Intro; Contents; Acknowledgments; Introduction; Part I; Chapter One. The Birth of Russian Popular Theatre; Chapter Two. Essential Ostrovsky; Chapter Three. Plays for Schooling: Resistance and Response; Chapter Four. Even in the Workhouse a Theatre!; Part II; Chapter Five. Expansion in Contentious Times; Chapter Six. New Initiatives, 1907-1914; Chapter Seven. The Popular Theatre Unbound; Conclusion; Notes; Works Cited
Summary
After the emancipation of the serfs in 1861, educated Russians began to present plays as part of a crusade to "civilize" the peasants. Relying on archival and published material virtually unknown outside Russia, this study looks at how playwrights criticized Russian social and political realities, how various groups perceived their plays, and how the plays motivated viewers to change themselves or change their circumstances. The picture that emerges is of a potent civic art influential in a way that eluded and challenged authoritarian control
Notes
Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (p. 343-364) and index
