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Theatre and the USA
How is the individual and the 'nation' constructed and promoted in American theatre? How does theatre enable a nation to invent and reinvent itself ? Who are the 'people' in 'We the People'?
This brief study examines the intersection of the USA's sense of self with its theatre, revealing how the two have an entangled history and a shared identity.
Through case studies of six canonical plays and musicals, such as Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), Oklahoma! ( 1943), Angels in America (1991), and Hamilton (2015), Theatre and the USA demonstrates how all six of these plays sparked controversy, spoke to their moment, and became canonical texts, arguing that that the histories of these plays are the history of the USA's theatrical infrastructure.
This brief study examines the intersection of the USA's sense of self with its theatre, revealing how the two have an entangled history and a shared identity.
Through case studies of six canonical plays and musicals, such as Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), Oklahoma! ( 1943), Angels in America (1991), and Hamilton (2015), Theatre and the USA demonstrates how all six of these plays sparked controversy, spoke to their moment, and became canonical texts, arguing that that the histories of these plays are the history of the USA's theatrical infrastructure.
112 pages, Paperback
Published October 19, 2023
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November 14, 2023
This book is a cousin to the first body chapter of my dissertation, seen through a theatre history and production lens rather than a rhetorical, textual analysis one. That is to say, I strongly agree with most of its premises, and I appreciate the range of plays she talks about and her incisive analysis. I wished she could have expanded on several points, but I also understand the idea of having a short, accessible book.
She also did something I didn’t think possible: found something new to say about Hamilton. I have a bit of a bone to pick with that chapter, though. I think Lin-Manuel Miranda wants to have it both ways, with the Founding Fathers as both relatable human and symbolic, and that that stance has a tradition reaching back through the John Adams HBO series, the movie-musical 1776, and—yes—The West Wing. But, as my girlfriend says, that’s for *my* book. ;)
She also did something I didn’t think possible: found something new to say about Hamilton. I have a bit of a bone to pick with that chapter, though. I think Lin-Manuel Miranda wants to have it both ways, with the Founding Fathers as both relatable human and symbolic, and that that stance has a tradition reaching back through the John Adams HBO series, the movie-musical 1776, and—yes—The West Wing. But, as my girlfriend says, that’s for *my* book. ;)
Displaying 1 of 1 review