The ultimate Download source

Library Binding: 439 pages
Publisher: ABC-Clio Inc (December 14, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0874367956
ISBN-13: 978-0874367959

From Library Journal
The title of this reference work is a bit misleading. While acting and actors are certainly prominent among the entries, this is an encyclopedia of world theater, with selected entries on the cinema of various cultures. Ranging in length from one sentence to more than a page, the entries are cross-referenced and well documented.

Unfortunately, the writing can be murky, and the criteria used for entry selection are not indicated. For example, why include Marilyn Monroe but not Sidney Poitier and African cinema but not Asian cinema? Osnes (theater, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder), who as a Fulbright scholar in Malaysia studied and performed in traditional shadow-puppet theater, does include a wide range of traditional cultural terms not always found in any but the most exhaustive (and expensive) theater references. Still, there is nothing new here for libraries already holding works such as The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre (LJ 2/95), The Cambridge Guide to World Theatre (LJ 4/89), and An International Dictionary of Theatre Language (Greenwood, 1985). Small theater collections on a tight budget will, however, find this useful. Laura A. Ewald, Murray State Univ. Lib., KY

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Broad in both geographical and temporal scope, this volume’s definition of acting includes all forms of public performance rather than the more accepted definition of interpreting written text before an audience. Osnes, a theatrical scholar and practitioner, has gathered a wealth of information from a wide variety of sources.

The 370-plus cross-referenced entries are alphabetically arranged. Each concludes with a list of references, which are repeated in the 32-page bibliography at the end of the book. There is no introduction that could have provided the rationale for the inclusion or exclusion of subjects. Entries cover actors (the Barrymores, Sarah Bernhardt, Marlon Brando, John Wayne); playwrights (Jean Cocteau, Athol Fugard, Sophocles); acting companies (Abbey Theatre, Group Theater); conventions and devices (Clown, Deus ex machina); movements (Romanticism, Symbolism); and dramatic forms (Kabuki, Spaghetti Western, Vaudeville). Many entries relate the history of performance in a specific country or region. Puppet theater, the circus, and film and television performance are all included. Most of the coverage is up-to-date, but the entry on Whoopi Goldberg stops at 1992, and Kenneth Branagh’s latest listed work is a 1993 film.

Overall, this is not the first source of information about the men and women who appear on stage, but it is a very good source for the context of what they do. Recommended for larger libraries, especially those with active theater collections or that serve theater communities.

Tags: Acting: an International Encyclopedia

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