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How to Start Your Own Theater Company
by Reginald Nelson David SchwimmerWith hands-on advice and instruction from an experienced actor and theater director, this pragmatic, authoritative guide to starting a theater company imparts essential backstage know-how for would-be playhouse practitioners on everything from fundraising and finding a space to selecting plays and successfully navigating tricky legal issues. Chronicling three seasons at Chicago's award-winning Congo Square Theatre Company, this journey behind the curtain reveals the nitty-gritty details of practical issues that are often overlooked amidst the zeal of artistic pursuit, such as how to manage rent, parking, and safety issues; determine tax status and calculate budgets; and find flexible day jobs to help foster artists' creative passion. The guide also provides in-depth analysis of undertaking lofty projects--such as managing a coproduction with a large, established theater, as Congo Square did with Tony Award-winning Steppenwolf Theatre Company--and addresses potential drawbacks, such as handling common weaknesses of the "artistic temperament" that can often lead to a business venture's undoing. Inspired by Congo Square's own unique inception, the valuable how-to also speaks directly to the many underserved niche audiences who decide to create their own companies, including African American, Asian American, Latino, physically challenged, and GLBT communities. Concluding with lists of Equity offices, legal advisers, and important organizations for assistance, this complete resource is sure to help ambitious theater lovers establish and maintain their own successful companies.
How to Stop Acting: A Renowned Acting Coach Shares His Revolutionary Approach to Landing Roles, Developing Them and Keeping Them Alive
by Harold Guskin Kevin KlineHarold Guskin is an "acting doctor" whose clients include Kevin Kline, Glenn Close, James Gandolfini, Bridget Fonda, and dozens more. In How to Stop Acting, Guskin reveals the insights and techniques that have worked wonders for beginners as well as stars. Instead of yet another "method," Guskin offers a strategy based on a radically simple and refreshing idea: that the actor's work is not to "create a character" but rather to be continually, personally responsive to the text, wherever his impulse takes him, from first read-through to final performance. <p><p> From this credo derives an entirely new perspective on auditioning and the challenge of developing a role and keeping it fresh, even over hundreds of performances. Drawing on examples from his clients' work and his own, Guskin presents acting as a constantly evolving exploration rather than as a progression toward a fixed goal. He also offers sound and original advice on adapting to the particular demands of television and film, playing difficult emotional scenes, tackling the Shakespearean and other great roles, and more. His book will find an eager and appreciative audience among novices and established actors alike.
How to Swing in Musical Theatre: A Guide to Covering the Ensemble
by Jaye J. ElsterHow to Swing in Musical Theatre shines a light on the most universal techniques used by cast members who, in response to absence, can perform multiple roles across an ensemble. This entertaining guide can be used not only to build a step-by-step understanding of what swinging is and how it can be approached, but also as a constant point of reference throughout a career in musical theatre. Providing a suite of practical, technical advice on everything from quick and easy notation to compiling one’s own personal swing ‘bible’, everything that an aspiring or experienced musical theatre performer will need is clearly arranged and thoughtfully explained. This book also teaches the SAFE Strategy, which is recognised as the most functional swing method and introduces the SAFE Principles of Swinging: Safety, Awareness, Function and Evolution. The principles are an original construct, devised to ward off stress and invite positive experience through reasoned behaviours. Musical theatre performers at every level of the profession will find this an invaluable guide that elevates their craft no matter what their previous training, experience or success in the industry.
