Author
Henry Bial
Book Format
Hardback
Publisher
The University of Michigan Press
Published
October 2015
Today's Price
£81.44
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Playing God
Today's Price £81.44
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Author
Henry Bial
Book Format
Hardback
Publisher
The University of Michigan Press
Published
October 2015
£81.44
Free UK Delivery
Available - Usually dispatched within 3 days
Playing God
Today's Price £81.44
Whether we regard it as the collected inscriptions of an earlier oral tradition or as the divinely authored source text of liturgical ritual, the Bible can be understood as a sacred performance text, a framework for an instructional theater that performs the shared moral and ethical values of a community. It's not surprising, then, that playwrights have turned to the Bible as a source for theatrical adaptation. Biblical texts have inspired more than 100 Broadway plays and musicals, ranging from early spectacles like Ben-Hur (1899) to more familiar works such as Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar . What happens when a culture's most sacred text enters its most commercial performance venue? Playing God focuses on eleven financially and/or critically successful productions, as well as a few notable Broadway flops that highlight the difficulties in adapting the Old and New Testaments for the stage. The book is informed by both performance studies and theater history, combining analysis of play-scripts with archival research into the actual circumstances of production and reception.
Biblical plays, Henry Bial argues, balance religious and commercial considerations through a complex blend of spectacle, authenticity, sincerity, and irony. Though there is no magic formula for a successful adaptation, these four analytical lenses help explain why some biblical plays thrive while others have not.
Author
Henry Bial
Book Format
Hardback
Publisher
The University of Michigan Press
Published
October 2015
Weight
500g
Page Count
240
Dimensions
150 x 232 x 26 mm
ISBN
9780472072927
ISBN-10
0472072927
Eden Code
4339800
More Information
Author/Creator: Henry Bial
ISBN: 9780472072927
Publisher: The University of Michigan Press
Release Date: October 2015
Weight: 500g
Dimensions: 150 x 232 x 26 mm
Eden Code: 4339800