BookOdyssey

\'Hilarious and heartbreaking\' Sara Pascoe\'Sheer bloody joy\' Philippa PerryOver the course of a year, comedian Rachel Parris asked members of her live audience for advice - and here\'s what she learned from a bunch of total strangers...She takes those random nuggets of wisdom - \'Be kind\', \'Never pass up the opportunity for a wee\', \'When it doubt, wing it\' - and explores them in ways that are entertaining and serious, hilarious and heart-breaking. Full of life guidance on how to deal with everything from tampons to Tories, from grief to gaslighting, this book might just change your life.Funny, fiercely feminist and full of love, this book is a feast; devour it, then pass it to a friend. \'Original and wise. This is essential reading\' Ellie Taylor Σελίδες: 272, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0323, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

Lee Evans is one of the best-loved comedians in the country; a Hollywood star able to sell out arenas in the blink of eye. But he was not always such a roaring success. The Life of Lee is an utterly hilarious and very moving autobiography charting his ups and downs on the way to the top. Lee takes us on a darkly humorous journey through his childhood spent running wild on a Bristol housing estate, his unconventional school days and through a grim teenage period of numerous dead-end jobs. The book also reveals how as a boy Lee got his first taste of showbiz, accompanying his entertainer father around the rowdy, unforgiving working-men\'s club and theatre circuit. Desperately struggling to be accepted, this quiet young loner always saw himself as an outsider. But he finally met the love of his life and accidentally discovered the one place where he felt at home: the stage. Σελίδες: 416, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERA fascinating and hilarious glimpse into Paul\'s life at home in the country with his animalsPaul O\'Grady\'s Country Life for the first time gives a glimpse into the home life of one of Britain’s best loved stars, alongside the animals he adores. Sometimes rural idyll, sometimes hell on earth, Paul’s life in rural Kent has been shared over the years with some very vocal pigs, a mad cow, various rescued barn owls, the world’s most sadistic geese and Christine the psychotic sheep – among many other animal waifs and strays. And of course Paul tells the stories of the dogs in his life – including the tiny chihuahua/Jack Russell cross with Napoleonic ambitions, Eddie, Miss Olga, Bullseye, Louis, Boycie and, of course, Buster, the greatest canine star since Lassie. In addition, Paul shares some of his favourite recipes, explores country lore and superstitions, and extols the benefits of growing your own vegetables, herbs and fruit.This is a warts-and-all account of country living, as far removed from the bright lights of celebrity as you could ever imagine. The trials and tribulations Paul experienced on moving to deepest darkest Kent as a dyed-in-the-wool city dweller are every bit as hilarious and eventful as you would think. He had a lot of new skills to learn, and fast: everything from how to churn your own butter and how to birth a lamb to the best way to lure a cow out of your kitchen while naked from the waist down.Brilliantly funny and full of classic stories, Paul O’Grady’s Country Life is your armchair guide to the wonders and horrors of rural existence. Σελίδες: 352, Διαστάσεις: 12.7x12.7cm

Bridget Christie is a stand-up comedian, idiot and feminist. On the 30th of April 2012, a man farted in the Women’s Studies Section of a bookshop and it changed her life forever. A Book For Her details Christie’s twelve years of anonymous toil in the bowels of stand-up comedy and the sudden epiphany that made her, unbelievably, one of the most critically acclaimed British stand-up comedians this decade, drawing together the threads that link a smelly smell in the women’s studies section to the global feminist struggle. Find out how nice Peter Stringfellow’s fish tastes, how yoghurt advertising perpetuates rape myths, and how Emily Bronte used a special ladies’ pen to write Wuthering Heights.If you’re interested in comedy and feminism, then this is definitely the book for you. If you hate both then I’d probably give it a miss. “Christie is adept at turning on a sixpence between being comical, or serious, or both at once, and at pricking her own earnestness.” Telegraph‘Christie piles derision and tomfoolery upon everyday sexism, while never pretending that jokes alone will solve the problem.’ Guardian Σελίδες: 320, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERThis is a self-help book like no other. Because you are not helping yourself, James Acaster is helping you.In 2019, James quit all forms of social media - covering his phone in tar and driving it to a lock-up in Rhyl, before setting up home in a castle he\'d built himself called Castle Anti-Net. But when the withdrawal symptoms hit him, he realised in order to stay clean he\'d have to replace everything social media gave him with three-dimensional, real-life activities. Employing the help of a mysterious, wealthy benefactor named Clancy Dellahue, and an ever-growing gang of misfits (aka the Tangfastic Crew), James found ways to replace his online friends (he joined the scouts) and spy on his exes (climbing ropes, zip lines, fake moustache) as well as anonymously bullying strangers, seeing photos of everyone\'s dogs, getting public figures fired, arguing with everybody about everything, and so much more. His life is amazing and yours could be too if you buy JAMES ACASTER\'S GUIDE TO QUITTING SOCIAL MEDIA, BEING THE BEST YOU YOU CAN BE AND SAVING YOURSELF FROM LONELINESS VOL. 1. Σελίδες: 272, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0817, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