How To Talk So People Will Listen: And Sound Confident (Even When You’re Not)
by Lizzie WaterworthFind your voice and own the room, even when your legs are shaking!Professional cartoon voice artist Lizzie Waterworth tells you all about her strategies for confident speaking, from breathing exercises to what to do with your hands, and how to conquer that pesky inner voice that whispers "what if...?".Packed with funny stories from Lizzie's world of cartoons, and top tips from a host of professional voice artists and public figures, such as Stephen Fry, David Menkin, and BBC presenter Ben Shires, this book is full of practical advice to help you find your voice!'We teach our children reading and writing but we forget listening and speaking, which are essential life skills. Lizzie brilliantly fills that gap for speaking in this fun, easy to read manual for children of all ages (and parents too!). Every child should have this!' - Julian Treasure, top-10 TED speaker and author of How To Be Heard'The book looks really brilliant - I will definitely be using it for homework sessions with my younger ones.' - Dr Natalie Cawley, counselling psychologist and psychotherapist'Lizzie has a terrific way of helping folks overcome natural fears about speaking in front of others, and this book very much captures her spirit and energy. In How to Talk so People Will Listen, she draws on her professional knowledge and experience to treat the topic seriously while also making it fun.' - James Tierney, Yale University English Language Programs'This book is perfect for helping young ones learn essential skills and grow self-confidence all whilst having fun reading!' - Claudia Dalley, Head of POP Channels'This book is great because it's instructional without being full of jargon...and it's funny too! Definitely one for children and adults even!' - Monique Berry, Headteacher'It&’s like a cartoon on the outside and inside the playfulness continues. I really think this book is an invaluable resource. Although this book is designed for young people, Lizzie&’s advice is applicable to people of any age.' - Ranny Levy, Founder and President, KIDS FIRST! / Coalition for Quality Children's Media
How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare
by Ken LudwigA foolproof, enormously fun method of teaching your children the classic works of William Shakespeare, by a Tony Award–winning playwright—now featuring two new chapters &“You and your children will be transformed by the magic and mystery of Shakespeare and his stories in an instant.&”—Sir Derek Jacobi, CBE Winner of the Falstaff Award for Best Shakespeare BookTo know some Shakespeare provides a head start in life. His plays are among the great bedrocks of Western civilization and contain the finest writing of the past 450 years. Many of the best novels, plays, poems, and films in the English language produced since Shakespeare&’s death in 1616—from Pride and Prejudice to The Godfather—are heavily influenced by Shakespeare&’s stories, characters, language, and themes. In How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, acclaimed playwright Ken Ludwig provides the tools you need to inspire an understanding, and a love, of Shakespeare&’s works in your children, and to have fun together along the way.Ken Ludwig devised his friendly, easy-to-master methods while teaching his own children. Beginning with memorizing short passages from the plays, his technique then instills children with cultural references they will utilize for years to come. Ludwig&’s approach includes understanding of the time period and implications of Shakespeare&’s diction as well as the invaluable lessons behind his words and stories. Colorfully incorporating the history of Shakespearean theater and society, How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare guides readers on an informed and adventurous journey through the world in which the Bard wrote.This book&’s simple process allows anyone to impart to children the wisdom of plays like A Midsummer Night&’s Dream, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. And there&’s fun to be had throughout. Shakespeare novices and experts and readers of all ages will each find something delightfully irresistible in How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare.
How to Think like Shakespeare: Lessons from a Renaissance Education (Skills For Scholars Ser.)
by Scott NewstokA lively and engaging guide to vital habits of mind that can help you think more deeply, write more effectively, and learn more joyfullyHow to Think like Shakespeare offers an enlightening and entertaining guide to the craft of thought—one that demonstrates what we've lost in education today, and how we might begin to recover it. In fourteen brief, lively chapters that draw from Shakespeare's world and works, and from other writers past and present, Scott Newstok distills vital habits of mind that can help you think more deeply, write more effectively, and learn more joyfully, in school or beyond.Challenging a host of today's questionable notions about education, Newstok shows how mental play emerges through work, creativity through imitation, autonomy through tradition, innovation through constraint, and freedom through discipline. It was these practices, and a conversation with the past—not a fruitless obsession with assessment—that nurtured a mind like Shakespeare's. And while few of us can hope to approach the genius of the Bard, we can all learn from the exercises that shaped him.Written in a friendly, conversational tone and brimming with insights, How to Think like Shakespeare enacts the thrill of thinking on every page, reviving timeless—and timely—ways to stretch your mind and hone your words.
How to Write a Pantomime (Secrets to Success)
by Lesley CookmanThere are thousands of pantomimes staged throughout the world every year, most of them in Britain. Most groups, whether they be amateur drama societies, schools, Women's Institutes or Village Hall committees are constantly on the lookout for something fresh and original. This is often a matter of economics, as professional pantomimes can be costly in terms of performing rights, let alone the cost of scripts. This book is aimed at those people who take part in this increasingly popular hobby, and at the writer who wishes to write a pantomime, either for a local group, or, indeed, for mass publication.
How to Write a Sentence: And How to Read One
by Stanley FishNew York Times Bestseller“Both deeper and more democratic than The Elements of Style” —Adam Haslett, Financial Times“A guided tour through some of the most beautiful, arresting sentences in the English language.” —SlateIn this entertaining and erudite gem, world-class professor and New York Times columnist Stanley Fish offers both sentence craft and sentence pleasure, skills invaluable to any writer (or reader). Like a seasoned sportscaster, Fish marvels at the adeptness of finely crafted sentences and breaks them down into digestible morsels, giving readers an instant play-by-play. Drawing on a wide range of great writers, from Philip Roth to Antonin Scalia to Jane Austen, How to Write a Sentence is much more than a writing manual—it is a spirited love letter to the written word, and a key to understanding how great writing works. It is a book that will stand the test of time.
