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Reviews of the First Edition
`...valuable and enjoyable reading for all studying Shakespeare's plays.'
Following in the patternestablished by John Russell Brown for the excellent series (Theatre and Production Studies), he provides first an account of Shakespeare's company, then a study of three individual plays Twelfth Night, Hamlet and Macbeth as performed by the company. Peter Thomson writes in a crisp, sharp, enlivening style.' TLS
'`...the best analysis yet of Elizabethan acting practices, excavated form the texts themselves rather than reconstructed on basis of one monolithic theory, and an essay on Hamlet that is a model of Critical intelligence and theatrical invention.' Yearbook of English Studies
`Synthesizes the important facts and summarizes projects with a vigorous prose style, and expertly applies his experience in both practical drama and academic teaching to his discussion.' Review of English Studies
List of contents
Part 1 The Company; Chapter 1 The Lord Chamberlain’s Servants; Chapter 2 Balancing the Books; Chapter 3 ::; Chapter 4 The Globe Plays; Part 2 The Plays; Chapter 5 Twelfth Night and Playhouse Practice; Chapter 6 Hamlet and The Actor in Shakespeare’s Theatre; Chapter 7 Macbeth from the Tiring House; Chapter 8 Two Playhouses;
About the author
P Thomson lives in Canberra, which most people mistake for the capital of Australia, and passes the time writing and telling stories to children. Authors always mention pets, so they have one dog and at least two possums. The books started with 'what would a world with sensible magic look like?' and went on from there - to lawyers dealing with magicians and trainee spies and sensible middle-aged ladies sorting out the uncanny.
He can be reached at pdt@emailme.com.au
Summary
Concentrating on performance, Thomson reviews the commercial and artistic priorities of Shakespeare and the brilliant and hardheaded group of actors who formed his company during the heyday of the Globe Playhouse, from 1599 to 1608.
