SAM SHEPARD.

From the 1964 "off-off" Broadway premiere of his first play, Cowboys, to the post-Desert Storm opening of his recent States of Shock, Sam Shepard has won public praise, survived critical attack, and stirred repeated controversy as one of America's most original theatrical talents. With hallucinatory plays populated by cowboys, rock stars, space aliens, and other archetypal figures of American pop culture, Shepard has reshaped the course of modern American drama. His dramatic portraits of the dysfunctional American family, composed in theatrical states of exploded consciousness, expose the lurking chaos and inherent violence of post-modern American society. His relentless artistic output has moved him from the fringe of American culture to ever-widening popular recognition, culminating in his 1979 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the tribute of seeing his plays surpass even those of Tennessee Williams as the most frequently produced in this country.
David DeRose's study of Shepard is the most comprehensive to date, with commentary on all the plays, including Shepard's early "lost" plays, his experimentations in music theater, and his most recent work, States of Shock. DeRose draws on his access to many of Shepard's unpublished works and his personal exposure to Shepard's plays in production at Yale University, in New York City, and at the Magic Theater in San Francisco. His dual perspective as scholar and director provides unusual and penetrating insights into Shepard's theatrical intentions and thematic concerns. Written in smooth and highly accessible prose, Sam Shepard will serve as the definitive work on the playwright for years to come.

Typical of volumes in this series, DeRose's book provides an overview of Shepard's life and work. He analyzes Shepard's plays in light of his theatrical as well as thematic intentions, focusing on what he sees as the common ground uniting both of these elements: Shepard's "preoccupation with heightened or 'critical' states of consciousness manifesting themselves in the perception of the self and the world as unfixed." Supported by evidence gleaned from stage directions, visual imagery, and physical staging, DeRose's readings of Shepard's plays are balanced and perceptive. A good general introduction to Shepard and his work.
- William Gargan, Brooklyn Coll. Lib., CUNY
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.