Reimagining Greek Tragedy on the American Stage by Helene P. ... - 9780520283879

Reimagining Greek Tragedy on the American StageAuthor(s): Helene P. Foley\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: University of California Press, United States\nImprint: University of California Press\nISBN-13: 9780520283879, 978-0520283879\nSynopsis\nThis book explores the emergence of Greek tragedy on the American stage from the nineteenth century to the present. Despite the gap separating the world of classical Greece from our own, Greek tragedy has provided a fertile source for some of the most innovative American theater. Helene P. Foley shows how plays like Oedipus Rex and Medea have resonated deeply with contemporary concerns and controversies - over war, slavery, race, the status of women, religion, identity, and immigration. Although Greek tragedy was often initially embraced for its melodramatic possibilities, by the twentieth century it became a vehicle not only for major developments in the history of American theater and dance, but also for exploring critical tensions in American.