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That's Not Funny: How the Right Makes Comedy Work for Them
by Matt SienkiewiczA rousing call for liberals and progressives to pay attention to the emergence of right-wing comedy and the political power of humor. "Why do conservatives hate comedy? Why is there no right-wing Jon Stewart?" These sorts of questions launch a million tweets, a thousand op-eds, and more than a few scholarly analyses. That's Not Funny argues that it is both an intellectual and politically strategic mistake to assume that comedy has a liberal bias. Matt Sienkiewicz and Nick Marx take readers––particularly self-described liberals––on a tour of contemporary conservative comedy and the "right-wing comedy complex." In That's Not Funny, "complex" takes on an important double meaning. On the one hand, liberals have developed a social-psychological complex—it feels difficult, even dangerous, to acknowledge that their political opposition can produce comedy. At the same time, the right has been slowly building up a comedy-industrial complex, utilizing the humorous, irony-laden media strategies of liberals such as Jon Stewart, Samantha Bee, and John Oliver to garner audiences and supporters. Right-wing comedy has been hiding in plain sight, finding its way into mainstream conservative media through figures ranging from Fox News's Greg Gutfeld to libertarian podcasters like Joe Rogan. That's Not Funny taps interviews with conservative comedians and observations of them in action to guide readers through media history, text, and technique. You will find many of these comedians utterly appalling, some surprisingly funny, and others just plain weird. They are all, however, culturally and politically relevant—the American right is attempting to seize spaces of comedy and irony previously held firmly by the left. You might not like this brand of humor, but you can't ignore it.
That's Not Your Mommy Anymore: A Zombie Tale
by Matt MogkA twisted children&’s book parody that teaches kids what to do if mommy suddenly joins the legion of the undead. In the ongoing effort to warn an unprepared world of the rising danger from zombie attacks, one vulnerable group has been left out—small children. That's Not Your Mommy Anymore offers social workers, counselors, and educators a helpful new tool to communicate with hard-to-reach at-risk youth. This inviting and entertaining story helps early readers understand for themselves that a mom who has fresh brain casserole in the oven instead of her usual meatloaf is probably not their mommy anymore . . . This utterly twisted and incredibly funny take on the classic children&’s book genre tells an entertaining story in rhyming text even as it teaches other telltale signs that mom has been bitten by a zombie! Rabid zombie fans will be highly entertained by this hilarious parody that adult readers are sure to love as much as the real children books they enjoyed as kids.Praise for That&’s Not Your Mommy Anymore &“Younger kids might be a little frightened by the idea of a formerly loving mother who now wants to dine on human flesh, but older kids and grown ups will get a kick out of this tale.&” —GeekDad, Wired.com
That's the Way It Is: A History of Television News in America
by Charles L. Ponce de LeonWhen critics decry the current state of our public discourse, one reliably easy target is television news. It s too dumbed-down, they say; it s no longer news but entertainment, celebrity-obsessed and vapid. The critics may be right. But, as Charles L. Ponce de Leon explains in "That s the Way It Is," TV news has "always" walked a fine line between hard news and fluff. The familiar story of decline fails to acknowledge real changes in the media and Americans news-consuming habits, while also harking back to a golden age that, on closer examination, is revealed to be not so golden after all. Ponce de Leon traces the entire history of televised news, from the household names of the late 1940s and early 50s, like Eric Sevareid, Edward R. Murrow, and Walter Cronkite, through the rise of cable, the political power of Fox News, and the satirical punch of Colbert and Stewart. He shows us an industry forever in transition, where newsmagazines and celebrity profiles vie with political news and serious investigations. The need for ratings success and the lighter, human interest stories that can help bring it Ponce de Leon makes clear, has always sat uneasily alongside a real desire to report hard news. Highlighting the contradictions and paradoxes at the heart of TV news, and telling a story rich in familiar figures and fascinating anecdotes, "That s the Way It Is" will be the definitive account of how television has showed us our history as it happens. "
The Pinata
by Rita Rosa Ruesga Soledad SebastianScholastic and Latin Grammy nominee Rita Rosa Ruega have rejoined to bring a new book of songs from the Hispanic tradition for all ages. Scholastic and Latin Grammy nominee Rita Rosa Ruega have rejoined to bring a new book of songs from the Hispanic tradition for all ages. Among the fourteen new songs are "Antón Pirulero," "Las mañanitas," and "A la rueda rueda". Full of beautiful illustrations and a brief description of the origin of each song, La piñata / The Piñata also include a link from where the songs--sung by the author--can be downloaded, as well as their music notation and guitar chords. Scholastic y Rita Rosa Ruesga, nominada al Grammy Latino, reanudan su colaboración con un nuevo libro de canciones hispanoamericanas para grandes y chicos que presenta catorce nuevas canciones de la tradición popular, entre ellas "Antón Pirulero", "La piñata" y "A la rueda rueda". Además de las hermosas ilustraciones y un enlace donde podrán bajar las canciones interpretadas por la autora, el libro también incluye partituras, acordes para guitarra y una breve explicación de la procedencia de cada canción.
