James Thomas

The Craft of Rehearsal

Further Reflections on Interpretation and Practice

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

Anatoly Efros (1925-1987), one of the most admired and original directors of post-war Russia, directed at the Central Children's Theatre, Malaya Bronnaya Theatre, Lenkom Theatre, Moscow Art Theatre, Taganka Theatre, and elsewhere including the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis and the Toen Theatre in Tokyo. He taught directing at the State Institute for Theatre Training and wrote several influential books. His productions received numerous awards for creative excellence.
In The Craft of Rehearsal, his second work, Efros further illuminates the dynamics of the director's creative work introduced in his first work, The Joy of Rehearsal (Peter Lang, 2006). He discusses the process of considering future plays, rehearsing them, and evaluating the results. Devoted to the principles of Konstantin Stanislavsky and Michael Chekhov, and inspired by the ideas of Bertolt Brecht. Additionally, Efros provides detailed examples of how he developed modern literary reconstructions from classic works, Othello and Turgenev's masterpiece A Month in the Country. His productions of Shakespeare, Molière, Chekhov, and other classics were major events for those who looked to the theatre for social significance as well as aesthetic experience. Theatre students and professionals will benefit from the insights gained as Efros writes about his unique vision for the modern theatre.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Peter Lang
• Artikelnr. des Verlages: 68860
• Seitenzahl: 236
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 17mm x 160mm x 230mm
• Gewicht: 460g
• ISBN-13: 9780820488608
• ISBN-10: 0820488607
• Artikelnr.: 22699204

Rezensionen

«I remember well what an event the publication was of Anatoly Efros's first book, 'Rehearsal Is My Love' (in English, 'The Joy of Rehearsal') at the end of the '70s. Other than Michael Chekhov, I think that no one in Russia wrote so freely, unrestrainedly, and intelligently about the essence of theatre. This was theatre seen from within, from the viewpoint of a director, who, during his lifetime as well as now, is esteemed the most outstanding master of the post-war Russian stage. After several years, Efros published a second book, 'Profession: Director' (in English, 'The Craft of Rehearsal'), in which he established the very possibility of a free literary reconstruction of important stage works. His writing was a new kind of director's literature: 'No day without writing a line.' In this fashion he created books in which the shrewd observations of an experienced director are allied with the fleeting day-by-day insights of an artist, and he addressed it to everyone in the world of theatre. Efros's books (all four of them) stand on my shelf next to those of Stanislavsky, Tairov, Meyerhold, and Brook. They are classics of the twentieth century, which is the century of the director in the theatre. It is wonderful that James Thomas has translated Anatoly Efros skillfully and sequentially, book after book, giving English-language readers the opportunity to share a special pleasure that we in Russia have already had for several decades.» (Anatoly Smeliansky, Rector, Moscow Art Theatre School; Associate Artistic Director, Moscow Art Theatre)
«The impact of Anatoly Efros's work in Russia is indisputable, and the manner in which James Thomas has brought this influence directly into the English language forum is invaluable and timely. 'The Craft of Rehearsal' is a marvellous contribution to acting processes and theatre studies, showing the way for the application of Stanislavsky's ideas in the present day and even into the future.» (Bella Merlin, Lecturer in Drama, University of Exeter)