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THE MAGIC OF THEATER

Name: THE MAGIC OF THEATER
Author: David Black
ISBN: 0-02-511155-8

BEHIND THE SCENES

by David Black ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 2, 1993

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Drawing on his two-year series of public interviews with top thespians conducted at N.Y.C.'s New School, Tony Award-winning producer Black conveys the work behind theater's ``magic''—the motivation and training of actors, the mechanics of production, and the essential role of the audience. While Black devotes separate chapters to Tony Randall, Eli Wallach, and Liv Ullman, the rest of his text features that special chemistry of intelligent pairing that characterized his interview- series. Subjects include, among others, Joel Grey and Julie Harris; Christopher Reeve and Elizabeth Franz; William Hurt and Lois Smith; Madeline Kahn and Christopher Walken; Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy; Frank Langella and Judith Ivey; and Zoâ Caldwell and Colleen Dewhurst, whose death during the writing of the book inspired an epilogue emphasizing acting as a collaboration between the actor and the audience—which is an implied presence in the interviews themselves. While the topic of Black's series was how actors convince audiences that they are other than themselves (i.e., the nature of theatrical illusion), the discussions here—which interweave Black's personal narrative with his subjects' dialogue and some Q&A—reveal how actors are motivated to become professional; how they train; how they prepare for a part; how they feel about themselves, their audiences, and their fellow actors; and what they think about more philosophical issues, such as the relative merits of talent, technique, training, and teaching. Each discussion is exceptionally articulate and interesting, and Black, representing the audience, conveys winningly how important it is for audiences to believe in the uses of illusion. An insightful psychology of actors and audiences that offers inspiration for young actors and an absorbing read for those who love the theater. (Thirty-four photographs)

Pub Date: June 2, 1993

ISBN: 0-02-511155-8

Page Count: 448

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1993

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
FAST SHUFFLE
by David Black

- BOOK REVIEW
FALLING OFF BROADWAY
by David Black

- BOOK REVIEW
THE EXTINCTION EVENT
by David Black

- PROFILES
David Black

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.