechter considers changes and continuities in the form and function of satire from ancient Greek drama to the work of dramatists and artists in the present day.
Feature
The plays discussed are among the best satires ever written, and the book draws on their spirit of humor, quoting playwrights and critics, and bringing their comic sensibility to life again
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