"Throughout history, various political, social, and religious power structures have used drama as a propaganda tool, and these structures have also demanded the elimination or modification of plays that did not agree with their philosophies. The suppression of drama by organized groups remains a disturbing reality in the 21st century." Banned Plays outlines the censorship history of 125 classic plays from ancient times to the present. Each entry presents the name(s) under which the play has appeared, the date it was produced and place of original production, a summary of the play, its censorship history, and suggestions for further readings.
DAWN SOVA is a strong opponent of censorship in its many forms and has authored Banned Plays, Forbidden Films, Banned Books: Literature Suppressed on Social Grounds, and Banned Books: Literature Suppressed on Sexual Grounds. Third editions of the latter two books are in progress. She has felt honored to speak on the topic to both library associations and private groups.
She was born in northern New Jersey in 1949 to first-generation Americans of Eastern European descent whose parents came through Ellis Island with great hopes and dreams for the future. Economic disadvantage limited her parents' access to education, but they empowered their daughter to strive and to earn several advanced academic degrees. She taught writing, journalism, and literature for over two decades at both the high school and university level.
More important, their influence propelled her to dream beyond the boundaries of their working class neighborhood. She is the author of 23 books. In 2002, she won the Mystery Writers of America Award for Best Non-fiction Work for her 20th book Edgar Allan Poe A-to-Z. She was nominated by the MWA in the same category several years earlier for her work on Agatha Christie.
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