Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Charting the idea and representation of 'woman' in British drama and theatre from the 1890s to the First World War, Leslie Hill reflects on early British feminist movements through the lens of characters created and issues debated on stage by key British dramatists including George Bernard Shaw, Elizabeth Robins, Cicely Hamilton and Oscar Wilde.
Synopsis
Marking the 100-year anniversary of women's suffrage, Leslie Hill provides a fascinating survey of the history of first wave feminism in British theatre, from the London premiere of Ibsen's A Doll's House in 1889 through the militant suffrage movement. Hill's approachable overview explores some of the pivotal ways in which theatre makers both engaged with and influenced feminist discourse on topics such as sexual agency, reproductive rights, marriage equality, financial independence and suffrage.
Clear and concise, this is an ideal resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students of theatre and performance studies taking courses on Women in Theatre and Performance, Staging Feminism, Early Feminist Theatre, Theatre and Suffrage, Gender and Theatre, Political Theatre and Performance Historiography. This text will also appeal to scholars, lecturers, and Literature students.