Performing Nostalgia

This inquiry into how Shakespeare is reproduced today examines how modern inter-cultural and cross-cultural productions reconfigure him for "alternative" performances. It attempts to speak across many divides - from literature to theatre, from theory to practice.

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In this trenchant work, Susan Bennett examines the authority of the past in modern cultural experience and the parameters for the reproduction of the plays. She addresses these issues from both the viewpoints of literary theory and theatre studies, shifting Shakespeare out of straightforward performance studies in order to address questions about his plays and to consider them in the context of current theoretical debates on historiography, post-colonialism and canonicity.