15 new plays span the major eras of drama from Euripides’ The Bacchae, to John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera, to Samuel Beckett’s Endgame, to Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice.
Greater emphasis on current, critically acclaimed plays means more opportunities for students to see performances of the plays they read. Research into the most frequently produced plays of recent seasons informed the selection of new contemporary plays that have premiered since 2000. Among them are many prize winners including John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt, Yasmina Reza’s God of Carnage, Tracy Letts’s August: Osage County, and Lynn Nottage’s Ruined.
A new casebook on The Tempest augments the in-depth treatment of Shakespeare and helps students understand his cultural influence. The casebook is made up of critical commentaries and excerpts of works inspired by The Tempest, which joins Hamlet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for the strongest coverage of Shakespeare in any introductory anthology.
A fresh new design highlights the rich contextual features of the book including historical introductions, casebooks, and commentaries.
The best set of free online drama sources made more accessible than ever through references in the book to drama tutorials, study and discussion questions, additional an additional casebook on the Abbey Theater, assignments, and annotated links to helpful drama resources. And for instructors, assignment ideas, a bibliography, and a list of recommended audiovisual resources.