History and drama

History and Drama is an important contribution to the fields in which Bernhard Reitz is and will remain particularly active. Several essays written in his honour on the occasion of his sixtieth birthday consider the representation(s) of history in drama, others theorize on the past as the present or on history as a retro-scenario while still others look at the fictionalization of Shakespeare today. The range of perspectives on history and drama is astounding, with essays ranging from France on the English stage to Black American drama, from Sophocles’ dramatic discourse to contemporary political drama, from historical pantomime to modern Scottish plays, from Strindberg to Contemporary British or American Theatre. This volume is not only focussed on history and drama but also makes one important drama – W. E. B. Du Bois’ Pageant The Star of Ethiopia (The Washington Version) – readily available for the first time. What makes this publication even more special is the number of original contributions for Bernhard Reitz from highly acclaimed British authors and playwrights. Howard Barker’s “Twelve Propositions Already in Decay” and Michelene Wandor’s “History/Herstory” were especially written for History and Drama, while Julia Pascal’s “The London Patriots” is published here for the first time – in honour of Bernhard Reitz.