Holocaust Drama: The Theater of Atrocity

Description

The Holocaust - the systematic attempted destruction of European Jewry and other 'threats' to the Third Reich from 1933 to 1945 - has been portrayed in fiction, film, memoirs, and poetry. Gene Plunka's study will add to this chronicle with an examination of the theatre of the Holocaust. Including thorough critical analyses of more than thirty plays, this book explores the seminal twentieth-century Holocaust dramas from the United States, Europe, and Israel. Biographical information about the playwrights, production histories of the plays, and pertinent historical information are provided, placing the plays in their historical and cultural contexts.

'This excellent study, which includes an extensive historical introduction and a comprehensive bibliography, acknowledges the difficulties of representing the Holocaust on stage, yet counters them by the need to bear witness to the atrocities as a legacy of the victims ... the odd lack of reference to works created after the 1980s do not detract from the importance of this extensive, sensitive and insightful book.' Journal of Theatre Research International '... this book is a must-read for any reader interested in 'Holocaust drama' in that it begins to categorise the genre in an encyclopaedic manner that is both respectful and thought-provoking. Although this topic might seem to resist further inquiry, it also requires it and this book will hopefully act as an impetus for future researchers, readers and audiences to consider gaps as yet unbridged and voices as yet unheard.' Emily Derbyshire, www.playstosee.com