Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1976 - 54

direction theatre has taken in this period; examples of actual
facilities; and technical developments. It begins with a brief
overview of the various aesthetic, sociological, economic, and educational forces which have influenced the direction of the theatre
and theatre design over the past 10 years. This is followed by
56 pages of drawings and photographs of theatres of all types
built since 1964 (including civic centers, performing arts centers, professional theatres, educational theatres, etc.). The chapter
concludes with a summary of the major developments over the
past 10 years of theatre types (proscenium, open stage, thrust,
etc.), and theatre technology (flying systems, scenery movement,
projection, control equipment, etc.).

Southern postulates a link between this "epic play" of 1425 and
the theatrical style and social scope of Brechtian drama. He
does not belabour the point; he merely raises it and in so doing
he vindicates his devotion to the past with an admirable contemporaneity.
Brian Arnott
ADAPTABLE STAGE COSTUME FOR WOMEN
by Elizabeth Russell
New York: Theatre Arts Books, 1974
ISBN 0-87830-007-4
pp. viii + 95. S10.75

Theatres and Auditoriums has been a standard reference on
theatre for the past 25 years. This re-issue of the 1964 edition
with supplemental data retains its reputation as an important reference source. To quote from a review of the original second
edition which is still valid: "If anyone is thinking of planning a
theatre, . . . here is the book for him. In fact, he avoids it at his
peril".

The development of an historically acceptable women's costume wardrobe of interchangeable separates and accessories is
the theme of Elizabeth Russell's book. This rather small book
attempts in a fairly imaginative way to cope with that common
stage costuming problem - the building of a women's wardrobe.
As a starting point it offers a basic bodice and skirt pattern from
which all the separates are to be drafted. Though the concept is
not new, it is carefully presented, with particular attention being
paid to construction and accessory detail.

David P. Walsh
Wilson, Ihrig & Associates, Inc.

THE MEDIEVAL THEATRE IN THE ROUND
by Richard Southern
New York: Theatre Arts Books, 1975
ISBN 0-87830-085-6
xvi + 264 pp., illus., S16.95
Like all Richard Southern's work as an investigator of forgotten staging practices, The Medieval Theatre in the Round is
typically thorough, precise and informed by a journeyman's
understanding of how plays are produced. The combined talents
of scholar and practictioner also afford Southern a peculiar aptitude for giving the theatre of the past a sense of immediacy, as
though it were a current event. In Southern's hands, theatre
history is not so much a matter for academic debate as it is an
affirmation of the theatre's theatrical continuum. His bias is quite
clear when he makes such remarks as "words alone (in the theatre)
do not explain what you mean." Nor do they on the printed page
and so Southern is always careful to give extra dimension to his
arguments through plans, diagrams, plates and his own lucid
idiosyncratic doodles.
The strength of his illustrations aside, Southern's words are
not to be regarded lightly. His literary acumen is equally as keen
as his grasp of play production. The Medieval Theatre in the
Round is a particularly well-rounded job of investigative reporting.
Beginning with three pieces of primary evidence - a British manuscript of 1425, a French miniature painting of 1455 and a number
of extant earthworks presumably built as theatres - Southern
develops an excellent case for the prevalence of a kind of medieval theatre previously overshadowed by the pageant wagon style
of staging.
In making his deductions about the manner in which The
Castle of Perseverance was originally staged, Southern opens
many doors of understanding for his readers. Among these, he
confirms the manuscript's dramatic stature; he creates a prompt
book to illuminate further the play's' potential; and he develops
in detail a complete scheme for the presu med original presentation. The arguments which Southern advances in favour of a
professional medieval theatre in the round are graphic and convincingly complete.
As a man of practical intelligence, Southern has recently
used the evidence gained in his study of The Castle of Persevere nee
in staging another medieval play in one of the earthwork theatres
in Britain. A summary of this production is included as an appendix to this latest edition of the book which also contains a new
foreward by the author.
The Medieval Theatre in the Round has enormous intrinsic
value as a scholarly work but its ultimate appeal lies in its subplot. Southern calls his book "a study of the staging of The
Castle of Perseverance and related matters." In the courseot
his discovering related matters within the historical context,

FALL, 1976

Toronto

Costumers interested in a technique that has as its basis a single bodice and pleated skirt pattern combined with various accessory diagrams for the additional historic detail, will find this book
and its nine pages of illustrations, sixteen layouts, and thirty-two
diagrams a useful reference. The layouts are good standard variations on a basic pattern and, fer the most part, are carefully
drawn and clearly reproduced. The pattern layouts in combination with the diagrams, which are concerned with the shaping,
sewing, and construction details, help the costumer develop a
sense of the costume's requirements. The diagrams also offer
much useful general information about costume construction.
Russell states that greater economy, design potential and
actor comfort can be gained by following her plan. To a certain
extent this may be true, for if the costumer put into practice
all of her suggestions, like stiffening skirt hems with folded newspaper and creating rustling petticoat ruffles with creped paper,
I am sure a set of inexpensive costumes would result. As for the
design potential of this pattern system, it is probably no greater
than that provided by any other system of basic patterns. I question the notion that this plan provides the costu mer with a tool
that will result in more well designed costumes that are historically accurate, unique or for that matter, very interesting_ Instead
it proposes a system that tries to find the common ground between many periods. Variations from period to period are kept to
a minimum and are usually superficial additions or deletions of
collars, bodice trim or skirt drapery. The external shape of the costume seems less affected than the small internal details. Furthermore, Russell suggests fitting the costume over the actor's own
undergarments. While this supports her conviction that the actor
be comfortable, it does little to help the costumed actor take on
period character; instead his costume looks as modern as his undergarments.
For all the useful information the book offers about basic
patterns, accessories, methods for suggesting various historic
periods, and prevailing modes in jewelry and color, it loses track
of one important aspect of costuming - the creation of costume
for specific character. Russell does not warn the novice costumer,
the person who is surely going to find this book most valuable,
that wardrobe, interchangeability of costume pieces and historically correct color count for naught if the costume does not support the character and style of production. Once style and character have been dealt with, this system might be considered as an
alternative production method.
A book that is supposed to be a practical guide, a stage costuming how-to-do-it, ought not be sold in the United States without a proper glossary of British terms and products, such as the
American equivalents of such products as Vilne, Petersham,
Copydex, and Terylene. Though a book of ninety-five pages
without an index might be acceptable, a book without a bibliography is clearly unacceptable as a tool for a costumer.
Adaptable Stage Costume for Women provides one method
of stage costuming, a process more favored in theory than prac-

THEATRE DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1976