This book is a window into the world of Danny Dyer - and he\'s seen more of the world than most so he\'s got one or two things to say about it.Tackling such vital questions as \'Where have all the old school boozers gone?\' \'Are there such things as ghosts?\' and \'Am I middle class?\' Danny shares his unique take on life with characteristic honesty and humour and reveals why it is that:· What goes around comes around - he learnt the hard way· You can take the boy out of the East End but you can\'t take the East End out of the boy· Harold Pinter is a diamond geezer · He told the media training expert to do one· Science can prove that West Ham are the best football club in the world· Him and Joanne are like a team - he\'s Paul Gascoigne, she\'s David Batty· The human race isn\'t evolved enough for TwitterSo, hold on to your titfer, it\'s gonna be a bumpy ride! Σελίδες: 320, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0519, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

The former Sex & Relationships Editor for Cosmopolitan and host of the wildly popular comedy show Tinder Live with Lane Moore presents her poignant, funny, and deeply moving first book.Lane Moore is a rare performer who is as impressive onstage—whether hosting her iconic show Tinder Live or being the enigmatic front woman of It Was Romance—as she is on the page, as both a former writer for The Onion and an award-winning sex and relationships editor for Cosmopolitan. But her story has had its obstacles, including being her own parent, living in her car as a teenager, and moving to New York City to pursue her dreams. Through it all, she looked to movies, TV, and music as the family and support systems she never had. From spending the holidays alone to having better “stranger luck” than with those closest to her to feeling like the last hopeless romantic on earth, Lane reveals her powerful and entertaining journey in all its candor, anxiety, and ultimate acceptance—with humor always her bolstering force and greatest gift. How to Be Alone is a must-read for anyone whose childhood still feels unresolved, who spends more time pretending to have friends online than feeling close to anyone in real life, who tries to have genuine, deep conversations in a roomful of people who would rather you not. Above all, it’s a book for anyone who desperately wants to feel less alone and a little more connected through reading her words. Σελίδες: 224, Έτος Έκδοσης: 1115, Διαστάσεις: 14x14cm

Jo Brand is one of Britain\'s funniest and best-loved comedians. With a sharp eye for the absurd and in her own unique voice, she tells her story for the first time. What possessed her to become a professional comedian in the cut-throat world of stand-up comedy after ten years as a psychiatric nurse? How did she deal with late night drunken audiences? From her early years growing up in a small south coast town with two brothers who toughened her up, to emerging on stage as \'The Sea Monster\', Jo Brand tells it like it is with wit and candour. Σελίδες: 352, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0501, Διαστάσεις: 15.2x15.2cm

The Stand-Up while Sitting Down Years...Jo Brand tells the story of how she crawled to fame and fortune, managed to persuade someone to marry her and had some children at an age when she should have been in a bath chair on the seafront. In this second volume of her memoirs, Jo recounts wild times on the comedy circuit, the attempts to tart her up for the TV screen, running the marathon, rally driving, her numerous, occasionally extremely inebriated, Edinburgh festival appearances, her \'acting\' career, and much, much more.Jo Brand is one of our best-loved comedians, according to a quote she made up. This memoir is full of hard-won wisdom, hilarity and her views on life, laughs, friendships and all the good and bad things in the world. If she was Prime Minister, the country would be in even more of a mess than it is. Σελίδες: 416, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0614, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