How You Get Famous: Ten Years of Drag Madness in Brooklyn
by Nicole PasulkaA madcap adventure through a tight-knit world of drag performers making art and mayhem in the greatest city on earth.Ten years ago, an aimless coat check girl better known today as Merrie Cherry sweet-talked her boss into giving her $100 to host a drag show at a Brooklyn dive bar. Soon, kids like Aja were kicking their way into the scene, sneaking into clubs, pocketing their tips to help mom pay the mortgage, and sharing the stage with electric performers like Thorgy Thor and Sasha Velour. Because suddenly, in the biggest, brightest city in America, drag was offering young, broke, creative queer people a chance at real money—and for thousands or even millions of people to learn their names. In How You Get Famous, journalist Nicole Pasulka joyfully documents the rebirth of the New York drag scene, following a group of iconoclastic performers with undeniable charisma, talent, and a hell of a lot to prove. The result is a sweeping portrait of the 21st-century search for celebrity and community, as well as a chronicle of all the struggles, fights, and disappointments along the way. A rollicking account of the quest to make a living through an art form on the cusp of becoming a cultural phenomenon, How You Get Famous offers an unmissable romp through the gritty and glamorous world of Brooklyn drag.
Huck & Holden
by Rajiv JosephFull Length, Comedy \ 3m, 2f \ Unit set \ Receiving rave reviews for both its New York and Los Angeles productions, Rajiv Joseph's Huck & Holden tells the story of Navin, an Indian college student who's fresh off the boat and trying to remain focused on his studies while the temptations of America and college life start beating down his door. When Navin falls for Michelle, a young African-American woman, he finds that his perceptions of the world begin to expand-- and crumble. Called "...a comingof-age story with comedy, pathos, and a distinct emotional core," by offoffline.com, Huck & Holden is a romantic comedy that wrestles with cultural stereotypes, racism, The Kama Sutra, The Catcher in the Rye, and how losing our innocence doesn't always make us wiser. \ "Joseph's writing has the smarts and sophistication to rip away stereotypes while revealing his characters' raw humanity. With simple storytelling, he deftly constructs Navin's coming-of-age story with comedy, pathos, and a distinct emotional core. This is theater at its finest, and theater that maters.... Everything in this highly polished production cries out for mention, but at the heart of it all is Joseph's taut, masterful script." --offoffonline.com
Huff & Stitch
by Cliff CardinalIn huff, brothers Wind, Huff, and Charles are trying to cope with their father’s abusive whims and their mother’s recent suicide. In a brutal reality of death and addiction, they huff gas and pull destructive pranks. Preyed upon by Trickster and his own fragile psyche, Wind looks for a way out, one that might lead him into his mother’s shadow. In Stitch, Kylie Grandview is a single mom struggling to make a living as a porn star while dreaming of being on the big screen. She’s painfully aware that she is among the many nameless faces on the Internet, the ones that blip across cyberspace, as her yeast infection, Itchia, reminds her at every turn. But when Kylie is offered the chance at a big break, a series of twisted events lead her down a destructive path, revealing a face no one will forget.
Human Catastrophe
by Luiz Cláudio Avallone BeloA huge human being. A mysterious research and its side effects. Which chain reaction could it cause in the lives of scientists, in the victim of this research, and in the invisible humanity to eyes of a giant? Creative and lively this novel brings together drama, catastrophe and science. The main character, which has no idea how he ended up in a strange and apparently uninhabited world, became innocently a personified catastrophe. Francisco Moraes, a scientist anguished because the greatest tragedy lived by humanity, because of his secret project. Armado Bastos, a ambitious and prejudiced military and scientist which involves his youth friend in a project to the development of a powerful weapon. Sandro, Alda, Fábio and Estela: four scientists who barely know that their project is being used for a parallel purpose.
Human Conflict in Shakespeare (Routledge Library Editions: Study of Shakespeare)
by S. C. BoormanConflict is at the heart of much of Shakespeare’s drama. Frequently there is an overt setting of violence, as in Macbeth, but, more significantly there is often ‘interior’ conflict. Many of Shakespeare’s most striking and important characters – Hamlet and Othello are good examples – are at war with themselves. Originally published in 1987, S. C. Boorman makes this ‘warfare of our nature’ the central theme of his stimulating approach to Shakespeare. He points to the moral context within which Shakespeare wrote, in part comprising earlier notions of human nature, in part the new tentative perceptions of his own age. Boorman shows Shakespeare’s great skill in developing the traditional ideas of proper conduct to show the tensions these ideas produce in real life. In consequence, Shakespeare’s characters are not the clear-cut figures of earlier drama, rehearsing the set speeches of their moral types – they are so often complex and doubting, deeply disturbed by their discordant natures. The great merit of this fine book is that it displays the ways in which Shakespeare conjured up living beings of flesh and blood, making his plays as full of dramatic power and appeal for modern audiences as for those of his own day. In short, this book presents a human approach to Shakespeare, one which stresses that truth of mankind’s inner conflict which links virtually all his plays.
