Actresses As Working Women

Using historical evidence as well as personal accounts, Tracy C. Davis examines the reality of conditions for `ordinary' actresses, their working environments, employment patterns and the reasons why acting continued to be such a popular, though insecure, profession. Firmly grounded in Marxist and feminist theory she looks at representations of women on stage, and the meanings associated with and generated by them.

Publisher Description

Breaking new ground in this century, this wide-ranging collection of essays is the first of its kind to address the work of contemporary international women playwrights. The book considers the work of established playwrights such as Caryl Churchill, Marie Clements, Lara Foot-Newton, Maria Irene Fornes, Sarah Kane, Lisa Kron, Young Jean Lee, Lynn Nottage, Suzan-Lori Parks, Djanet Sears, Caridad Svich, and Judith Thompson, but it also foregrounds important plays by many emerging writers. Divided into three sections-Histories, Conflicts, and Genres-the book explores such topics as the feminist history play, solo performance, transcultural dramaturgies, the identity play, the gendered terrain of war, and eco-drama, and encompasses work from the United States, Canada, Latin America, Oceania, South Africa, Egypt, and the United Kingdom. With contributions from leading international scholars and an introductory overview of the concerns and challenges facing women playwrights in this new century, Contemporary Women Playwrights explores the diversity and power of women's playwriting since 1990, highlighting key voices and examining crucial critical and theoretical developments within the field.

This title was first published in 2000: Women in the 19th century have long been presented as the angel in the house. The author re-writes this history by investigating the life and working conditions of a number of middle-class women who sought to establish themselves as professional artists in Scotland. Contrary to the orthodox view preoccupied with oppression and difficulty, the author demonstrates that women artists of the period were independent producers, teachers and travellers, alert to changes in taste and fashion. They derived great pleasure from their work, and enjoyed the benefits of women working together, forming their own and joining existing professional associations. The book is not biographical but elaborates on the life and working conditions of middle-class artists by discussing their work in terms of economic and social history.

Alison Oddey's interviews with prominent performing women span generations, cultures, perspectives, practice and the best part of the twentieth-century, telling various stories collectively. Stand-ups, 'classic' actresses, film and television personalities, experimental and 'alternative' practitioners discuss why they want to perform, what motivates them, and how their personal history has contributed to their desire to perform. Oddey's critical introductory and concluding chapters analyze both historical and cultural contexts and explore themes arising from the interviews. These include sense of identity, acting as playing (recapturing and revisiting childhood), displacement of roots, performing, motherhood and 'being', performing comedy, differences between theatre, film and television performance, attitudes towards and relationships with audiences, and working with directors. The prominent subtext of motherhood reveals a consciousness of split subjectives with and beyond performance. This new edition of the book includes three new interviews with actresses, and is useful primary resource material for undergraduate students on performance studies courses.

This complete companion to the study of drama, theatre and performance studies is an essential reference point for students undertaking or preparing to undertake a course either at university or at drama school. Designed as a single reference resource, it introduces the main components of the subject, the key theories and thinkers, as well as vital study skills. Written by a highly regarded academic and practitioner with a wealth of expertise and experience in teaching, Mangan takes students from studio to stage, from lecture theatre to workshop, covering practice as well as theory and history. Reliable and comprehensive, this guide is invaluable throughout a degree or course at various levels. It is essential reading for undergraduate students of Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies at universities, drama schools and conservatoires, as well as AS and A Level students studying Drama and Theatre who are considering studying the subject at degree level.