Theatre and Globalization: Irish Drama in the Celtic Tiger Era

PATRICK LONERGAN teaches at the English Department, National University of Ireland, Galway. He has published widely on Irish literature and theatre, and is academic director of the Synge Summer School.

Winner of the 2008 Theatre Book Prize, awarded by the Society for Theatre Research Shortlisted for the ESSE Book Prize 2010 'A remarkable study of Irish theatre overwhelming to read.' Steven Berkoff 'Deftly adapting Walter Benjamin's The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, Patrick Lonergan identifies commodification and branding as the determining agents in the creation and circulation of modern theatre and, blending textual analysis with globalisation theory, provides the paradigm for a new phase of Irish theatre criticism.' - Professor Shaun Richards, Staffordshire University 'Simply the best and most thought-provoking analysis we've had of a central tension in Irish theatre (and indeed in the wider Irish culture) over the last 15 years.' - Fintan O'Toole, Irish Times 'This is an intelligent book and one with a mission statement it's a clarion call for Irish theatre makers to resist the global homogenisation of culture.' - Emilie Pine, Irish Theatre Magazine '...not just an excellent academic resource, but a thoroughly enjoyable read.' - Emer O'Toole, Platform '...a widely readable but informed account of the ways in which the powers of globalisation and international exchange impact on how theatre is created and received.' - Carmen Szabo, Irish Studies Review 'This is a book written by someone in love with the theatre, with theatre-going, who is eager to win his audience...to his argument about recent Irish theatre and globalization.' - Richard Rankin Russell, Irish University Review '...a rare book in the best sense of the word.' - Ondrej Pilny, Litteraria Pragensia '...this landmark work provides a strong challenge to the future of Irish theatre criticism...It is essential for any student or enthusiast of Irish drama, as well as for those working on the impact of globalization on theatre and dramatic form.' - Charlotte McIvor, Theatre Journal 'Lonergan's book is an important contribution to the growing body of research on contemporary Irish theatre. The study asks timely questions about what Irish theatre means in a global context, and how globalization shapes the production and reception of Irish theatre. This has ramifications for other national theatres too. Written in a clear, persuasive style, the book concludes by challenging the national theatre in particular to consider itself as a creative industry, and to rise to the challenge of addressing audiences in civic rather than essentially national terms.' - Contemporary Theatre Review

• Contents Acknowledgements List of abbreviations Introduction Globalization and Irish Theatre Globalizing Irish Drama: Brian Friel's Dancing at Lughnasa , 1990/1999 Globalizing National Theatres: Sean O'Casey's The Plough and the Stars , 1926/1991/2002 Historicizing the Brand: Dion Boucicault's The Shaughraun , 1874/2004 Globalization and Authorship: Martin McDonagh, 1996-2005 Globalization and Cultural Exchange: Tony Kushner's Angels in America , Dublin, 1995 Globalizing Gender Race and the Brand: Irish Theatre in 2005 Conclusion: Our Global Theatre Works Cited Index