How to Write about Theatre: A Manual for Critics, Students and Bloggers by Mark Fisher (review)

How to Write about Theatre is a great source to teach theatre students about the history of criticism as a profession, and about what publishing theatre criticism shares with the process of making theatre. The strength of the book is how Mark Fisher repeatedly frames the act of publishing criticism as a performance. Just as the nascent critic evaluates the performance of an actor, any reader of the critic's work will scrutinize the delivery. Fisher prepares the reader to consider the social purpose and artistic dimensions of their writing so that they see theatre criticism as an art. This book focuses on the fundamentals of crafting an engaging argument and identifying one's potential audience in ways that will resonate with theatre students. Fisher's text will serve them well, because it trains their capacity as writers in fun and creative ways and illustrates how their training in performance can inform their writing.

Fisher drills readers to ask three questions when they see a production they will critique: What were the theatre-makers trying to do? How well did they do it? Was it worth it? Throughout the book's twenty chapters Fisher returns the subject he is covering back to at least one of these questions; addressing these questions, he argues, will shape how to structure an argument. Fisher dedicates the final chapters to writing about emotions and cultural or political issues. He frames these topics as important, because they require critics to consider the question of relevance—the relevance of the production and of their criticism. He does not let writers forget that the very questions they are asking about theatre productions should also be used reflexively on their own writing. Fisher literally invites them to practice such reflection in the various exercises, instilling this paradigm by framing each chapter with methods on how to write about specific topics in the production (like acting) or beyond it (like the writer's own bias or the audience's). Students who utilize this book to learn how critics might analyze theatre will be prepared to think more critically about the productions they work on, as well as their own writing.

Scattered throughout each chapter practical exercises appear, interrupting the text to invite budding critics to try different ways to write about theatre. These are short assignments that challenge the reader to draft short responses by applying the principles that the author has just covered and also by using the work of other critics or critiquing a performance they have seen. These guided exercises are creative, providing the writer with opportunities to experiment with tones and styles. Most importantly, Fisher asks reflective questions following each exercise, thus challenging the reader to ponder ethically, emotionally, and/ or structurally the writing they have produced.

Fisher's writing style is engaging and provides many examples of strong writing by others. These range across historical and geographic periods, from Aristotle to Charles Isherwood. Fisher illustrates his points with stories from colleagues he has known or researched. This book is a crash course in the variety of approaches that critics might take. For example, he contrasts how Ben Brantley distances himself from theatre artists to remain independent, while John Lahr spends time with artists in order to gain perspectives as an insider. Fisher provides a glimpse into the dynamic options available to fledgling critics and the choices they could make as they build their careers. At times, the anecdotes compound to the point of exhaustion, and some British cultural references might not resonate with readers from elsewhere. Overall, however, Fisher is a friendly guide into the world of professional theatre criticism. He succinctly describes the major debates that have shaped the field, and prepares readers to make their own choices and play the role of critic as they feel it should be performed.

There is one poor choice Fisher makes. He is clearly aware of the wide-ranging venues that theatre criticism appears...