From the 1920s through the 1950s, two individuals, Joseph Urban and Norman Bel Geddes, did more, by far, to create the image of 'America' and make it synonymous with modernity than any of their contemporaries. Urban and Bel Geddes were leading Broadw...

While American Jews are commonly considered a homogeneous ethnic group, the reality today is far more complex. Conversion, adoption, intermarriage and immigration, have transformed the fabric of Jewish communities, as they have the United States as a...

One of the most powerful dramas ever written for the stage, Othello is a story of revenge, illusion, passion, mistrust, jealousy, and murder. If in Iago Shakespeare created the most compelling villain in Western literature, in Othello and Desdemona h...

In one of Shakespeare's bawdier comedies, contemporary audiences still take great pleasure in the rapid-fire verbal battles between the shrewish Katharina and the canny Petruchio, determined to subdue Katharina's legendary temper and win her dowry.

How did artists of the twentieth century use their work to respond to their unique personal experiences and moment in history? This provocative question is explored in this engaging new book on American art. By focusing on broad, defining themes, emb...

Late in his career Thomas Gainsborough became preoccupied with the theme of the cottage door, and he created a group of paintings and drawings that show rustic figures clustered around the open door of a cottage set in a deeply wooded landscape. Ofte...

A uniquely comprehensive guide to the buildings of central Dublin, in the great tradition of the Pevsner series. Churches, public buildings and streets are described for every district, each full of new discoveries and lively detail. Illustrations in...

In this eagerly anticipated book, Boris Gasparov gazes through the lens of music to find an unusual perspective on Russian cultural and literary history. He discusses six major works in Russian music of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, showing...

This extraordinarily beautiful book gathers together and examines for the first time a delightful collection of English gardens rendered by artists from 1540 to the early nineteenth century, many of which are unknown. Sir Roy Strong, widely recognise...

This practical guide provides the principles of dramatic writing. Playwrights and screenwriters will discover these essential principles and acquire the tools to put them to use. Sam Smiley incorporates extensive new material in "Playwriting: The Str...