Human Factors in Performing Arts: A Layperson's Approach
by PRABIR MUKHOPADHYAYThis captivating book explores the intersection where performing art meets human interaction and delves into the application of human factors’ principles in this field. From music and theatre to cinema and magic shows, indoor and outdoor performances are analyzed from a human factors perspective. Written in an accessible language, this book offers a comprehensive overview of how human factors influence various facets of the performing arts, enriching the experience for both performers and audiences alike.This book uncovers how human factors principles can enhance performance across script writing, stage design, crowd engagement, and more. Through engaging storytelling and practical examples, readers will learn about the intricacies of audience attention, ambience creation, and the importance of feedback in shaping memorable performances. Whether you're a seasoned professional or an aspiring events manager looking to enhance the user experience, this book provides valuable insights into optimizing the human experience within the realm of performing arts making it safe and memorable for all.Ideal for professionals in human factors, occupational health and safety, as well as those working in the performing arts industry, Human Factors in Performing Arts: A Layperson's Approach serves as a valuable resource for theatre managers, event organizers, and anyone involved in orchestrating small or large-scale performances. With its blend of theory and real-world application, it offers a fresh perspective on human factors and the art of entertainment, making it essential reading for anyone passionate about elevating their craft.
Human Resources
by Matt J. Mckinnon Margaret HartEdoardo Massini is an Italian executive, Head of Personnel at the most important oil company in Italy, who gains the world but suffers the loss of his own soul along the way. It shows the plight of the modern male executive who defines his life by his career and his work rather than by more solid values of relationships, love, loyalty and friendship. The novel shows the tragedy of human life where people live their life in the future and understand it in retrospect. The author plays neatly with the perspective of past and present to show the reader that time is not necessarily on their side.
The Human Touch: Redefining the Art of British Contemporary Improvisational Theatre (ISSN)
by Chloé ArrosThe Human Touch is a book focused on the creative processes at work in British contemporary improvisational theatre and how these processes draw on the humanity of the participants: their cognitive abilities, their lives, and their relationships to each other. Vulnerability is a main feature of both the book and of improvisational theatre, both part of the hurdles that improvisers face and a creative tool. Through a study of improvisation and vulnerability, the book teaches us both what makes improvisational theatre so human and opens the door to a reflection about how to use humanity and human emotions in performance. Most importantly, it delves into the cognitive and physiological processes at work in improvisation, a topic which is missing from most manuals and studies offered to students. This book is addressed to theatre students and provides both an important overview of the form’s history and a challenge to what is usually taught about improvisation.
Humanizing Education with Dramatic Inquiry: In Dialogue with Dorothy Heathcote’s Transformative Pedagogy
by Brian Edmiston Iona Towler-EvansHumanizing Education with Dramatic Inquiry provides a comprehensive rationale for why and how dramatic inquiry can be used by any teacher to humanize classroom communities and the subject areas being explored with students. Written by teacher educators Brian Edmiston and Iona Towler-Evans, the book re-evaluates the radical humanizing dramatic enquiry pedagogy of British educator Dorothy Heathcote, as developed by the authors in their own teaching using her three approaches: Process Drama, Mantle of the Expert, and the Commission Model. Through scholarly yet practical analysis of extended examples drawn from their own classroom teaching, the volume demonstrates how teachers can collaborate with students of all ages, dispositions, presumed abilities, and cultural backgrounds to transform classroom life into a richly humanizing, curious, inquiring, imaginative community. This book will appeal to educators and teacher educators not only those open to using drama pedagogies in classrooms and in therapy but also to those engaged in applied theatre. Additionally, it will interest those in literacy and education in general who are committed to inclusive, critical, antiracist, anti-oppressive, and artistic practices.
