French Drama (Volume VII)

By Alfred Bates and John P. Lamberton

Step into the playhouse where France remade the art of drama. French Drama (Volume VII) draws the sound of the Paris stage into an essential reading copy. Paris takes the stage here. Edited by Alfred Bates, this French plays anthology offers a classic theater collection presented with guidance rather than gloss. It sets each work within French theater history, tracking the pressures of censorship, fashion, and audience expectation that shaped form and language. The result is clear-eyed, lively, and built for rereading. As a public domain drama volume in a larger series, Volume VII is also a map. Bates's playwright biographies notes and dramatic criticism essays illuminate the lineage from Moliere, Racine, Corneille to later revolutions in 19th century French theatre, including the era that welcomed Victor Hugo plays and redefined Paris stage traditions. Notes attend to dramatic technique, stage convention, and the tug between decorum and rebellion, helping you compare scenes with confidence. For the curious browser, it reads like a guided promenade through the repertoire; for students, it supports close analysis without drowning the drama. From classroom to rehearsal room, it keeps the conversation grounded in primary texts and informed commentary, a reliable theatre students reference that also suits collectors building a classic theater collection beyond the Anglophone canon. Out of print for decades and now republished by Alpha Editions, it is restored for today's and future generations. More than a reprint - a collector's item and a cultural treasure for casual readers, performers, and classic-literature collectors alike.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9353709474
• ISBN13: 9789353709471
• Release Date: June 2019
• Publisher: Alpha Edition
• Length: 374 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.5"