Theatre in the United States

This is the first of two volumes of documents which describe the growth and development of theatre in the United States. The first volume covers the period from the beginnings of theatre in the North American colonies up to the First World War. With such an abundance of primary documents to consult, the editors have focused on three specific 'tensions' that have created and sustained American theatre: commercial versus artistic values; urban versus regional theatre; and the controversy over what is American and what is 'foreign' or imported. The volume is organized in three chronological sections, each with its own introduction. The documents and commentary are arranged into chapters on business practice, acting, theatre buildings, drama, design and audience behaviour. Written sources include records of business transactions, letters, newspaper reports, reviews, memoirs and architectural descriptions. There are also numerous pictorial items.

• This is related to, though not officially part of, the Theatre in Europe series in which we have published three volumes so far
• Documents are fully introduced, linked and annotated
• Over 40 pictures