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Censorship of the American Theatre in the Twentieth Century. By John Houchin. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003; pp. ix + 332. $75 cloth.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 August 2005

Barry B. Witham
Barry B. Witham
Affiliation:
University of Washington
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Extract

Censorship is an intriguing lens through which to view theatre in the United States because it allows us to glimpse—at moments—how theatre participates in the life of a society in truly meaningful ways. These moments appeal to John Houchin, as I suspect they do to many of us who yearn to find significance in live performance and who toil in the backwater of vapid and violent film and television. Censorship, whether it be of Sapho or Angels in America, enrages and harms, but it also crystallizes the debate between those who believe the arts should support the normative culture and those who believe the theatre's obligation is to challenge authority.

Type
Brief Report
Information
Theatre Survey , Volume 46 , Issue 1 , May 2005 , pp. 136 - 137
Copyright
© 2005 The American Society for Theatre Research, Inc.

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