Brief Notices

Brief Notices Enoch Brater, ed. Arthur Miller's America: Theater and Culture in a Time ofChange. Ann Arbor: University ofMichigan Press, 2005. Pp xii + 268. $55.00. Following a preface by the editor (vii-x), this volume contains the foUowing essays: Enoch Brater,"Early Days, Early Works: Arthur Miller at the University of Michigan" (1-16); Frank Gagliano, "The Timebends World: Prospect for Performance" (17-22); Mike SeU, "Arthur Miller and the Drama of American Liberalism" (23-35); Bruce J. Mann, "Teaching the Unseen Presence in MiUer's Plays" (36-45); Patricia D. Denison, "All My Sons: Competing Contexts and Comparative Scales" (46-59); Austin E. Quigley,"Setting the Scene: Death ofa Salesman and After the Fall" (60-77); Arnold Aronson, "The Symbolist Scenography ofArthur MiUer" (78-93);Andrew Sofer.'Trom Technology to Trope: The Archbishop's Ceiling and MiUer's Prismatic Drama" (94-108); Laurence Goldstein, "The Misfits and American Culture" (109-34); Jonathan Freedman, "Miller, Monroe and the Remaking of Jewish Masculinity" (135-152); Peter W. Ferran, "The American Clock: 'Epic Vaudeville'" (153-63); Toby Zinman, "'Vaudeville at the Edge of the Cliff" and "An Interview with Patrick Stewart" (164-79); Robert Scanlan,"The Late Plays of Arthur MUler" (180-90); Ruby Cohn, "Manipulating Miller" (191-201); Deborah R. Geis, "In Willy Loman's Garden: Contemporary Re-visions of Death of a Salesman" (202-18); Elinor Fuchs, "Theorizing Salesman" (219-35); Enoch Brater: "William Bolcom's A Viewfrom the Bridge and American Opera: A Discussion" and "A Conversation with Arthur MiUer" (236-55); and Mel Gussow, "Afterword: The Legacy ofArthur MUler" (256-59). The volume concludes with contributor information (260-62) and an index (263-68). Vera Gottlieb, ed. and trans. Anton Chekhov at the Moscow Art Theatre: Illustrations of the Original Productions. New York: Routledge, 2005. Pp xv + 85. $115.00. This volume contains both illustrations and photographs on Chekhov's original Moscow productions. The prefatory material includes a full list of illustrations (vii-x) and a preface and introduction by the editor (xi-xv). The 261 262Comparative Drama primary text begins with an introduction by Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko (3-4), and an essay: Nikolai Efros, "Chekhov and the Art Theatre" (5-18). The photographs and Ulustrations are then presented play by play: Seagull (19-26); Uncle Vanya (27-39); Three Sisters (40-53); Cherry Orchard (54-71); and ??a???' and the Miniatures (72-76). The volume concludes with endnotes (77-80) and biographical notes by the editor and Nick WorraU (81-85). John Smythe. Downstage Upfront: TheFirst40 Years ofNewZealand's Longest-RunningProfessional Theatre.Wellington, New Zealand: Victoria University Press, 2005. Pp. 512. NZ$49.95. FoUowing a list ofthe title theater's former artistic directors (6-7) and an introduction by the current director, Murray Lynch (8), mis volume is divided into eighteen sections:"Declaring an Interest" (9-16);"Conception, Gestation and Birth: 1963-64" (17-32); "Settling In and Renovating: 1965-66" (33-62); "The Overseas Expert: 1967" (63-82); "Good Returns and Winning Strategies: 1968" (83-100); "From City to Sea: 1969-70" (101-20); "Sunny Days: 1970-74" (121-56); "O! Mervyn!: 1975-76" (157-84);"Taylor Made: 1977-79" (185-212);"Into the Eighties: 1980-82" (213-40); "Banas Goes for Broke: 1983-84" (241-74); "Colin Comes Home: 1985-88" (275-306); "'McCoUonisation: 1989-92" (307-332); "WiUiam Walker's Dream-Turned-Nightmare Run: 1993-94" (333-60); "A New Guy on the Block: 1995-98" (361-90); "EUie-vation: 1998-99" (391-414); "The Lynch Pin: 2000-04" (415-45); and "TheValues Added" (446-59). The volume concludes with the theater's fuU 1964-2004 playlist (460-93) and an index (494-512). Nishan Parlakian, ed. Contemporary Armenian Drama: An Anthology ofAncestral Voices. New York: Columbia University Press, 2005. Pp. xiii + 408. $34.50. This volume begins with a preface (ix-xii), a note on Armenian translation (xiii), and an introduction by the editor (1-36). Each play in the primary text is prefaced by a brief biography of the playwright: Raffi Arzoomanian: Ellis Island 101 (37-46);WUliam Soroyan: Armenians (47-82); Nishan Parlakian: Grandma, Prayfor Me (83-122); Barbara Bejoian: Dance Mama, Dance (123-74); Leslie Ayvazian: Nine...