Series:

Routledge Revivals

2 total works

Cover of The First German Theatre

The First German Theatre

by Michael Patterson

Published 29 November 1990
For almost two centuries, plays from the great age of German drama have been studied primarily as literature. While the plays of Schiller, Goethe, Kleist and Buchner are indeed great literature, they are also outstanding texts for performance, written in a specific theatrical context. This account, the first in English, examines that theatrical context to show how German theatre in the 18th century developed from a market sideshow performed by wandering players to an important element of German cultural life, and political expression. It examines Schiller as "theatre-poet" at Mannheim; Goethe's work as a director of the Court Theatre at Weimar; and then traces how the rapid commercial growth of theatre made it difficult for Kleist and impossible for Buchner to see their plays staged in their own lifetimes.

Cover of The Revolution in German Theatre 1900-1933 (Routledge Revivals)

First published in 1981, this book represents the first work in English to give a comprehensive account of the revolutionary developments in German theatre from the decline of Naturalism through the Expressionist upheaval to the political theatre of Piscator and Brecht. Early productions of Kaiser's From Morning till Midnight and Toller's Transfiguration are presented as examples of Expressionism. A thorough analysis of Piscator's Hoppla, Such is Life! And Brecht's Man show the similarities and differences in political theatre. In addition, elements of stage-craft are examined - illustrated with tabulated information, an extensive chronology, and photographs and designs of productions.