Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 1985 - 45

~OOK

REVIEWS

ntinued from page 40 ...

Vriting, Producing, and Selling
our Play by Louis E. Catron. Engle-

)od Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1984.
BN 0-13-971987-3 [PBK], xiv+265 pp.,
dex. 58.95 pb.

With the remarkable growth of interest
new play production on the college camIS, coupled with increased enrollment in
aywriting classes, this "hOW-lO" text for
aywrights, whether guided by formal in'uction or working in solitude in the slUdy,
a welcome addition 10 the rather sparse
ferings on the current market. Unlike
1m Smiley's P!aywrifing, Catron's text is
'signed for hands-on instruction, taking
e playwright through the steps from conpt 10 finished product, without losing
~ht of the essentially holistic nature of
ripting. Catron addresses the reader in a
Tsona! way, giving advice, assuring, warng, even admonishing as he goes. One of
e best chapters is on keeping a journal; escially warm-heaned is the lillie insen:
)on't talk about it; writc it!"
Most instructors insist that their style of
struction is unique to their classroom;
mon's book is fairly accessible 10 any
ode of instruction. His examples, from
~II-known plays such as Macbefh and
reefCGl; are well chosen, and illustrate his
lilllS con\·incingly. Not quite so successful
his prot racted use of The Desperafe
01/1'5, because the kind of \\Titing he ad,cates here is outdated, and leads to the
nd of playwriting known in new play cir~s as "the housewife in Peoria" school.
ld-of-chapter exercises are helpful and
laginati\'e, but more \'aluable to the isoled writer than to a studelll in a class.
lere is no question that Catron's book is
I improvement O\'er no text at all, and that
~ will be seeing it in classrooms for a long
ne to come.
Thomas J. Taylor
Universitv of Alabama

atterns for Theatrical Costume by
llherine Strand Holkeboer. Engle\\'ood
iffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1984.
BN 0-13-6S4278-6, viii 3~2 pp., ill.,
2.95, Spectrum Books Paper.

Pallel'lls Jar Thea/rica! Coslllllle joins
e works of Berniece Prisk, Mary Fernald
Id E. Shenton, Elizabeth Russell, and
~ter Bucknell and Margaret Hamilton in
oviding a general, non-technical apoach to the craft of pallerning for stage
,stumes. This book may serve the legions
amateur COSlUmers who have the desire

make good looking stage COSlUmes, but
who lack the background in the various
crafts of coslUming.
The author, Katherine Strand Holkeboer, is very careful to acknowledge the parameters of Pallerns Jar Thea/rica! Cosfllllle. In the preface she notes: "The patterns in this book have been adapted to fit
the modern figure. They are intended 10 be
representative [that is, they are not taken
from specific hislOric sources 1and in some
cases have been simplified in order 10 allow
freedom in the design process." This is a
book of generic pallerns, "period" pallerns
similar 10 those that used 10 be found in the
McCalls and BUllerick Pallern books for
use in making community theatre and pany
costumes for men and women. The primary
intent of these pallerns and filling instructions seems to be aClOr comfon and allractiveness; hislOric look and fit seem 10 be of
less significance. This type of book cenainIy serves a need. The amateur COSlUmer will
find the pallerns, helpful hints, line drawings and motifs useful in the fulfillment of
their coslUming tasks. In general, the book
provides an idea of how a contemporary
version of a period COSlUme might look.
10

The pallerns given are diagrammed and
scaled in the standard 'I," = I". Each nondraped pallern is shown in three sizes. The
sizing allempts to coincide with standard
commercial pattern grading. Women's 810,12-14 and 16-18, along with men's 3436, 38-40 and 42-44 sizes are illustrated.
Standard methods for enlargement of the
scaled pallerns are nOled. In addition, several pages of generally helpful hints concerning enlarging, filling and draping are
given. To further enhance the value of the
book, twO chapters that develop special patterns and provide helpful ideas for the patterning and making of specialty COSlUmes
like ecclesiastical, oriental, fantasy and animal suits and COSlUme crafts like corsets,
crowns and hats are made available.
The simplicity of the book is perhaps 100
seductive. 1l leads one to assume that a
good character COSlUme can be developed
and made with only the information that is
found on any two-page spread in the book.
Holkeboer would have been more helpful if
she had used some of the book's space 10
direct the reader 10 other primary and secondary sources. Had the section on fillings
directed the reader 10 one of the Vogue or
Time-Life books on sewing, or the various
pages of motifs pointed the reader 10 the excellent works of Speltz, Evans or Meyer, the
continued on page 52 ...

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 1985