Acts of Courage: Vaclav Havel's Life in the Theater - Hardcover

Carol Rocamora

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1575253445 ISBN 13: 9781575253442

Publisher: Smith & Kraus Global, 2005

Synopsis

Vaclav Havel – dissident, human rights activist, essayist, philosopher, politician, founder, and president of the Czech Republic – is known throughout the world as a hero of the human rights movement and martyr for the “right to write” (he was imprisoned many times under communism in his country). But few of us in the West know that he is also his country’s most famous dramatist. In fact, his presidency has eclipsed his playwriting. This book tells the dramatic story of his life in the theater during three dark decades under communism, and the extreme risks that he and many others took to put on his plays. The book also discusses his ten full-length plays and eight one-acts – plays that not only tell the story of his country but also helped to change it. For those of us who work in the theater, his story is a powerful and moving one about what it means to be a playwright, a story wherein writing for the theater is an act of courage.

About this title

About the Author

Carol Rocamora is the founder of the Philadelphia Festival theatre for New Plays and is currently on the faculty of the Tisch School of the Arts in New York University. She is the translator of Chekhov Volume I: Four Plays, Chekhov: The Early Plays, and Chekhov s Vaudevilles, and she has written a play called, "I take your hand in mine", which was suggested by the letters of Anton Chekhov and Olga Knipper, all published by Smith and Kraus.

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Václav Havel dissident, activist, essayist, philosopher, politician, founder and president of the Czech Republic is known throughout the world as a hero of the human rights movement and a martyr for the "right to write" (he was imprisoned many times under Communism in his country). But few in the West know that he is also his country s most famous playwright. This book tells the dramatic story of his life in the theater during three dark decades under Communism and the extreme risks that he and many others took to perform his works. Havel s ten full-length plays and seven one-acts are also discussed plays that not only tell the story of his country but also helped to change it, plays that have a significant place in twentieth-century world drama. For those who love the theater, his story is a powerful and moving one about what it means to be a playwright, a story wherein writing for the theater is an act of courage.

Edition details

• Publisher: Smith & Kraus Global
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1575253445
• ISBN 13: 9781575253442
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 512