Synopses & Reviews
If theatre were a religion, explains David Mamet in his opening chapter, many of the observations and suggestions in this book might be heretical.” As always, Mamet delivers on his promise: in Theatre, the acclaimed author of Glengarry Glen Ross and Speed the Plow calls for nothing less than the death of the director and the end of acting theory. For Mamet, either actors are good or they are non-actors, and good actors generally work best without the interference of a director, however well-intentioned. Issue plays, political correctness, method actors, impossible directions, Stanislavksy, and elitists all fall under Mamets critical gaze. To students, teachers, and directors who crave a blast of fresh air in a world that can be insular and fearful of change, Theatre throws down a gauntlet that challenges everyone to do better, including Mamet himself.
David Mamet is a director as well as the author of numerous acclaimed plays, books, and screenplays. His play Glengarry Glen Ross won a Pulitzer Prize, and his screenplay for The Verdict was nominated for an Academy Award. He lives in Santa Monica, California.
If theatre were a religion, explains David Mamet in his opening chapter, many of the observations and suggestions in this book might be heretical.” As always, Mamet delivers on his promise: in Theatre, the acclaimed author of Glengarry Glen Ross and Speed the Plow calls for nothing less than the death of the director and the end of acting theory. For Mamet, either actors are good or they are non-actors, and good actors generally work best without the interference of a director, however well-intentioned. Issue plays, political correctness, method actors, impossible directions, Stanislavksy, and elitists all fall under Mamets critical gaze. To students, teachers, and directors who crave a blast of fresh air in a world that can be insular and fearful of change, Theatre throws down a gauntlet that challenges everyone to do better, including Mamet himself. "In this manifesto, playwright Mamet appears to take great pleasure in attacking age-old theories of acting and directing. By definition, he posits, an actor is a good actor; if the person onstage is not good, then he or she is not an actor. Other targets are books of theory, which Mamet admits he read voraciously when he fell in love with the theater; he now writes, "on reflection, I had (and have) very little idea what they were talking about." Some of his main points are that theater should entertain, rehearsal time should be used to block the play and have the actors understand what they are speaking (rather than feeling), and the job of the playwright is to 'make the audience wonder what is going to happen next. That's it.'"Susan Peters, University of Texas, Galveston, Library Journal
Review
Praise for
Bambi vs Godzilla: “Sharp, savvy. . . . Icily hilarious. . . . Mr. Mamet writes with insight, idiosyncrasy, and a Godzillian imperviousness to opposition.” —Janet Maslin,
The New York Times“Winningly pugnacious. . . . [Bambi vs. Godzilla] is funny and angry and intemperate and passionate enough to tell the truth about movies.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“This is a book infused with love - the sweet, helpless love Mamet has for film, and the communal process that makes it.” —Los Angeles Times
“Playful . . . deft. . . . Mamet the dramatist has developed a career as a prolific philosophical essayist.” —Chicago Sun-Times
Review
Praise for
Bambi vs Godzilla: “Sharp, savvy. . . . Icily hilarious. . . . Mr. Mamet writes with insight, idiosyncrasy, and a Godzillian imperviousness to opposition.” Janet Maslin,
The New York Times“Winningly pugnacious. . . . [Bambi vs. Godzilla] is funny and angry and intemperate and passionate enough to tell the truth about movies.” San Francisco Chronicle
“This is a book infused with love – the sweet, helpless love Mamet has for film, and the communal process that makes it.” Los Angeles Times
“Playful . . . deft. . . . Mamet the dramatist has developed a career as a prolific philosophical essayist.” Chicago Sun-Times Oline H. Cogdill - Jay Strafford - Hallie Ephron - Marilyn Stasio - Wed Lukowsky - Spider Robinson - Robert Silverberg - Richard A. Lupoff - Harlan Ellison - George R. R. Martin - Jon Winokur - Alison Weir, author of Eleanor of Aquitaine and The Six Wives of Henry VIII - Dallas Observer - Jennifer Weiner, author of In Her Shoes and Little Earthquakes - Jay Leno - Laura Zigman, author of Animal Husbandry, Dating Big Bird, and Her - Liz Smith - Eoin Colfer - John Banville - W.E.B. Griffin, author of Final Justice - James Carville - Nomar Garciaparra, professional baseball player - Martin Arnold - Ulick O'Connor - Michael Billington - Michael Coveney - Sir Ian McKellen - Bill Bryson - Jon Winokur - J. B. Priestley - Dallas Observer - Jennifer Weiner, author of In Her Shoes and Little Earthquakes - Jay Leno - Laura Zigman, author of Animal Husbandry, Dating Big Bird, and Her - Liz Smith - Ulick O'Connor - Michael Billington - Michael Coveney - Sir Ian McKellen - Jay Strafford - Hallie Ephron - Daniel Mallory - Robert Charles Wilson - Cory Doctorow - Ellen Kanner - Orson Scott Card - L.E. Modesitt, Jr. - Kevin J. Anderson - Katherine Kurtz - David Farland - Janet Maslin - Harlan Coben, author of No Second Chance - Andrew Klavan, author of True Crimes - Robert B. Parker, author of Back Story - Nelson DeMille, author of Up Country - Lisa Scottoline, author of Dead Ringer - Daniel Silva, author of The Confessor - Ronnie H. Terpening, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson - Patrick Anderson - Sharon Sala, New York Times bestselling author of Out of the Dark - Lori Foster, New York Times bestselling author of Say No to Joe? - Janet Maslin - Harlan Coben, author of No Second Chance - Andrew Klavan, author of True Crimes - Robert B. Parker, author of Back Story - Nelson DeMille, author of Up Country - Lisa Scottoline, author of Dead Ringer - Daniel Silva, author of The Confessor - Ronnie H. Terpening, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson - Patrick Anderson - Bill Bryson - Jon Winokur - J. B. Priestley - Dallas Observer - Jennifer Weiner, author of In Her Shoes and Little Earthquakes - Jay Leno - Laura Zigman, author of Animal Husbandry, Dating Big Bird, and Her - Liz Smith - Kirkus Reviews - L.E. Modesitt, Jr. - Kevin J. Anderson - Katherine Kurtz - David Farland - Orson Scott Card - Simon R. Green - Kevin J. Anderson - L. E. Modesitt, Jr. - David Farland - Gilbert Taylor - Karen Karbo - Martin Arnold - Walter Jon Williams - S. M. 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Synopsis
If theatre were a religion, explains David Mamet in his opening chapter, “many of the observations and suggestions in this book might be heretical.” As always, Mamet delivers on his promise: in Theatre, the acclaimed author of Glengarry Glen Ross and Speed the Plow calls for nothing less than the death of the director and the end of acting theory. For Mamet, either actors are good or they are non-actors, and good actors generally work best without the interference of a director, however well-intentioned. Issue plays, political correctness, method actors, impossible directions, Stanislavksy, and elitists all fall under Mamets critical gaze. To students, teachers, and directors who crave a blast of fresh air in a world that can be insular and fearful of change, Theatre throws down a gauntlet that challenges everyone to do better, including Mamet himself.
Synopsis
The acclaimed author of "Glengarry Glen Ross" calls for nothing less than the death of the director and the end of acting theory. Mamet argues that either actors are good or they are non-actors, and good actors generally work best without a director.
About the Author
DAVID MAMET is a director as well as the author of numerous acclaimed plays, books, and screenplays. His play Glengarry Glen Ross won a Pulitzer Prize, and his screenplays for The Verdict and Wag the Dog were nominated for Academy Awards. He lives in Santa Monica, California.