Paula Vogelrsquo;s plays; including the Pulitzerndash;prizewinning How I Learned to Drive; initiate a conversation with contemporary culture; staging vexed issues like domestic violence; pornography; and AIDS. She does not write "about" these concerns; but instead examines how they have become framed as ldquo;issuesshy;rdquo;ndash;as sensationalized topicsndash;focusing on the histories and discourses that have defined them and the bodies that bear their meanings. Mobilizing campy humor; keen insight; and nonlinear structure; her plays defamiliarize the identities and issues that have been fixed as "just the way things are." Vogel crafts collage-like playworlds that are comprised of fragments of history and culture; and that are simultaneously inclusive and alienating; familiar and strange; funny and disturbing. At the center of these playworlds are female characters negotiating with the images and discourses that circumscribe their lives and bodies.In this; the first book-length study of Vogel and her work; Joanna Mansbridge explores how Vogelrsquo;s plays speak back to the canon; responding to and rewriting works by William Shakespeare; Edward Albee; Sam Shepard; and David Mamet; rearranging their plots; revising their conflicts; and recasting their dramatis personae. The book examines the theories shaping the playwright and her plays; the production and reception of her work; and the aesthetic structure of each play; grounding the work in cultural materialist; feminist and queer theory; and theater and performance studies scholarship.
#3790770 in eBooks 2007-04-05 2007-04-05File Name: B00ZXC7H8S
Review
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Too many errors...By Dennis W HinesI am quite disappointed with this one. I have many from the "Images..." series and enjoy them immensely; but when you discover glaring errors in the book; it is difficult to accept the authors expertise on the whole. To be specific: I suppose that is would be forgivable to refer to the B-24 bomber as a "fighter plane" (page 37); except that just below that; the authors feature a photograph and caption referring to World War II and Detroit s "Arsenal of Democracy and further commenting on Ford building jeeps at his Highland Park assembly line. The photo is actually of the M151 "Mutt"; the Viet Nam era vehicle first produced in 1959 rolling off of an assembly line. On page 74 is captioned a photo of Detroit Dragway supposedly from the 1960s; except it shows a late 1970s Mustang competing with a late 1970s Camaro. On page 78; there is a photo which the authors date as 1957...in the center of which is a 1960 Ford Falcon.6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. not really about cruisinBy maconriverfarmMaybe if they had made chapter 5 a little longer.....Some nice historic Detroit and auto indrustry photos. Some cool car photos too (too many actually.) Not really enough about the area and the era of crusin Woodward and the culture of cruisin. Too much about auto racing (not on Woodward); the National Hot Rod Association 1983 and modern day Detroit and way too much unrelated stuff....If you are looking to jog your memories about driving up and down Woodward; going from one drive-in to another; hoping to meet somebody; warm summer nights.....this book is NOT for you.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy Stephen J Garskeexpecting more but good book
