Theatre Histories: An Introduction

Citation

Nellhaus, T., Lei, D. P., Underiner, T., & Ybarra, P. (2024). Theatre Histories: An Introduction (4th ed.). Routledge.

Chapter Summary

The fourth edition has fifteen chapters in four parts and runs to roughly 730 to 760 pages (Routledge lists 764 pages with 216 colour illustrations; Google Books lists 728). Routledge describes it as a critical overview of global theatre, drama and performance, integrating world cultures and periods chronologically or thematically and showing how they interacted. It places theatre in its larger historical contexts and gives attention to the role of communication in shaping theatre. Case studies go deeper into selected topics, and "Thinking Through Theatre Histories" boxes explain the concepts and approaches used. The edition also adds an introduction on historiography and timelines.

Part 1: Chapters 1–3

The first part begins with "From oral to literate performance," "Pleasure, power, and transmission: Scripted and non-scripted theatres," and "Commemorative Drama and Carnival." The titles show that the book starts from the movement between oral and written performance, treats scripted and non-scripted theatres together, and gives commemorative drama and carnival their own chapter. They follow the authors' stated attention to how communication media shape theatre.

Part 2: Chapters 4–6

The second part runs from 1250 to 1770: "Secular and Professional Theatre, 1250–1650," "Theatre and the print revolution in Europe, 1550–1650," and "European Absolutisms and Performance, 1600–1770." Here the print revolution is named explicitly as a driver of change, and the political order (absolutism) is tied to performance.

Part 3: Chapters 7–10

The third part covers the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the early twentieth: "Sentiment, satire, and acting in bourgeois Europe, 1700–1785," "Nationalism in the Theatre in Europe and the Americas, 1760–1880," "Theatricalizing modern imperialism and Orientalism, 1790–1914," and "Realism, Early Avant Gardes, Commodity Capitalism and Circuits of Performance." The third and fourth titles show that imperialism and commercial circuits of performance are treated as part of theatre history, alongside nationalism and the avant-garde.

Part 4: Chapters 11–15

The last part moves from "Revolutionary times, 1910–1950" and "The aftermath of the Second World War and theatres of the Cold War: 1940–1970" to "Art, politics, identity, 1968–2023," "Theatres of local roots and global reach, 1970–2023," and "Theatre in networked culture, 1990–2023." The chapters overlap in date, which is consistent with the publisher's statement that periods are integrated thematically as well as chronologically.

Key Concepts

Throughout the Book

• Communication and theatre: the publisher says the book attends to communication's role in shaping theatre, and Chapter 1 begins with the shift from oral to literate performance.
• Case studies: short, deeper treatments of selected topics, available in print and online and listed in a case studies library for instructors.
• "Thinking Through Theatre Histories" boxes: short discussions of important concepts and approaches used in the book.
• Historiography: the fourth edition adds an introduction on how theatre history is written.

Parts 2–4

• Print revolution (Chapter 5): the chapter title ties theatre in Europe between 1550 and 1650 to printing.
• Orientalism and imperialism (Chapter 9): named in the chapter title as subjects of theatricalization.
• Circuits of performance (Chapter 10): a title phrase linking realism and the early avant-garde with commodity capitalism.
• Networked culture (Chapter 15): the final chapter's frame for theatre since 1990.

Critical Analysis

Strengths

• Global scope. The publisher describes world theatre history across cultures and periods, and the fourth edition adds deeper coverage of East Asian and Latin American theatre and a richer treatment of popular culture.
• Methodological help. The "Thinking Through Theatre Histories" boxes, the introduction on historiography and the case studies are meant to show how theatre history is argued, not just narrated. Marvin Carlson, writing about the third edition, praised its in-depth presentation of historical methodology and its breadth of geographical coverage.
• Flexible teaching package. Routledge lists a website with additional case studies, a glossary, pronunciation recordings for non-English terms and instructor resources, and a case studies library from which instructors can choose.
• Authors from several backgrounds. The publisher stresses the range of backgrounds and approaches of the four authors; the biographies describe, for example, Nellhaus's work on theatre and communication practices and Underiner's direction of a doctoral programme in theatre and performance of the Americas.

Limitations

• Size. At more than 700 pages, the book is more than a single term of reading; most courses will need to choose chapters and case studies.
• Overlapping chapters. Date ranges in Parts 3 and 4 overlap and the publisher says material is integrated thematically as well as chronologically, so the book is organised by period and theme and not by national tradition, which makes it harder to follow a single tradition from start to finish.
• Depth is delegated to case studies. A survey of world theatre from oral performance to 2023 in fifteen chapters can treat any single tradition briefly; the publisher presents the case studies as the place for deeper knowledge of selected topics.

Where It Fits in the Course

Within the drama course, this is the historical survey. The Cambridge Introduction to Theatre Studies by Christopher Balme is a shorter methods guide and a good companion for its chapters on historiography and analysis, whereas Nellhaus and colleagues supply the narrative across cultures that Balme only outlines. Theories of the Theatre by Marvin Carlson is a history of Western thinking about drama and theatre and can be read alongside Parts 2 to 4 for the theory behind the periods. The Norton Anthology of Drama provides complete plays from ancient Greece to the contemporary stage and an introduction with a short history of theatre; its plays are the primary texts for the history that this book tells. Studying Plays is an easier first step for readers who need to learn how to analyse a script, and Hamlet is one play to read against the book's chapters on early modern Europe.

How to Use This Book

The book is aimed at undergraduate courses in theatre history, world theatre and introduction to theatre, and at readers who want a diverse account of the emergence, development and continuing relevance of theatre across the world, as Routledge puts it. Routledge states no prerequisite; reading a few plays from different periods beforehand will make the chapters easier to follow.

For a single-term course, read the introduction on historiography first, then take one chapter or case study per week. A manageable selection is Chapter 1 for the opening frame, then Chapter 4 or 5, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 11 and Chapter 13 or 14, with the case studies that best match the plays read in class. Read the "Thinking Through Theatre Histories" boxes with each chapter, since they name the concepts used to link the material. Use the companion website for the glossary and pronunciations when non-English terms appear. For a full year, work through all fifteen chapters in order and pair each part with plays from the Norton anthology.