Thea Stilton and the Hollywood Hoax: A Geronimo Stilton Adventure (Thea Stilton #23)
by Thea StiltonJoin Thea Stilton and the Thea Sisters on an adventure packed with mystery and friendship!The Thea Sisters are visiting a friend in sunny California -- and she invites them to the set of a movie in Hollywood! The mice love being around famouse and fabumouse directors and actors as they're working. But then an important reel of film is stolen from the studio! Can the Thea Sisters catch the thief and save the movie?
Thea Stilton and the Missing Myth: A Geronimo Stilton Adventure (Thea Stilton Graphic Novels #20)
by Thea StiltonJoin Thea Stilton and the Thea Sisters on an adventure packed with mystery and friendship! <p><p> While on vacation in Greece, the Thea Sisters make friends with a company of actors who are rehearsing for a play that's about to open. When an actress sprains her ankle, Colette ends up standing in for her! But suddenly, right before the performance, the lead actor goes missing. Can the mouselets find him in time for the show to go on? <p><i>Advisory: Bookshare has learned that this book offers only partial accessibility. We have kept it in the collection because it is useful for some of our members. To explore further access options with us, please contact us through the Book Quality link on the right sidebar. Benetech is actively working on projects to improve accessibility issues such as these.</i>
Theater: A Crash Course
by Rob GrahamHere's a ticket to instant sophistication for anyone who delves into this loving celebration of theater art, past and present, scripted in a lighthearted but highly instructive voice. Whisked on a world tour, readers have a box seat at events ranging from ancient ritual plays and classic Greek tragedy/comedy through medieval, Elizabethan, Jacobean, Restoration, Mystic, Realist, and Expressionist works. Traditions as diverse as Islamic, Russian, American, French, Irish, African, Scandinavian, Japanese, Chinese, and many others are outlined, taking in every continent and numerous cultures through the ages. Rob Graham is both a senior lecturer on theater and head of film and television studies at Brunel University in England.
Theater and Cultural Politics for a New World: An Anthology
by Chinua ThelwellTheater and Cultural Politics for a New World presents a radical re-examination of the ways in which demographic shifts will impact theater and performance culture in the twenty-first century. Editor Chinua Thelwell brings together the revealing insights of artists, scholars, and organizers to produce a unique intersectional conversation about the transformative potential of theater. Opening with a case study of the New WORLD Theater and moving on to a fascinating range of essays, the book looks at five main themes: Changing demographics Future aesthetics Making institutional space Critical multiculturalism Polyculturalism
Theater and World: The Problematics of Shakespeare's History (Routledge Revivals)
by Jonathan HartFirst published in 1992, Theater and World is a detailed exploration of Shakespeare’s representation of history and how it affects the relation between theatre and world. The book focuses primarily on the Second Tetralogy (Richard II, Henry IV Part I, Henry IV Part II, and Henry V) and includes a wealth of analysis and interpretation of the plays. In doing so, it explores a wide range of topics, including the relation between literary and theatrical representations and the world; the nature of illusion and reality; genre; the connection between history and fiction (especially plays); historiography and literary criticism or theory; poetry and philosophy; and irony, both rhetorical and philosophical. Theater and World continues to have lasting relevance for anyone with an interest in Shakespeare’s words and his representation of history in particular.
