Shakespeare on the German Stage: Volume 2, The Twentieth Century (Vol 2) [Hardcover]

Wilhelm Hortmann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 28, 1998 | ISBN-10: 0521343860 | ISBN-13: 978-0521343862

This history of Shakespeare in the German-speaking theater is set against the background of German culture and politics in the twentieth century. Following on the earlier volume by Simon Williams, Shakespeare on the German Stage, 1586-1914, Hortmann concentrates on the years of the Weimar Republic (1919-1933) and the turbulent decades of the sixties and seventies. The work of individual directors, designers and actors is described and performances are plentifully illustrated. A section by Maik Hamburger describes the theater of the German Democratic Republic.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...it is a masterpiece of its kind." John Rouse, Theatre Journal

"... this superb and richly illustrated work completes an exhaustively researched history of Shakespearean production within the broader framework of German-speaking theater.... Of special interest are the vivid, dramatic, and witty descriptions of important productions, including audience and critical reactions." Choice

"...offers a rich harvest to al lthose who wish to study twentieth-century uses of the plays in aid of uderstanding and assimilating Shakespeare now nad in the century to come." Shakespeare Quarterly

"...his book is a tremendous source of information not only for students of Shakespeare but also for scholars of German cultural history and for theater directors looking for inspiration for their own productions... without a doubt the most comprehensive survey of modern German Shakespeare productions published anywhere, and as such, it is a most welcome addition to international Shakespeare studies." Wilhelm Werthern, Modern Philology

"...containing as this volume does an extraordinary amount of reliable factual information on main currents of Shakespeare interpretation on the stages of Switzerland, Austria, the GDR, and the Federal Republic of Germany (before and after the merger of the last two entities), this is an essential book for university libraries." The German Quarterly

Book Description

Shakespeare has been a central figure in German literature and theatre.This is a history of Shakespeare in the German-speaking theatre against the background of German culture and politics in the twentieth century. Following the earlier volume by Simon Williams, Shakespeare on the German Stage, 1586 1914, Hortmann concentrates on the years of the Weimar Republic (1919 1933) and the turbulent decades of the sixties and seventies. The work of individual directors, designers and actors is described and performances are plentifully illustrated. A section by Maik Hamburger describes the theatre of the German Democratic Republic.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 519 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (May 28, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521343860
• ISBN-13: 978-0521343862
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 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: #7,985,423 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare on the 20th Century German Stage, November 12, 2000

By 

krebsman (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Shakespeare on the German Stage: Volume 2, The Twentieth Century (Vol 2) (Hardcover)

The Germans have a special affinity for Shakespeare to the point of having proclaimed him as one of their own. I have even heard that there are some Germans who think their Shakespeare is better than our Shakespeare. (Seriously, however, in the days leading to World War II some Germans did argue that a country that produced Shakespeare could not possibly be an enemy.) The Germans (with some justification) also take credit for rescuing Shakespeare's work from the hack adaptations in the years following his death. (One must remember that D'Avenant's adaptation of Macbeth, Nahum Tate's King Lear [with a happy ending] and Thomas Shadwell's The Tempest were the standard versions on the English stage for nearly a hundred years.) The German love affair with Shakespeare is an enduring one. There are hundreds of productions of Shakespeare in Germany every year. It has been so for virtually this entire century. In this fascinating book, William Hortmann shows how the political and social changes of the 20th Century were reflected in productions of Shakespeare on the German stage. It is amply illustrated with 125 photographs of the productions discussed in the text. There is also a special section by Maik Hamburger on theatre in Socialist East Germany that is one of the book's highlights. My only real criticism is that the book doesn't quite go all the way to the end of the century. It ends at 1995. I would still strongly recommend it to anyone who's interested in Shakespeare, Twentieth Century Germany or the history of the theatre. There is much food for thought here.