The idea of staging a nation dates from the Enlightenment, but the full force of the idea emerges only with the rise of mass politics. Comparing English, French, and American attempts to establish national theatres at moments of political crisis--from the challenge of socialism in late nineteenth-century Europe to the struggle to "salvage democracy" in Depression America--Kruger poses a fundamental question: in the formation of nationhood, is the citizen-audience spectator or participant?

The National Stage answers this question by tracing the relation between theatre institution...

The Drama of South Africa comprehensively chronicles the development of dramatic writing and performance from 1910, when the country came into official existence, to the advent of post-apartheid. Eminent theatre historian Loren Kruger discusses well-known figures, as well as lesser-known performers and directors who have enriched the theatre of South Africa. She also highlights the contribution of women and other minorities, concluding with a discussion of the post-apartheid character of South Africa at the end of the twentieth century.

This text chronicles the development of dramatic writing and performance in South Africa from 1910, when the country came into official existence as a partially post-colonial Union, to the advent of post-apartheid. It discusses well-known figures and famous phenomena, and lesser known actors, directors and impressarios that have enriched the theatre of South Africa. As well as discussing conventional dramatic texts, the book investigates the impact of sketches and manifestos, and the oral preservation of scripts that for various reasons, political and otherwise, could not be written down.

Challenging prevailing views of Brecht's theater and politics, Loren Kruger focuses much of her analysis on regions where Brecht has had special resonance, including East Germany and South Africa. She also analyzes political interpretations of Brecht in light of other key dramatists, including Heiner MUller and Athol Fugard, as well as Brechtian influence on writers and philosophers such as Adorno, Benjamin, and Barthes.

Challenging prevailing views of Brecht's theater and politics, Loren Kruger focuses much of her analysis on regions where Brecht has had special resonance, including East Germany and South Africa. She also analyzes political interpretations of Brecht in light of other key dramatists, including Heiner MUller and Athol Fugard, as well as Brechtian influence on writers and philosophers such as Adorno, Benjamin, and Barthes.

"All roads lead to Johannesburg," remarks the narrator of Alan Paton's novel Cry, The Beloved Country. Taking this quote as her impetus, Loren Kruger guides readers into the heart of South Africa's largest city. Exploring a wide range of fiction, film, architecture, performance, and urban practices from trading to parades, Imagining the Edgy City traverses Johannesburg's rich cultural terrain over the last century.

The "edgy city" in Kruger's exploration refers not only to persistent boundaries between the haves and have-nots but also to the cosmopolitan diversity and...