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Friday, December 30, 2016
Theater books of 2016 to read in 2017
New York Theater: Below is a list of theater books published in 2016 (or reissued in paperback this year, or just books I couldn’t resist listing.) I reviewed some of these books or interviewed the authors. But a few are on my own 2017 reading list.
2 comments:
Tahirah Agbamuche
said...
I came across this article and was immediately refreshed. On my daily basis, it's more likely that in conversation, a friend will say, “you HAVE” to listen to this musical soundtrack, it's breathtaking.” or, “you HAVE to see this play.” More often than not, the literature of theatre can easily be forgotten. Reading plays is a little less common. Sometimes, it is just nice to sit with a book. I really liked that this article provides a diverse reading choice. There are plays, biographies, histories. The theatre community is strongest when educated in all that is going around them in the world and I strongly believe that reading is important. I am very happy that this article promotes reading. I know personally, I have my eye on reading several of the selections. There are certain things that are omitted when you watch a play, and reading it lays it all there for you. It is wholesome, before it is tweaked for stage. In its pure, original form which deserves to be digested and justified as the playwright intended, not those who adapt it for stage.
One of my favorite conversations to have with people is about what shows they have or have not read. I love hearing about more material I can read in order to broaden my knowledge of theatre. This article was fun to look at, because there were things I have never heard of on that list and I am not sure I would have heard of them otherwise. I typically will stick to plays as my choice of reading material, but I do enjoy that this article included material outside of that realm. There is a huge difference between reading theatre and seeing theatre for me. While you read theatre, you are forced to think about what might be happening onstage, if you are reading it correctly, and almost create the story in your head. If you are simply seeing theatre, you are constantly deprived of that form of creativity. Reading plays allows you to view the show in your eyes fully, and not through the lens of someone else. I do want to read some of the other books that were on that list because it looks like they are interesting and a chance to learn something new in a different perspective. I would like to try and start reading more and this list is a wonderful place to start.
2 comments:
I came across this article and was immediately refreshed. On my daily basis, it's more likely that in conversation, a friend will say, “you HAVE” to listen to this musical soundtrack, it's breathtaking.” or, “you HAVE to see this play.” More often than not, the literature of theatre can easily be forgotten. Reading plays is a little less common. Sometimes, it is just nice to sit with a book. I really liked that this article provides a diverse reading choice. There are plays, biographies, histories. The theatre community is strongest when educated in all that is going around them in the world and I strongly believe that reading is important. I am very happy that this article promotes reading. I know personally, I have my eye on reading several of the selections. There are certain things that are omitted when you watch a play, and reading it lays it all there for you. It is wholesome, before it is tweaked for stage. In its pure, original form which deserves to be digested and justified as the playwright intended, not those who adapt it for stage.
One of my favorite conversations to have with people is about what shows they have or have not read. I love hearing about more material I can read in order to broaden my knowledge of theatre. This article was fun to look at, because there were things I have never heard of on that list and I am not sure I would have heard of them otherwise. I typically will stick to plays as my choice of reading material, but I do enjoy that this article included material outside of that realm. There is a huge difference between reading theatre and seeing theatre for me. While you read theatre, you are forced to think about what might be happening onstage, if you are reading it correctly, and almost create the story in your head. If you are simply seeing theatre, you are constantly deprived of that form of creativity. Reading plays allows you to view the show in your eyes fully, and not through the lens of someone else. I do want to read some of the other books that were on that list because it looks like they are interesting and a chance to learn something new in a different perspective. I would like to try and start reading more and this list is a wonderful place to start.
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