Theater auf der Suche nach dem Anderen und dem Unbekannten: Metaphern und (Be-)Deutungen theatraler Forschung
by Maria MilbertForschendes Theater, theatrale Feldforschung, performative Forschung – solche Begriffe prägen inzwischen das Theater einschließlich der Theaterpädagogik. Sie stehen dafür, im Rahmen von Gruppenprozessen mit den Mitteln des Theaters zu forschen. Was aber bedeutet hier ‚Forschung‘? In Praxis und Analysen finden sich unterschiedliche, meist in Metaphern ausgedrückte Verständnisse. Die Studie analysiert daher sprachliche Bilder theatralen Forschens mit systematischer Metaphernanalyse, und zwar anhand von Interviews mit Forschenden aus der Theaterkunst, -pädagogik und dem Darstellenden Spiel sowie anhand künstlerischer Theorien. Dabei wird deutlich, dass theatrale Forschung stets eine Auseinandersetzung mit dem Verhältnis von Wissenschaft und Kunst impliziert. Zudem steht sie in einem Spannungsfeld zwischen dem Anderen und dem Unbekannten: Forschende suchen nach neuen Strategien und Erkenntnissen, gehen aber gleichzeitig davon aus, dass ihre Forschung nie abgeschlossen werden kann. Sie zielt auch auf das Nichtwissen, auf individuelle Erfahrung und unrealisierbare Wünsche – auf das Andere.
The Theater Cat
by Marilyn HelmerFor generations, the LeChats had kept the mouse problem in the Old Lighthouse Theater under control. But Purrcey LeChat doesn't want to hunt mice—he wants to see his name up in lights!
Theater Festivals: Best Worldwide Venues for New Works
by Lisa MulcahyHere is the bible of theater festivals for any stage professional looking to showcase original work, full of expert tips on selecting festivals that are best suited to an individual's work. This directory of more than 50 festivals in the United States, Canada, and abroad covers every step of festival participation, including contact information, application requirements, auditions and tryout performances, face-to-face meetings and interviews, salary specifics, and performance space details. Serving as a full business primer, it also answers essential questions on negotiating and networking with producers, meeting casting obligations, and what responsibilities one has to a festival when his or her show goes on to become a hit.
Theater for Beginners
by Richard MaxwellRichard Maxwell, the downtown writer and director with a deadpan aesthetic and an ever-innovative body of work, has written a quasi-study guide to the art of making theater according to his "affecting affectless technique" (New York Times...) This illuminating volume will provide students and artists with a deeper understanding of Maxwell's work, aesthetic philosophy, and process for creating theater.
Theater Geek: The Real Life Drama of a Summer at Stagedoor Manor, the Famous Performing Arts Camp
by Mickey RapkinWhat do Natalie Portman, Robert Downey, Jr., Zach Braff, and Mandy Moore have in common? Before they were stars, they were campers at Stagedoor Manor, the premier summer theater camp for children and teenagers. Founded in 1975, Stagedoor continues to attract scores of young performers eager to find kindred spirits, to sing out loud, to become working actors--or maybe even stars. Every summer for the past thirty-five years, a new crop of campers has come to the Catskills for an intense, often wrenching introduction to professional theater. (The camp produces thirteen full-scale productions during each of its three sessions.) These kids come from varying backgrounds--the offspring of Hollywood players from Nora Ephron to Bruce Willis work alongside kids on scholarship. Some campers have agents, others are seeking representation. When Mickey Rapkin, a senior editor at GQ and self-proclaimed theater fanatic, learned about this place, he fled Manhattan for an escape to upstate New York. At Stagedoor, he tracked a trio of especially talented and determined teen actors through their final session at camp. Enter Rachael Singer, Brian Muller, and Harry Katzman, three high school seniors closing out their sometimes sheltered Stagedoor experiences and graduating into the real world of industry competition and rejection. These veteran campers--still battling childhood insecurities, but simultaneously searching for that professional gig that will catapult them to fame--pour their souls into what might be their last amateur shows. Their riveting stories are told in Theater Geek, an eye-opening, laugh-out-loud chronicle full of drama and heart, but also about the business of training kids to be professional thespians and, in some cases, child stars. (The camp has long acted as a farm system for Broadway and Hollywood, attracting visits from studio executives and casting directors.) Via original interviews with former and current campers and staff--including Mandy Moore, Zach Braff, and Jon Cryer--Rapkin also recounts Stagedoor Manor's colorful, star-studded history: What was Natalie Portman's breakout role as a camper? What big-time Hollywood director, then barely a teenager, dated a much older Stagedoor staff member? Why did Courtney Love (at Stagedoor visiting her daughter) get into an argument with a hot dog vendor who had set up shop at the camp? Theater Geek leads readers through the triumphs and tragedies of the three senior campers' final summer in an absorbing, thought-provoking narrative that reveals the dynamic and inspiring human beings who populate this world. It also explores what the proliferation of theater camps says about our celebrity-obsessed youth and our most basic but vital need to fit in. Through the rivalry, heartbreak, and joy of one summer at Stagedoor Manor, Rapkin offers theater geeks of all ages a dishy, illuminating romp through the lives of serious child actors. Rich, insightful, and thoroughly entertaining, Theater Geek pulls back the curtain on an elite and intriguing world to reveal what's really at its core: children who simply love to perform.