80TH BIRTHDAY EDITION - NOW WITH 10 NEW TALL TALES! THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER\'Connolly\'s raucous run through his life is as furious, funny and foul-mouthed as you\'d expect\' Sunday TimesIn December 2018, after fifty years of belly-laughs, energy and outrage, Billy Connolly announced his retirement from live stand-up comedy. It had been an extraordinary career.When he first started out in the late sixties, Billy played the banjo in the folk clubs of Scotland. Between songs, he would improvise a bit, telling anecdotes from the Clyde shipyard where he\'d worked. In the process, he made all kinds of discoveries about what audiences found funny, from his own brilliant mimes to the power of speaking irreverently about politics or explicitly about sex. He began to understand the craft of great storytelling. Soon the songs became shorter and the monologues longer, and Billy quickly became recognised as one of the most exciting comedians of his generation.Tall Tales and Wee Stories brings together the very best of Billy\'s storytelling for the first time and includes his most famous routines including, The Last Supper, Jojoba Shampoo, Incontinence Pants and Shouting at Wildebeest. With an introduction and original illustrations by Billy throughout, it is an inspirational, energetic and riotously funny read, and a fitting celebration of our greatest ever comedian. Σελίδες: 336, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0912, Διαστάσεις: 12.6x12.6cm

The life of William Shakespeare, Britain\'s greatest dramatist, was inextricably linked with the history of London. Together, the great writer and the great city came of age and confronted triumph and tragedy. Triumph came when Shakespeare\'s company, the Chamberlain\'s Men, opened the Globe playhouse on Bankside in 1599, under the patronage of Queen Elizabeth I. Tragedy touched the lives of many of his contemporaries, from fellow playwright Christopher Marlowe to the disgraced Earl of Essex, while London struggled against the ever-present threat of riots, rebellions and outbreaks of plague. Globetakes its readers on a tour of London through Shakespeare\'s life and work, as, in fascinating detail, Catharine Arnold tells how acting came of age. We learn about James Burbage, founder of the original Theatre in Shoreditch, who carried timbers across the Thames to build the Globe among the bear-gardens and brothels of Bankside, and of the terrible night in 1613 when the theatre caught fire during a performance of King Henry VIII. Rebuilt, the Globe continued to stand as a monument to Shakespeare\'s genius until 1642 when it was destroyed on the orders of Oliver Cromwell. And finally we learn how 300 years later, Shakespeare\'s Globe opened once more upon the Bankside, to great acclaim, rising like a phoenix from the flames Arnold creates a vivid portrait of Shakespeare and his London from the bard\'s own plays and contemporary sources, combining a novelist\'s eye for detail with a historian\'s grasp of his unique contribution to the development of the English theatre. This is a portrait of Shakespeare, London, the man and the myth. Σελίδες: 320, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0407, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

The top ten Sunday Times BestsellerHeartfelt and honest, A Life Reimagined is an emotional memoir of love, loss and life after tragedy from beloved actress Jill Halfpenny.When Jill was four, her father died. He went to play his weekly game of five-a-side football, had a heart attack and never came home. In 2017, in cruelly similar circumstances, Jill’s partner Matt went to a gym class, suffered a cardiac arrest and never came home.These two tragic events frame Jill’s story in A Life Reimagined, as she explores how she dealt with profound grief as a child, as a teenager and then, later, as a partner and mother. With vulnerability and honesty, Jill shares the invaluable lessons she has learned from grief – and how these lessons have helped her find a path back to joy.\'Profoundly moving\' – Woman\'s Weekly Σελίδες: 320, Διαστάσεις: 13x13cm

A revelatory account of the magus - the learned magician - and his place in the world of Renaissance EuropeAt the heart of the extraordinary ferment of the High Renaissance stood a distinctive, strange and beguiling figure: the magus. An unstable mix of scientist, bibliophile, engineer, fabulist and fraud, the magus ushered in modern physics and chemistry while also working on everything from secret codes to siege engines to magic tricks.Anthony Grafton\'s wonderfully original book discusses the careers of men who somehow managed to be both figures of startling genius and - by some measures - credulous or worse. The historical Faust, Marsilio Ficino, Pico della Mirandola, Johannes Trithemius and Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa are all fascinating characters, closely linked to monarchs, artists and soldiers and sitting at the heart of any definition of why the Renaissance was a time of such restless innovation. The study of the stars, architecture, warfare, even medicine: all of these and more were revolutionized in some way by the experiments and tricks of these extraordinary individuals.No book does a better job of allowing us to understand the ways that magic, religion and science were once so intertwined and often so hard to tell apart. Σελίδες: 304, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

