Blooded Thought: Occasions of Theatre

This remarkable collection of writings on theatre ranges easily from Shakespeare to Chekhov to Brecht, Artaud, Beckett and upto the important experimenters of today, Robert Wilson, Richard Foreman, The Wooster Group and others. There are also discussions of European work by Grotowski, Peter Brook and Ariane Mnouchkine. Whatever the topic, Blau's ideas are shaped by new currents in thinking suggested by post-structuralism, the sciences, counter-culture styles and post-modernist aesthetics. 'Bloodied Thought' addresses crucial issues of contemporary theatre...what is the nature of illusion and representation? how does a text suggest meaning? what is the value of deconstruction? ...and its audience in an ever-changing social frame.