BOOKS THEATER REVIEWS

“This book is about portraying a safe and dramatically effective staged fight using rapier and dagger,” so begins Roger Bartlett’s latest volume. From the large-scale battles in The Lord of the Rings to the intimate denouement in a production of Hamlet at your local theatre, stage combat is as...

What did our critic think of BOOK REVIEW: THE PLAYS OF HENRICK IBSEN, BY DAVID IRVIN at Bookshops?...

If there is one message that those who were in attendance at More Than One Story LIVE on 9 November absorbed through their skin, it is that “The arts don’t belong to a few, they belong to everyone.” The sentiment was declared proudly by Rory Kinnear in his opening speech and echoed warmly by ...

Branded as “366 Daily Inspirations for Writers & Artists,” this compendium of prompts contains an abundance of inspiration. Many books like this exist already, yet award-winning writer and director Jessica Swale has compiled an exciting list of ideas that sets her apart from the rest of the floc...

Drama Games for Clowning and Physical Comedy, written by Joe Dieffenbacher, is one of a series, Drama Games, which, as one might guess from the title, has a range of different games for one to try in workshops, classes and/or rehearsals rooms, with topics like Shakespeare, young children and even �...

This is a toolkit to help creatives in a business which is often hard to navigate, and I feel it is an excellent addition to the material currently available on the subject. It is written in a chatty and approachable style, and the bitesize structure is perfect for reading on the go....

A highly intelligent and slightly arrogant cynic as a main character helms the investigative noir set against a bleak view of the business. ...

Running the Room isn’t a bible nor a manifesto. It doesn’t want to write a set of rules for directing plays, nor it wants to impart a Weltanschauung on how to become a director. It’s a source of inspiration and, more practically, a generous look into the practice of a selected group of people,...

There are plenty of Shakespeare books on the market already, it’s true – but there aren’t many out there quite like this one. Originally intended to be a series of conversations between Judi Dench and her friend & colleague Brendan O’Hea for the Globe’s archives, it became apparent that th...

The moment when you're presented with a whole new script can feel a little overwhelming for an actor, but Breaking Down Your Script: A Step-by-Step Guide for the Actor is here to help. It's written by Laura Wayth, who has worked as an acting teacher in Italy, Morocco, China and the UK....

The term “diva” rose to prominence with its relation to an operatic background and popularly revolves around the traits of someone’s character. Typically (and misogynistically) attributed to women, it’s used to describe a person whose temperament and self-importance are quite difficult to ha...

Doran’s latest book gives a revelatory and revolutionary breakdown of the canon in a way that works for both the professional and uninitiated....

Identity, Culture, and the Science performance Volume 1, From the Lab to the Streets is an intelligently curated series of interviews, essays, and meditations on theatre and its relationship to science....

James Gavin finds the man, but doesn't quite find his place in this detailed biography...

The combination of the music, dancing, acting, and exquisite colors displayed by attire of the company brought the show to life, telling the many different stories of Okinawa....

“So many of our #dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” 27-year-old author and Google project manager Brett N. Axler has a real way forward for theater geeks trying to make it in the real world....

It's like taking a roller coaster ride through QT's mind!...

Playwright Dan O'Brien made a splash in LA theatre back in 2017 when The House In Scarsdale: A Memoir For The Stage received multiple Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Nominations. Now, O'Brien has published four of the essays under the title, A Story That Happens, as a primer for burgeoning playwrig...

Frank Sinatra loved to play along with the TV game show Jeopardy. Here's a Jeopardy question .....What little boy in Chicago, used to shine shoes in taverns while a jukebox in the background played Sinatra tunes and then became Frank Sinatra's opening act on tour for 14 years? He was also MC and pal...

It's been over seventy days since I have last stepped inside a theatre and it literally feels like there is a something emotionally and physically missing from me. When I was offered the opportunity to read Aimee Agresti, THE SUMMER SET, I immediately took it. One, I'm avid reader, but two, and most...

Yesterday, Playbill broke the news that the critically acclaimed graphic novel THE PRINCE AND THE DRESSMAKER by Jen Wang will be the next project for husband-wife team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, who previously worked together on the music for Disney's Frozen, Coco, and Frozen 2. Rob...

In a world where Cupids have been exposed and are frequently hired to make love matches, Eliza Herman feels extremely unlucky. She has more magic than any other Cupid, but she's a huge klutz and can't wield it. She was born on the most auspicious of all days, Valentine's Day, but doesn't believe in ...

Seanan McGuire's award-winning series Wayward Children is one such series. Every book is a delight, something original to be cherished and held. Some are terrifying and bleak, while others are full of wonder and whimsy. Readers finish these books and wish there truly were other words to explore so...

Middle-grade graphic novels are a booming genre, and I haven't read nearly enough of them. SANITY AND TALLULAH by Molly Brooks is one that all teachers and librarians should pick up for the classroom, and one that all parents should buy for their kids. It is a great STEM book, and about two best fr...

What lengths would you go to in order to protect your children? Helen Phillips asks this question and more in her latest novel, THE NEED, which has been long listed for the National Book Awards, was a Goodreads Choice Nominee, and was on several Best of 2019 reading lists. With such an impressiv...