The Humans
by Stephen Karam"A kind, warm, beautifully observed and deeply moving new play, a celebration of working-class familial imperfection and affection and a game-changing work for this gifted young playwright."-Chicago Tribune"Karam is in rare form here, showing a remarkable ear for the way families converse... For all the characters' woes, this is a warm, funny, sharply observed portrait of their abiding connections with one another." -Time Out ChicagoBreaking with tradition, Erik Blake has brought his Pennsylvania family to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter's apartment in lower Manhattan. Unfolding over a single scene, this "delirious tragicomedy" (Chicago Sun-Times) by acclaimed young playwright Stephen Karam "infuses the traditional kitchen-sink family drama with qualities of horror in his portentous and penetrating work of psychological unease" (Variety), creating an indelible family portrait.Stephen Karam's plays include Speech & Debate and Sons of the Prophet, a finalist for the 2012 Pulitzer Prize and the winner of the 2012 Drama Critics Circle, Outer Critics Circle, Lucille Lortel and Hull-Warriner awards for Best Play. Born and raised in Scranton, PA, he lives in New York City.
Humorality in Early Modern Art, Material Culture, and Performance (Palgrave Studies in Literature, Science and Medicine)
by Amy Kenny Kaara L. PetersonHumorality in Early Modern Art, Material Culture, and Performance seeks to address the representation of the humors from non-traditional, abstract, and materialist perspectives, considering the humorality of everyday objects, activities, and performance within the early modern period. To uncover how humoralism shapes textual, material, and aesthetic encounters for contemporary subjects in a broader sense than previous studies have pursued, the project brings together three principal areas of investigation: how the humoral body was evoked and embodied within the space of the early modern stage; how the materiality of an object can be understood as constructed within humoral discourse; and how individuals’ activities and pursuits can connote specific practices informed by humoralism. Across the book, contributors explore how diverse media and cultural practices are informed by humoralism. As a whole, the collection investigates alternative humoralities in order to illuminate both early modern works of art as well as the cultural moments of their production.
Humour in British First World War Literature: Taming the Great War
by Emily AndersonThis book explores how humorous depictions of the Great War helped to familiarise, domesticate and tame the conflict. In contrast to the well-known First World War literature that focuses on extraordinary emotional disruption and the extremes of war, this study shows other writers used humour to create a gentle, mild amusement, drawing on familiar, popular genres and forms used before 1914. Emily Anderson argues that this humorous literature helped to transform the war into quotidian experience. Based on little-known primary material uncovered through detailed archival research, the book focuses on works that, while written by celebrated authors, tend not to be placed in the canon of Great War literature. Each chapter examines key examples of literary texts, ranging from short stories and poetry, to theatre and periodicals. In doing so, the book investigates the complex political and social significance of this tame style of humour.
Humpty Dumpty and Other Plays
by Eric BogosianEric Bogosian is one of our most singular and exhilarating commentators on American life. His award-winning solo performance works have been performed with acclaim all over the world. As the New York Times has pointed out, "Bogosian is a born storyteller with perfect pitch." That is never more evident than in his newest book, which collects his three most recent plays. In Humpty Dumpty, five friends gather for a holiday at a mountain getaway where unforeseen events bring them to the brink of the end of the world; Griller, set in a New Jersey backyard, where a barbecue gathering turns sinister and deadly; and Red Angel, Bogosian's riff on Von Sternberg's The Blue Angel, reset on a college campus in 1990s New England."I want theater to wake me up, not lull me to sleep. My theater is not about fantasy, it's not about seduction. My theater is not an outline for a film. It is not a TV sitcom onstage. I want my theater to be an event. I want it to push limits, bite the hand that feeds it and bang heads. It's about my fears, my ideas, my blind spots, my isolation."--Eric BogosianEric Bogosian is the author of five plays including Talk Radio and subUrbia, as well as three Obie Award-winning solos: Drinking in America; Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll; Pounding Nails in the Floor with My Forehead and his most recent, Wake Up and Smell the Coffee, which was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. He wrote the screenplay adaptations of his first two plays, receiving the Berlin Film Festival's "Silver Bear" for his work in Talk Radio. Simon and Schuster will publish his second novel in 2005.
Humpty Dumpty's Fall: An Adaptation of a Nursery Rhyme
by Carrie Smith Jessica Wolk-Stanley12 copies of Script plus Teacher's Guide
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Adapted)
by Victor Hugo Malvina G. VogelThis novel has been adapted into 10 short chapters that will excite the reluctant reader as well as the enthusiastic one. Key words are defined and used in context. Multiple-choice questions require the student to recall specific details, sequence the events, draw inferences from story context, develop another name for the chapter, and choose the main idea. Let the Classics introduce Kipling, Stevenson, and H. G. Wells. Your students will embrace the notion of Crusoe's lonely reflections, the psychological reactions of a Civil War soldier at Chancellorsville, and the tragedy of the Jacobite Cause in 18th Century Scotland. In our society, knowledge of these Classics is a cultural necessity. Improves fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.