Dr Ben Levitas: Irish Theatre in England

Dr Ben Levitas

Irish Theatre in England (Dublin: Carysfort Press, 2008)
ed. Richard Cave and Ben Levitas, 200pp.
ISBN-13: 978-1904505266.
(Includes Ben Levitas, ‘These Islands’
Others: John Bull, the Abbey and the Royal Court’).
Series: Irish Theatrical Diaspora

Irish theatre in England has frequently illustrated the complex relations between two distinct, often conflicting cultures. How English reviewers and audiences interpreted Irish plays is often decidedly different from how the plays were read in performance in Ireland. Situating such performances in precise temporal contexts allows the multiple meanings inherent in play to fully emerge. How certain Irish performers have chosen to be understood in Dublin is not necessarily how audiences in London have perceived their constructed stage personae. Performance and performativity are often twinned in these contexts, requiring intricate analysis of the underlying ideologies, political and aesthetic. The dramas considered here often play with images of Ireland and Irish character for distinct political purposes. A wide ranging collection from a diverse set of scholars, the twelve essays in this volume – the second in the Irish Theatrical Diaspora Series – investigates these issues from a variety of perspectives that together chart the trajectory of Irish performance in England from the mid-nineteenth century till today. They are complemented by a chronological table of Irish plays produced in London since 1920.