\'Outstanding, I want to press it into the hands of every newly diagnosed person\' Fern Brady\'Like a Martian\'s guide to living on Earth. Funny, enlightening and gobsmacking\' Frank Skinner\'A hilarious, crystal-clear guide to autism\' Phil Wang\'An illuminating and joyously entertaining book\' Daily ExpressWhy were the other kids at school obsessed with Britney Spears instead of The Goon Show?Why don\'t people ever say what they mean?And... Why is everyone chewing so loudly?Comedian Pierre Novellie was on stage when a heckler suggested he was autistic. Usually, this disruption would be water off a duck\'s back but two things made this heckler different: first, he was himself autistic. Second, he turned out to be absolutely right.This random encounter led to a diagnosis of autism at the age of 31 that unravelled his world, explained his struggles and answered questions that had bothered him for his entire life.At once a hilarious and insightful journey through autism and neurodivergence, an entertaining explainer for the uninitiated and observational comedy for the neurodiverse, this is the perfect read for anyone who has ever asked themselves: why can\'t I just enjoy things? Σελίδες: 336, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0624, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

How the world’s best actors communicate with gravitas – and how you can, too.‘The theatre stars’ voice guru’ Daily MailActing is all about charisma. Whether you’re an A-list star or an extra, when you’re on stage you need to perform in a way that makes your audience listen.That stage presence is something we can all learn from. Every time you speak up in a meeting, recount an anecdote, or tell a joke, it’s essential to communicate with gravitas.Jeannette Nelson knows a thing or two about gravitas. As Head of Voice at the National Theatre, she has spent three decades working with the world’s leading actors – from Al Pacino to Benedict Cumberbatch to Juliette Binoche – teaching them to speak clearly and move confidently.Now, Nelson pulls back the curtain on the tricks that professional performers use to own the room. Starting with clear speech and good posture, before moving on to the art of rhetoric and overcoming stage fright, she outlines a holistic three-stage method to communicating with authority, authenticity and eloquence. Throughout, she peppers the book with stories of how world-renowned actors learnt to make themselves heard – and how you can, too.The result is a fascinating and eminently practical guide to the art of performance. If all the world’s a stage, then this book will turn you into its lead actor. Σελίδες: 192, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0930, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

An artful and contemplative tribute to the late actor famed for his role as Dylan McKay in Beverly Hills, 90210.Best known for playing loner rebel Dylan McKay in Beverly Hills, 90210, Luke Perry was fifty-two years old when he died of a stroke in 2019. There have been other deaths of nineties stars, but this one hit different. Gen X was reminded of their own inescapable mortality, and robbed of an exciting career resurgence for one of their most cherished icons—with recent roles in the hit series Riverdale and Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood bringing him renewed attention and acclaim. Only upon his death, as stories poured out online about his authenticity and kindness, did it become clear how little was known about the exceedingly humble actor and how deeply he impacted popular culture. In A Good Bad Boy, Margaret Wappler attempts to understand who Perry was and why he was unique among his Hollywood peers. To do so, she uses an inventive hybrid narrative. She speaks with dozens who knew Perry personally and professionally. They share insightful anecdotes: how he kept connected to his Ohio upbringing; nearly blew his 90210 audition; tried to shed his heartthrob image by joining the HBO prison drama Oz; and in the last year of his life, sought to set up two of his newly divorced friends. (After his death, the pair bonded in their grief and eventually married.) Amid these original interviews and exhaustive archival research, Wappler weaves poignant vignettes of memoir in which she serves as an avatar to show how Perry shaped a generation’s views on masculinity, privilege, and the ideal of “cool.” Timed to the fifth anniversary of Perry’s death, A Good Bad Boy is a profound and entertaining examination of what it means to be an artist and an adult. Σελίδες: 336, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0508, Διαστάσεις: 14x14cm

Working in partnership with the National Theatre, these new playscripts bring the theatre alive in the classroom. Each play has been carefully selected to ensure maximum impact and relevance to students, while the activities and teaching support are underpinned by National Theatre strategies so that teachers can feel confident using these approaches. Vibrant production images and the \'Making the play\' section show how the play is brought to life on stage while the activities combine a focus on English skills with the play as a perfomance. Adapted by Bryony Lavery, this is an exciting new adaptation of Stevenson\'s classic tale of money, murder and mutiny. Young Jim Hawkins leads a quiet life at the Admiral Benbow Inn run by her Grandma. One night, fate brings Billy Bones, a large sea chest and a treasure map to their door. As Jim sets off on a voyage to find the treasure, she encounters a crew of the bloodthirstiest pirates, including the infamous Long John Silver, and she begins to wonder whether any of them will make it back alive...

