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Mark Fortier is a Professor of English at the University of Guelph (Canada). He has published on various topics involving Shakespeare, contemporary theatre, cultural studies and theory.
less of an issue with this book and more my uninterest in the topic. i found myself really not caring at all. going from text to theory is far more interesting than theory to text imo
The brief and accessible summaries of current theoretical approaches and the writings of their most influential proponents were the strongest parts of this book. Even aside from the book's theatrical focus, those summaries make it a useful resource. As for the applications of those theories to theater, I like that Fortier is pushing for the reexamination of language-based theories in order to offer something to performance/drama/theater, but some of the case studies worked for me, others seemed forced. (Caveat: I read the first edition, and Fortier substantially expanded his work in the second edition, so my complaints may no longer be relevant). I was impressed by the diversity of the 20th and 21st century drama included in this book, but I do think it's problematic to have Shakepeare as the only pre-20th century playwright discussed at any length. (Again, the revised edition may be more historically diverse).
A really top notch introduction to cultural/literary theory as it relates to theatre. As Fortier notes several times, an introduction is inherently limited and cannot do full justice to any of the theories it discusses, but I think this one is exceptionally well done. Many of the theories discussed are incredibly complex and difficult, and this intro does a good job of explaining them in fairly straight forward terms, and then making the theories more concrete by explaining how they relate to theatre in its practices and its own theories.
While at times this was an incredibly dense read, I loved a lot of the parallels between theory and theatrical works. I read this introduction as a primer for an independent study, and it elicited a lot of ideas for coursework. There's not really any way to summarize all of the information, but essentially the book compares popular (read: at least recognizable) philosophy and cultural theory to 20th century dramatic works. Not always the most gripping, but for it's purpose it succeeds.
A clear and concise introduction to major theories working in theatre today. The author spared me major academic-speak and I know more now than I did before I started reading. I'll keep it as a reference and can anticipate using it often as such.