The Routledge Companion to Twentieth Century British Theatre and Performance: Volume One: 1900–1950(Routledge Companions)

The Routledge Companion to Twentieth Century British Theatre and Performance provides a broad range of perspectives on the multiple models and examples of theatre, artists, enthusiasts, enablers, and audiences that emerged over this formative 100-year period. This first volume covers the first half of the century, constructing an equitable and inclusive history that is more representative of the nation's lived experience than the traditional narratives of British theatre. Its approach is intra-national – weaving together the theatres and communities of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The essays are organised thematically arranged into sections that address nation, power, and identity; fixity and mobility; bodies in performance; the materiality of theatre and communities of theatre. This approach highlights the synergies, convergences, and divergences of the theatre landscape in Britain during this period, giving a sense of the sheer variety of performance that was taking place at any given moment in time. This is a fascinating and indispensable resource for undergraduate and graduate students, postgraduate researchers, and scholars across theatre and performance studies, cultural studies, and twentieth-century history.

Table of Contents:
List of contributors Acknowledgements Introduction Claire Cochrane, Lynette Goddard, Catherine Hindson and Trish Reid 1 Setting the Scene: Ambivalent Encounters/Visibilities David Linton PART I Nation/s, Power and Identity 2 The Theatre and the State, 1900–1950 Trevor R. Griffiths 3 Irish National Drama and the British Theatre, 1897–1951 Patrick Lonergan 4 Theatre, Education and Recreation Jane Milling 5 “National” Theatres Anselm Heinrich 6 Collective Laughter and Political Empowerment in the Comedies of the Suffrage Era Eleanor Stewart PART II Fixity and Mobility 7 Theatre Buildings, 1900–1950 Alistair Fair 8 Miles from London: Edinburgh and Bristol’s West End Cultures Catherine Hindson 9 Popular Places Nick Havergal 10 Transatlantic Exchanges Paul Maloney 11 Theatre in World War Two: Taking on the Myths Ros Merkin PART III Bodies in Performance 12 Between Representation and Agency: Black Artists in the UK, 1900–1950 Tiziana Morosetti 13 ‘A Twitchy and Pugnacious Male Culture’: Women and Scottish Theatre, 1900–1950 Claire Cochrane and Ksenija Horvat 14 Ensembles and Companies Philippa Burt 15 The Performing Body in Music Hall and Variety Theatre: Ambiguities and Blurred Boundaries Louise Peacock 16 The Influence of the European Avant-Garde Claire Warden 17 British Actor Training, 1900–1950: The Drama-School Turn Peter Zazzali PART IV The Materiality of Theatre 18 The Labour of Theatre, 1900–1950 Lucie Sutherland 19 Theatrical Publishing, 1900–1950 Andrew Nash 20 Consumer Economies Matthew Franks 21 Postcards, Letters and Magazines: Fan Culture in the early Twentieth Century Helen Grime 22 Fashioning Costume on the British Stage, 1900–1950 Susan Marshall PART V Communities of Theatre 23 Theatre in ‘Other’ Spaces: Welsh Drama and Theatre, 1900–1950 Anwen Jones 24 Ulster Kitchen Comedy: ‘A Faithful if Unpleasant Picture of the National Fragments’ Roy Connolly 25 Elite Private Theatricals and the ‘Professional’ Amateur David Coates 26 Early Twentieth-Century Festival Cultures Soudabeh Ananisarab 27 The Children’s Theatre Movement in Early Twentieth-Century London and Birmingham Catherine Hindson and Gemma Colclough Index

About the Author :
Claire Cochrane is Professor Emeritus of Theatre Studies at the University of Worcester, UK. Lynette Goddard is Professor of Black Theatre and Performance at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. Catherine Hindson is Professor of Theatre History at the University of Bristol, UK. Trish Reid is Professor of Theatre and Performance at the University of Reading, UK