Theater Kid: A Broadway Memoir
by Jeffrey SellerA coming-of-age tale from one of the most successful American producers of our time, Jeffrey Seller, who is the only producer to have mounted two Pulitzer Prize–winning musicals—Hamilton and Rent. Before he was producing the musical hits of our generation, Jeffrey was just a kid coming to terms with his adoption, trying to understand his sexuality, and determined to escape his dysfunctional household in a poor neighborhood just outside Detroit. We see him find his voice through musical theater and move to New York, where he is determined to shed his past and make a name for himself on Broadway. But moving to the big city is never easy—especially not at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis—and Jeffrey learns to survive and thrive in the colorful and cutthroat world of commercial theatre. From his early days as an office assistant, to meeting Jonathan Larson and experiencing the triumph and tragedy of Rent, to working with Lin-Manuel Miranda on In the Heights and Hamilton, Jeffrey completely pulls back the curtain on the joyous and gut-wrenching process of making new musicals, finding new audiences, and winning a Tony Award—all the while finding himself. Told with Jeffrey&’s candid and captivating voice, Theater Kid is a gripping memoir about fighting through a hardscrabble childhood to make art on one&’s own terms, chasing a dream against many odds, and finding acceptance and community.
Theater of Cruelty
by Ian BurumaIan Buruma is fascinated, he writes, "by what makes the human species behave atrociously." In Theater of Cruelty the acclaimed author of The Wages of Guilt and Year Zero: A History of 1945 once again turns to World War II to explore that question--to the Nazi occupation of Paris, the Allied bombing of German cities, the international controversies over Anne Frank's diaries, Japan's militarist intellectuals and its kamikaze pilots. One way that people respond to power and cruelty, Buruma argues, is through art, and the art that most interests him reveals the dark impulses beneath the veneer of civilized behavior. This is what draws him to German and Japanese artists such as Max Beckmann, George Grosz, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Mishima Yukio, and Yokoo Tadanori, as well as to filmmakers such as Werner Herzog, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Kurosawa Kiyoshi, and Hans-Jürgen Syberberg. All were affected by fascism and its terrible consequences; all "looked into the abyss and made art of what they saw."Whether he is writing in this wide-ranging collection about war, artists, or film--or about David Bowie's music, R. Crumb's drawings, the Palestinians of the West Bank, or Asian theme parks--Ian Buruma brings sympathetic historical insight and shrewd aesthetic judgment to understanding the diverse ways that people deal with violence and cruelty in life and in art.Theater of Cruelty includes eight pages of color and black & white images.
The Theater of Electricity: Technology and Spectacle in the Late 19th Century
by Ulf OttoSince the 1880s, electrical energies started circulating in European theaters, generated from fossil fuels in urban power plants. A mysterious force, which was still traded as romantic life force by some and for others had already come to stand in for progress, entered performance venues. Engineering knowledge, control techniques and supply chains changed fundamentally how theater was made and thought of. The mechanical image machine from Renaissance and Baroque times was transformed into a thermodynamic engine. Modern theater turned out to be electrified theater. – Retracing what happened backstage before the Avantgarde took to the front stage, this book proposes to write the genealogy of theaters modernity as a cultural history of theater technology.
Theater of the Mind: Imagination, Aesthetics, and American Radio Drama
by Neil VermaFor generations, fans and critics have characterized classic American radio drama as a "theater of the mind. " This book unpacks that characterization by recasting the radio play as an aesthetic object within its unique historical context. In Theater of the Mind, Neil Verma applies an array of critical methods to more than six thousand recordings to produce a vivid new account of radio drama from the Depression to the Cold War. In this sweeping exploration of dramatic conventions, Verma investigates legendary dramas by the likes of Norman Corwin, Lucille Fletcher, and Wyllis Cooper on key programs ranging from The Columbia Workshop, The Mercury Theater on the Air, and Cavalcade of America to Lights Out!, Suspense, and Dragnet to reveal how these programs promoted and evolved a series of models of the imagination. With close readings of individual sound effects and charts of broad trends among formats, Verma not only gives us a new account of the most flourishing form of genre fiction in the mid-twentieth century but also presents a powerful case for the central place of the aesthetics of sound in the history of modern experience.
