Performing Women

ALISON ODDEY, Performer, Writer, Broadcaster and Teacher, is Professor of Drama and Theatre Studies at Loughborough University, UK. She was appointed Chair in Contemporary Performance in 2000, and her publications include Devising Theatre (Routledge, 1994) and Performing Women (first edition published 1999) as well as a forthcoming book, Shifting Directions: A New Kind of Theatre-Making in the Twenty-First Century (MUP, 2005). Her research focuses on contemporary experimental performance, exploring cross-art forms, creation and collaboration in relation to the notion of directing such work in the context of performing, visual, sonic, virtual and multi-media arts. Alison has also presented a series on BBC Radio 4, 'Stand-ups and Strumpets', as a consequence of the publication of the first edition of Performing Women.

'Every drama programme in the UK will have this book on their bibliography - on a module or option somewhere.' - Professor Linda Fitzsimmons, Oxford Brookes University 'An important collection of interviews which will provide an excellent resource.' - Professor Lesley Ferris, Ohio State University, USA 'I read the first edition and was thrilled to be allowed to hear the voices of my idols speak of their performing experiences. I am, therefore, thrilled again to be included in this second edition alongside my idols.' - Naomi Frederick 'In decades hence, historians will thank Alison Oddey for her foresight in documenting the words of over twenty-five performers whose presences on the British stages have helped shape and determine the course of contemporary performance in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. To articulate what one does as a performer is particularly hard to pin down. Acting is lived in the moment, fleeting, ephemeral, transitory. Oddey's interview techniques push and probe to reveal the complex ways women, who take the public stage, both perform and negotiate their lives. She bookends the interviews with historical and cultural contexts and provides a useful summary of themes that come from the interviews. Performing Women is a breathtaking multi-vocal collection that serves as a model for documenting live performance. The publishers have shown much wisdom in bringing out a second edition, with new interviews. Applause!' - Professor Lesley Ferris, Chair of Theatre, The Ohio State University, USA Reviews of the 1st edition 'The book...is not a groupie read. It is an exhaustive and, to those truly interested in the subject matter, potentially rewarding pile of research findings...this is indeed an impressive array of performing women to encounter.' - Elizabeth O'Connor, Theatre News 'Not that long ago, acting was considered equivalent to prostitution. Proper ladies never considered a career on the stage. Those that did became fallen women in the eyes of their peers. Alison Oddey takes the old prejudice as a jumping-off point for her fascinating, probing, intelligent interviews with contemporary female actors, performance artists, and stand-up comics. The fact that most of them aren't much known outside the UK should hardly matter to American readers, for Oddey coaxes unusual insights out of even the most obscure performers...Especially entertaining is the conversation with gifted comic actress Jane Horrocks (Life is Sweet, Absolutely Fabulous, Little Voice)...for that alone, the book is worth reading.' - Jack Helbig, Booklist '...an enjoyable book...Recommended for theatre collections.' - Susan L. Peters, Library Journal

• List of Illustrations Acknowledgements Acronyms Preface to the Second Edition PART I: PERFORMING WOMEN PART II: HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXTS PART III: STAND-UPS, STRUMPETS AND ITINERANTS Jenny Eclair Niamh Cusack Imogen Stubbs Josette Simon Meera Syal Jane Horrocks Kathy Burke Marianne Jean-Baptiste Heather Ackroyd Jo Brand Imelda Staunton Juliet Stevenson Kathryn Hunter Fiona Shaw Dawn French Miranda Richardson Victoria Wood Penelope Wilton June Whitfield Sheila Hancock Brenda Blethyn Alison Steadman Julie Walters Bobby Baker Janet McTeer Naomi Frederick Geraldine James PART IV: WHY PERFORM?: THEMES ARISING FROM INTERVIEWS Selected Bibliography Index