Synopses & Reviews
During the golden age of American theater on Broadway, the names of stars such as Katharine Hepburn, Marlon Brando, and Ethel Merman were writ large on theater marquees. Playwrights such as Eugene O'Neill, Thornton Wilder, Tennessee Williams, and Arthur Miller offered a new play every season.
Photographer Eileen Darby came onto the theater scene in 1939 and eschewed the stiff portraits and fixed tableaux that were in vogue. Her style of photographing not only onstage but also backstage and during rehearsals allowed an intimate look at the creative process of theater. Darby photographed more than six hundred shows during her career, and her portfolio has become the definitive photographic record of theatrical history. STARS ON STAGE is the culmination of Darbyís career in the theaterís golden age and includes dozens of previously unseen pictures of stars such as Lucille Ball, Montgomery Clift, Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis, and Gregory Peck. As well as the people who created the shows, including Rodgers and Hammerstein, George Abbott, irving Berlin, and Anita Loos. With an overview of the theatrical period by John Lahr and a biographical portrait of Darby and her work by Mary Henderson, STARS ON STAGE is one of the most dynamic books on this most fascinating period of American culture.
Synopsis
A collection of the best photography from Broadway's golden age by legendary theatrical photographer Eileen Darby.
About the Author
John Lahr is the senior theater critic for The New Yorker and the author of 17 books on culture and theater.