About the Book:
This is the first edition of Much Ado About Nothing to
focus wholly on the play in performance. John F. Cox
investigates major issues and shifting trends in the production of
this popular drama, analyzing successive reinterpretations of the
play in relation to the culture of each period since Shakespeare's
time, with particular attention to gender issues. A commentary
alongside the New Cambridge edition of the text recreates in lively
detail interpretations of each passage in a variety of British,
American, Canadian stage, film and TV productions.
This edition of Much
Ado About Nothing is an essential resource for students, teachers
and performers, this is also an illuminating book for theatergoers:
• Based on the authoritative New Cambridge Shakespeare text of
the play
• Covers British, American and Canadian productions
• Examines film and TV versions of the play
• Foregrounds gender issues
• Analyses productions in the context of the culture and
ideology of the relevant period
• Covers productions from Shakespeare's time to the present
day
What people say:
"...a
much-needed and welcome addition to Shakespeare resources."
— Choice
""...an
indispensable resource for theatre historians, dramaturgs, directors,
or performers." — Studies
in English Literature 1500-1900
"This book could also be very
useful to a student of gender, history, and language, especially its
detailed information on lines added and cut, on treatments of the
play's cuckoldry humor, and on the critics' anxious iteration of such
key binaries as sharp/soft, wit/feeling, salt/sweet, and
mannishness/womanliness. I do recommend this book for anyone trying
to piece together information about the performance history of the
play, especially those interested in Victorian and Edwardian
productions. Those who are attempting to chart shifts in myths of
gender as they shift over the longue durée of culture, or who are
researching particular productions or players, will
find this edition rich, intriguing, sometimes frustrating, but always
informative." — Shakespeare Quarterly
About the Author:
John F. Cox is Vice-President
for Academic Affairs of Avondale College, New South Wales, Australia,
where he is Senior Lecturer in Renaissance Literature.