Out on Stage: Lesbian and Gay Theater in the Twentieth Century

By Alan Sinfield

Book Overview

Sinfeld tracks stage representations of lesbians and gays from Oscar Wilde to the present day, arguing that despite and because of censorship and discretion, 20th century theatre has been viewed as gay space. He concludes with provocative questions about the direction of new theatre writing, challenging notions of our sexual potential.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300081022
• ISBN13: 9780300081022
• Release Date: December 1999
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 1.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

AN AB FAB WALK ON THE WILDE SIDE

What could be a drag is actually an in-depth, original look at stage representations of lesbians and gay men from Oscar Wilde to the present day. And what a wild ride it is! Author Alan Sinfield samples scores of British and American plays and playwrights (including Coward, Maugham, Hellman, Williams and O'Neill) and examines them in the contexts in which they were produced and viewed, whether it be the West End of London or the Lower East Side of New York. Most fascinating is how homosexuality views changed throughout he decades --- how the '60s produced an exuberant cultivation of "kinky" humor and gay political activism (think "Boys in the Band"); how AIDS impacted the theater (think "Love! Valor! Compassion!") Unlike the recently published "Something For The Boys," Sinfield knows how to write ... and rein in any subjective gushing. Ab Fab!