Theatre, Masculinity, and Class in the First World War: Vivian Gilbert Performs the Last Crusade

Having fought in Palestine in WWI, the British actor Vivian Gilbert went on to narrate his wartime experiences — first in a series of lectures, then in a best-selling book. Rooted in his thespian career, Gilbert’s self-fashioning as an officer/crusader builds on an array of performances — on and off the stage — which reflect gender and class anxieties, typical of WWI British culture.