\'That night, I\'d survived my life flashing before me, with my dignity intact. Yes, this chaotic life has always been a gamble.... But what a gamble.\'Paul Sinha is an award-winning comedian, a quizzing mastermind and a happily-married husband. But for much of his life none of these seemed remotely imaginable.As a boy, Paul struggled to find his place in a world where he didn\'t quite fit. Who was he? An over-achieving schoolkid with the world\'s knowledge at his fingertips? A traditional Bengali son, destined for a career in medicine that he never once craved? A young gay man yearning to breathe freely? Or was he yet another flawed human being on a self-destruct mission?Amid life\'s mayhem, it was frequently Paul\'s love of facts in which he found solace, whether funding his lifestyle through quiz machines or simply trying to show off to his mates. Stumbling serendipitously into both a career in stand-up and a clandestine network of competitive quizzers introduced him to a new sense of purpose, a new identity, and, eventually, new love...A hilarious and moving coming-of-age memoir of one man\'s search for fulfilment, One Sinha Lifetime is an unconventional odyssey through love, family, and the joy of general knowledge. Σελίδες: 352, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0916, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

Anxiety about how we speak prevents many of us from expressing ourselves well. In her classic handbook, Cicely Berry, Voice Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company and world-famous voice teacher, tackles the reasons for this anxiety and explains her practical exercises for relaxation and breathing, clarity of diction and vocal flexibility - everything that you need to achieve good speech. Σελίδες: 176, Διαστάσεις: 15.3x15.3cm

The hilarious guide to the countryside you never knew you needed, from up-and-coming TikTok-and Instagram-hit comedian Killian Sundermann.Welcome to the countryside! A place of rolling hills, winding rivers and natural beauty. Or is it? Killian Sundermann is here to give us his deeply uninformed, highly opinionated tips for country living.He weighs in on everything from his favourite stone walls, to mountain climber\'s emotional issues and his generalised beef with farmers. After reading this c***\'s guide to the countryside, you\'ll never see nature in the same way again. Σελίδες: 128, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

There are a lot of Ambers in the stripping world. And Aprils and Summers, and Skys and Rains. There are quite a few gems: Sapphires, Diamonds, Rubies and even an Amethyst. And exotic creatures: Tigers, Cheetahs, Phoenixes and Kitties. Plenty of weather conditions, like Misty, Stormy and Cloudy. There are, of course, a selection of fruits: Cherry, Berry, Peaches and Apple. And confectionery to go with it, like Candy, Lolly and Caramel. And then there are the generic hot-girl/sexy names: Lolita, Tiffany, Chanel, Lulu, Sasha and Brigitte.Meet Sunshine. That\'s her stage name. Follow her downstairs into the shadowy underworld of the so-called Gentlemen\'s Clubs, where men hide in dark corners and pay gorgeous women like Sunshine to take their clothes off. Follow her to the private rooms where the lap dances happen, the hustle plays out and the real money flows. Sit with her in the back room with the other dancers, her friends and colleagues, who laugh and cry and rake in the dollars and party as though a zombie apocalypse is on the horizon.Sunshine tells us in her own brutally honest and audacious words what it\'s like to work as a stripper, both in Australia and overseas.Confessional, confronting, revealing, wildly entertaining and often laugh-out-loud funny, Sunshine: The diary of a lap dancer will take you into a world that most of us can only imagine and that others know all too well. But only the dancers know what really goes on - and this book shows you their world stripped bare. Σελίδες: 320, Διαστάσεις: 15.4x15.4cm

A thoughtful and deeply personal book by a master theatre-maker. In Tip of the Tongue, Peter Brook takes a charming, playful and wise look at topics such as the subtle, telling differences between French and English, and the many levels on which we can appreciate the works of Shakespeare. Brook also revisits his seminal concept of the \'empty space\', considering how theatre – and the world – have changed over the span of his long and distinguished career. Threaded throughout with intimate and revealing stories from Brook\'s own life, Tip of the Tongue is a short but sparkling gift from one of the greatest artists of recent times. Σελίδες: 112, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