Theater of the Mind: Imagination, Aesthetics, and American Radio Drama
by Neil VermaFor generations, fans and critics have characterized classic American radio drama as a “theater of the mind.” This book unpacks that characterization by recasting the radio play as an aesthetic object within its unique historical context. In Theater of the Mind, Neil Verma applies an array of critical methods to more than six thousand recordings to produce a vivid new account of radio drama from the Depression to the Cold War.In this sweeping exploration of dramatic conventions, Verma investigates legendary dramas by the likes of Norman Corwin, Lucille Fletcher, and Wyllis Cooper on key programs ranging from The Columbia Workshop, The Mercury Theater on the Air, and Cavalcade of America to Lights Out!, Suspense, and Dragnet to reveal how these programs promoted and evolved a series of models of the imagination.With close readings of individual sound effects and charts of broad trends among formats, Verma not only gives us a new account of the most flourishing form of genre fiction in the mid-twentieth century but also presents a powerful case for the central place of the aesthetics of sound in the history of modern experience.
Theater Shoes (The Shoe Books #3)
by Noel StreatfeildThree orphans are forced to enter a theater school by their grandmother, a famous actress. Unable to pay the tuition, they are given scholarships from the now-grown orphans from Ballet Shoes. Will they be able to live up to their patrons’ legacies? The children are ready to run away—until they discover their hidden talents. Originally published in 1945.
Theatre: A Way of Seeing
by Milly S. BarrangerConsistently praised as "streamlined" and "clear and student friendly," THEATRE: A WAY OF SEEING offers the beginning theatre student an exciting, full-color introduction to all aspects of theatre. It presents the experience of theatre, who sees it, what is seen, and where and how it is seen largely from the viewpoint of audiences exposed to a complex, living art that involves people, spaces, plays, designs, staging, forms, language, and productions. The book includes the appropriate coverage of the history, diversity, and most critical moments in theatre in a way that encourages students to experience theatre as "a performing art and humanistic event."
Theatre
by David MametIf 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 Mamet's 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.
Theatre Across Oceans: Mediators of Transatlantic Exchange, 1890–1925 (Transnational Theatre Histories)
by Nic LeonhardtTheatre Across Oceans: Mediators Of Transatlantic Exchange allows the reader to enter and understand the infrastructural 'backstage area' of global cultural mobility during the years between 1890 and 1925. Located within the research fields of global history and theory, the geographical focus of the book is a transatlantic one, based on the active exchange in this phase between North and South America and Europe. Emanating from a rich body of archival material, the study argues that this exchange was essentially facilitated and controlled by professional theatrical mediators (agents, brokers), who have not been sufficiently researched within theatre or historical studies. The low visibility of mediators in the scientific research is in diametrical contrast to the enormous power that they possessed in the period dealt with in this book.
Theatre After Empire
by Megan E. Geigner Harvey YoungEmphasizing the resilience of theatre arts in the midst of significant political change, Theatre After Empire spotlights the emergence of new performance styles in the wake of collapsed political systems. Centering on theatrical works from the late nineteenth century to the present, twelve original essays written by prominent theatre scholars showcase the development of new work after social revolutions, independence campaigns, the overthrow of monarchies, and world wars. Global in scope, this book features performances occurring across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The essays attend to a range of live events—theatre, dance, and performance art—that stage subaltern experiences and reveal societies in the midst of cultural, political, and geographic transition. This collection is an engaging resource for students and scholars of theatre and performance; world history; and those interested in postcolonialism, multiculturalism, and transnationalism.
Theatre After Empire
by Harvey YoungEmphasizing the resilience of theatre arts in the midst of significant political change, Theatre After Empire spotlights the emergence of new performance styles in the wake of collapsed political systems.Centering on theatrical works from the late nineteenth century to the present, twelve original essays written by prominent theatre scholars showcase the development of new work after social revolutions, independence campaigns, the overthrow of monarchies, and world wars. Global in scope, this book features performances occurring across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The essays attend to a range of live events—theatre, dance, and performance art—that stage subaltern experiences and reveal societies in the midst of cultural, political, and geographic transition.This collection is an engaging resource for students and scholars of theatre and performance; world history; and those interested in postcolonialism, multiculturalism, and transnationalism.The Introduction ("Framing Latine Theatre and Performance") of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons [Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND)] 4.0 license.