Did you know that eighty-eight years before Rosa Parks�s historic protest; a courageous black woman in Charleston kept her seat on a segregated streetcar? What about Robert Smalls; who steered a Confederate warship into Union waters; freeing himself and some of his family; and later served in the South Carolinastate legislature? In this inspiring collection; historian Damon L. Fordham relates story after story of notable black South Carolinians; many of whose contributions to the state�s history have not been brought to light until now. From the letters of black soldiers during the Civil War to the impassioned pleas by students of �Munro�s School� for their right to an education; these are the voices of protest and dissent; the voices of hope and encouragement and the voices of progress.
#1113552 in eBooks 2009-03-17 2009-03-17File Name: B00XRFAA50
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Great resource for actorsBy Jennifer Van BergenI love this book. I grew up on the classics. Every summer; from age nine onward; I spent all my days in rehearsals in Shakespeare plays -- starting with walk-on bit-parts: messengers and pages with one-liners and moving up to lead roles as I absorbed Shakespeares words into my being without noticing it.What Rudnicki does for actors is make the classics accessible to modern actors. He categorizes by period and genre (Greek Drama [The Golden Age]; the Age of Shakespeare [and his friends]; and the Age of Style [Restoration and 18th Century English monologues]) and divides into male and female monologues; as well as drama; comedy; tragedy; heroic; parody; etc.; AND THEN; not only does he give short synopses of each play and play background; but short historical introductions to the periods. And finally; the selections themselves are superb. They plumb every human emotion -- but Rudnicki has made these so accessible; he has used excellent translations for the Greeks and put line breaks into each monologue in such a natural way that every one of them feels more real; contemporary; and accessible.The translations from the Greek are by Barton and Cavandar; who themselves contributed greatly by developing their own versions (not just translations; but interpretations) over a period of time; working with an ensemble group of dedicated actors. They are exquisite -- and feel like true words spoken not thousands of years ago; but now; today; about our lives here.Many acting students are afraid of the classics -- afraid of the Greeks or Shakespeare. Rudnickis book should remove any fears students may have -- and for new and seasoned actors; will provide a wealth of material to use for auditions.Along with Ginger Friedmans book "The Perfect Monologue;" I use Rudnickis work to help students learn how to identify what I call "universal drives." (See my book "Archetypes for Writers: Using the Power of Your Subconscious;" availabe here on .)1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Good selection of monologuesBy Barefoot ContessaI keep this book handy as a reference book for auditions. This is especially good if you audition for classical pieces; and need two classical monologues. I also own the WOMENS MONOLOGUES book by Rudnicki and have used that; too. Both are good sources for auditions.
