Seven Plays by Witkiewicz [Paperback]

Stanislaw I. Witkiewicz (Author), Daniel Gerould (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0966615263 | ISBN-13: 978-0966615265

One of Poland’s most important artists and writers of the 20th Century, this collection includes: The Pragmatists, Tumor Brainiowicz, Gyubal Wahazar, The Anonymous Work, The Cuttlefish, Dainty Shapes and Hairy Apes, and The Beelzebub Sonata. Also included is “A Few Words about the Role of the Actor in the Theatre of Pure Form,” a key section of his major theoretical treatise.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Overflowing with hyper-vivid characters and precipitous actions, these dramas constitute Witkiewicz's "portrait of the artist," offering a panorama of a demented era headed for disaster as well as a cracked mirror reflecting the author's own protean faces. Lucille Lortel Distinguished Professor of Theatre and Comparative Literature at the Graduate Center, City University of New York; Executive Director, Martin E. Segal Theatre Center; editor, Slavic and East European Performance; editor, Routledge Harwood Polish and East European Theatre Archive; author of Witkacy, Guillotine: Its Legend and Lore, Theatre/Theory/Theatre, and translations of Polish and Russian drama.

Product Details

• Paperback: 525 pages
• Publisher: Martin E. Segal Theatre Center Publ. (September 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966615263
• ISBN-13: 978-0966615265
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,152,260 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dainty Shapes is worth it..., January 29, 2005

By 

ftbonnigan (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seven Plays by Witkiewicz (Paperback)

I recently saw a production of DAINTY SHAPES AND HAIRY APES in Dallas ( by a group called Our Endeavors). It was great, bizarre, hilarious stuff. A friend gave me this book and I revisited the play again. Witkiewicz is an odd, odd duck (a fore-runner of the Theatre of the Absurd, well before Beckett and Ionesco) and his writing is fascinating. I have just started THE PRAGMATISTS, which is also offering a great read. I'd love to see it on stage.