\'Lucy Kerbel\'s work has become increasingly pivotal in helping the entire industry raise its game... this illuminating book answers the cynic, informs the impartial, converts the supporter into an activist and equips them all; not in a rallying cry of anger-fuelled idealism, but in a calm, pragmatic and clear-eyed way.\' Rufus Norris, Director of the National Theatre, from his Foreword Theatre needs to change. Everywhere – in its boardrooms, on its stages, throughout its repertoires – it could be so much more successful at reflecting the gender balance of the world it seeks to represent. This is a book about why change matters, its benefits – artistic, commercial, ethical and social – and how, with everyone\'s help, we can actually achieve it. From small shifts, such as how you run your meetings, or what\'s on the shelves of your school library, to rethinking concepts as huge as the art we inherit, how we attribute excellence, and the constraints we unwittingly pass on to the next generation, there are things we can all do to bring about change. In this book, you\'ll find provocations to help you consider your current practices and their effects, challenge unconscious biases and identify opportunities for change, plus strategies and tools to help you decide where best to focus your efforts, to convince others why change matters, and to achieve meaningful, lasting success. Eye-opening, empowering and inspiring, All Change Please is a book for anyone who loves theatre. Whether you make it, teach it, watch it or study it, everyone has their own unique part to play in helping refresh, reshape and re-imagine the industry as truly diverse, equal and inclusive. \'We are the industry. If things will shift it is down to us, all of us, to make that happen. We all need to reflect on how we work, how we think, and how we make choices. That\'s what will drive the greatest change.\' Since 2011, Lucy Kerbel and her organisation Tonic Theatre have been working with companies and individuals across the theatre industry to support them in achieving greater gender equality in their work and workforces. Her first book, 100 Great Plays for Women, is also published by Nick Hern Books. Σελίδες: 176, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills In this volume of the Good Audition Guides, you\'ll find fifty fantastic speeches for women, all written since the year 2000, by some of our most exciting dramatic voices. Playwrights featured in Contemporary Monologues for Women include Mike Bartlett, Alexi Kaye Campbell, Caryl Churchill, Helen Edmundson, debbie tucker green, Ella Hickson, Lucy Kirkwood, Rona Munro, Joanna Murray-Smith and Enda Walsh, and the plays themselves were premiered at the very best theatres across the UK including the National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Bush, Soho and Hampstead Theatres, Manchester Royal Exchange, the Traverse in Edinburgh, the Abbey in Dublin, and many on the stages of the Royal Court. Drawing on her experience as an actor, director and teacher at several leading drama schools, Trilby James prefaces each speech with a thorough introduction including the vital information you need to place the piece in context (the who, what, when, where and why) and suggestions about how to perform the scene to its maximum effect (including the character’s objectives and keywords). Contemporary Monologues for Women also features an introduction on the whole process of selecting and preparing your speech, and approaching the audition itself. The result is the most comprehensive and useful contemporary monologue book now available. \'Sound practical advice for anyone attending an audition… a source of inspiration for teachers and students alike\' Teaching Drama Magazine on The Good Audition Guides Σελίδες: 176, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

A fascinating investigation into the wellsprings of improvisation in theatre, dance and music, from the author of the influential House of Games. Packed with exercises and practical techniques, The Improvisation Game explores how improvisation can be used both to create performance and as an end in itself. It reveals the techniques, structures and methods used by key practitioners in the field of improvised drama, music and dance – amongst them Keith Johnstone (author of Impro), Max Stafford-Clark (Out of Joint), Phelim McDermott (Improbable Theatre), Tim Etchells (Forced Entertainment), John Wright (Trestle, Told by an Idiot) and Robert Lepage. The book also looks at many famous traditions, events and performances with improvisation at their core, ranging from the Living Theatre to the Scratch Orchestra, from John Cage to Lenny Bruce, and seeks to draw out their significance in the always evolving world of improvisation. Σελίδες: 384, Διαστάσεις: 14x14cm

