Robert A. Schanke – författare

This is the first published resource on the life and seventy-year theatrical career of award-winning actress Eva Le Gallienne. It traces Le Gallienne's acting debut in 1914, her travels to the United States, and the successes and failures of her New York City repertory theatres. Also noted are Le Gallienne's critically acclaimed performances in such plays as Liliom, The Swan, The Master Builder, Hedda Gabler, The Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard, The Seagull, Camille, Romeo and Juliet, Alice in Wonderland, Mary Stuart, and The Royal Family. The book covers not only her Broadway engagements, but also her many lecture and theatre tours. Also highlighted are her receipt of the National Medal of Arts presented by President Ronald Reagan and the National Artist Award presented by the American National Theatre and Academy.The book is divided into six parts--a biography, a chronology focusing on the highlights of Le Gallienne's career, a list of all productions (stage, film, television, radio, and discography), an annotated bibliography of all items written by Le Gallienne, an annotated bibliography of over 300 items written about Le Gallienne in books, magazines, and newspapers, and a list of archival resources. The section of productions includes such information as titles, authors, directors, producers, venue, casts, designers, length of run, and locations of reviews. This book is an invaluable resource for courses in American Theater, Theater History, American Studies, Introduction to Theater, Women's Theater, Women's Studies, and Introduction to Film.

“A superb tribute to theatrical pioneers—The Gay and Lesbian Theatrical Legacy is required reading for both theatre scholars and gay/lesbian/bisexual history aficionados. A fascinating journey awaits them all in this highly recommended volume.” —Broadside: Newsletter of the Theatre Library AssociationThe Gay and Lesbian Theatrical Legacy collects in a single volume biographies of more than one hundred notable figures whose careers flourished in the years before the 1969 Stonewall Riots marked the beginning of the gay and lesbian civil rights movement in the United States. The leading lights in American theater have included innumerable individuals whose sexualities have deviated from prevailing norms, but this history has until recently been largely unwritten and unknown. This book contributes significantly to the recovery of this history, fashioning a much fuller, more nuanced portrait of American theater as it evolved and shedding light on the influence that sexual desire may have had on professional choices, relationships, and artistic achievements. The Gay and Lesbian Theatrical Legacy collects biographies and portraits of influential actors, playwrights, composers, directors, designers, dancers, producers, managers, critics, choreographers, and technicians who made their mark on the American theater. Its broad coverage provides an extended glimpse into lives and careers that intersected and into networks of affiliation that made theatrical history and, by extension, social and cultural history. The late Billy J. Harbin was Professor of Theater, Louisiana State University. Kim Marra is Associate Professor of Theater, University of Iowa. Robert A. Schanke is Professor of Theater Emeritus, Central College, Pella, Iowa.

Now available in paperback, ""That Furious Lesbian"": The Story of Mercedes de Acosta is the first book-length biography of the flamboyantly uninhibited early-twentieth-century author, poet, and playwright. Theater historian Robert A. Schanke adroitly mines lost archival materials and mixes in his own interviews with de Acosta's intimates to correct established myths and construct an accurate, detailed, and vibrant account of her life and loves on Broadway and in Hollywood.