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER\'A mind-blowing and emotionally honest tale of survival against all odds.\' BERNARDINE EVARISTO\'A breathtaking memoir...I was so moved by this book.\' Oprah\'It is startlingly honest and, at times, a jaw-dropping read, charting her rise from poverty and abuse to becoming the first African-American to win the triple crown of an Oscar, Emmy and Tony for acting.\' BBC NewsTHE DEEPLY PERSONAL, BRUTALLY HONEST ACCOUNT OF VIOLA\'S INSPIRING LIFEIn my book, you will meet a little girl named Viola who ran from her past until she made a life changing decision to stop running forever.This is my story, from a crumbling apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, to the stage in New York City, and beyond. This is the path I took to finding my purpose and my strength, but also to finding my voice in a world that didn\'t always see me.As I wrote Finding Me, my eyes were open to the truth of how our stories are often not given close examination. They are bogarted, reinvented to fit into a crazy, competitive, judgmental world. So I wrote this for anyone who is searching for a way to understand and overcome a complicated past, let go of shame, and find acceptance. For anyone who needs reminding that a life worth living can only be born from radical honesty and the courage to shed facades and be...you.Finding Me is a deep reflection on my past and a promise for my future. My hope is that my story will inspire you to light up your own life with creative expression and rediscover who you were before the world put a label on you. Σελίδες: 304, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0404, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

A bold and exciting new approach to Bertolt Brecht, making his theories and ideas about theatre accessible to a new generation of actors, directors, students and theatre-makers, and showing how they can be put into practice. Theatre practitioner and academic David Zoob demystifies Brecht’s theories, and offers an approach to study and performance that can be applied to a wide range of texts and theatre styles. With close analysis of texts by writers including Shakespeare, Chekhov, Miller, Pinter, and of course Brecht himself, the author demonstrates how Brechtian techniques can provide practical pathways to exploring plays across the canon, as well as non-traditional forms of theatre. Also included are dozens of exercises to help turn theory into practice, and explore what Brecht’s ideas mean for actors and directors, both in training and rehearsal. Whether you’re a student, a teacher, an actor or a theatre-maker, this book will change the way you view and work with Brecht. `Zoob has engaged with Brecht’s many and varied principles for a politicised theatre and channelled them into a wide range of novel and innovative exercises that are applicable to a great many dramas and can equally interrogate devised material… Excellent ’ --David Barnett, Professor of Theatre, University of York, and author of Brecht in Practice Σελίδες: 224, Διαστάσεις: 13.8x13.8cm

THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills Each Good Audition Guide contains a range of fresh monologues, all prefaced with a summary of the vital information you need to place the piece in context and to perform it to maximum effect in your own unique way. Each volume also carries a user-friendly introduction on the whole process of auditioning. Shakespeare Monologues for Young Women contains forty monologues drawn from across the whole of Shakespeare\'s canon. Each speech comes with a neat summary of the vital information (the who, where and when of the speech), plus descriptions of what is happening, what to think about when preparing it, and a glossary. There is also a user-friendly introduction to selecting your speech, tackling Shakespeare\'s language and approaching the audition itself. \'Sound practical advice for anyone attending an audition\' Teaching Drama Magazine on The Good Audition Guides Σελίδες: 104, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills Each Good Audition Guide contains a range of fresh monologues, all prefaced with a summary of the vital information you need to place the piece in context and to perform it to maximum effect in your own unique way. Each volume also carries a user-friendly introduction on the whole process of auditioning. Shakespeare Monologues for Young Men contains forty monologues drawn from across the whole of Shakespeare\'s canon. Each speech comes with a neat summary of the vital information (the who, where and when of the speech), plus descriptions of what is happening, what to think about when preparing it, and a glossary. There is also a user-friendly introduction to selecting your speech, tackling Shakespeare\'s language and approaching the audition itself. \'Sound practical advice for anyone attending an audition\' Teaching Drama Magazine on the Good Audition Guides Σελίδες: 104, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

Drawing on his lifetime career in front of the camera (and sometimes behind it), Denis Lawson offers a wonderfully accessible introduction to acting for film and TV. For the young actor hoping to break into the industry – whether in a drama series, soap or sitcom – this book is the ultimate insider’s guide. In The Actor and the Camera, Denis Lawson takes us on a guided tour of the film or TV set from day one. We meet the various members of the crew, from the director of photography to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd ADs, and learn what each of them does – and how to get the most from them in your work as an actor. Then comes the actual business of shooting the scenes, beginning with readthroughs and rehearsals (if there are any), on to hitting your mark and getting your eye-line right, finishing with the actor’s involvement in post-production.  Throughout, Lawson takes the actor’s point of view, offering encouragement and enlightenment, as well as being refreshingly candid about some of the more inane procedures. Above all, he offers a magnificent array of tips and inside knowledge for coping with what can be a daunting experience for a hopeful young actor. ‘Denis is a great actor and he’s always been my inspiration, since I was a child… He’s the only person really in the world who I discuss acting with if I feel that I’m stuck. I love watching him still.’ Ewan McGregor Σελίδες: 160, Διαστάσεις: 13.8x13.8cm

THE GOOD AUDITION GUIDES: Helping you select and perform the audition piece that is best suited to your performing skills As an actor at any level – whether you are doing theatre studies at school, taking part in youth theatre, preparing for drama-school showcases, or attending professional acting workshops – you will often be required to prepare a duologue with a fellow performer. Your success is often based on locating and selecting a fresh, dynamic scene suited to your specific performing skills, as well as your interplay as a duo. Which is where this book comes in. This collection features twenty-five fantastic duologues for one man and one woman, all written since the year 2000 by some of our most exciting dramatic voices, offering a wide variety of character types and styles of writing. Playwrights featured include Howard Brenton, Jez Butterworth, Caryl Churchill, Sam Holcroft, Anna Jordan, Lucy Kirkwood, Rona Munro, Evan Placey, Jessica Swale and Jack Thorne, and the plays themselves were premiered at the very best theatres across the UK including the National Theatre, Manchester Royal Exchange, the Traverse in Edinburgh, Shakespeare\'s Globe, and the Almeida, Bush, Hampstead and Royal Court Theatres. Drawing on her experience as an actor, director and teacher at several leading drama schools, Trilby James equips each duologue with a thorough introduction including the vital information you need to place the piece in context (the who, what, when, where and why) and suggestions about how to perform the scene to its maximum effect (including the characters\' objectives). The collection also features an introduction on the whole process of selecting and preparing a duologue, and how to present it to the greatest effect. The result is the most comprehensive and useful contemporary duologue book of its kind now available. \'Sound practical advice... a source of inspiration for teachers and students alike\' Teaching Drama Magazine on The Good Audition Guides Σελίδες: 208, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

From the bestselling Drama Games series, this dip-in, flick-through, quick-fire resource book offers dozens of games to serve as a rich source of ideas and inspiration for all actors – and those teaching or directing them. This must-have companion is divided into three sections, each focusing on a different aspect of the actor’s process: Self provides methods to deepen relaxation, sharpen focus, boost energy, expand imagination and enable a company of actors to work collaborativelyCharacter suggests strategies to aid the process of transformation, encouraging actors to explore characteristics that are distinct from their ownAnd Text offers exercises to unlock the words, allowing free and imaginative work within the structure of a script, without losing specificity The games range from solo explorations which can be performed alone, to ideas for pairs and group work – making them suitable for a wide variety of scenarios and requirements. Overall, the book will serve as an essential foundation for every actor’s creativity, helping improve preparation, rehearsal and performance. ‘A mass of invaluable ideas for all ages and all types of actors, amateur or professional. It’s hard to imagine anyone involved in theatre who wouldn’t find it useful.’ Richard Eyre, from his Foreword Σελίδες: 176, Διαστάσεις: 11x11cm

The long-awaited memoir by movie and theatre legend, Brian Cox.A Guardian, Times, Sunday Times and Independent Book of the Year*Featuring a foreword by the executive producer of Succession, Frank Rich*From Titus Andronicus with the RSC to media magnate Logan Roy in HBO\'s Succession, Brian Cox has made his name as an actor of unparalleled distinction and versatility. We know him on screen, but few know of his extraordinary life story.Growing up in Dundee, Scotland, Cox lost his father when he was just eight years old and was brought up by his three elder sisters in the aftermath of his mother\'s nervous breakdowns and ultimate hospitalization. After joining the Dundee Repertory Theatre at the age of fifteen, you could say the rest is history - but that is to overlook the enormous graft that has gone into the making of the legend we know today. This is a rags-to-riches life story like no other - a seminal autobiography that both captures Cox\'s distinctive voice and his very soul.\'One of the best showbiz memoirs ever written... it\'s as funny as it is furious... Brian Cox has done everything and with this book he leaves everyone else standing\' Mail on Sunday\'Absolute heaven\' Sunday Times\'A hugely readable memoir from a giant of stage and screen\' Mark Kermode\'A life well lived and a story well told. From first page to last Brian Cox the great actor is Brian Cox the great storyteller, and nobody is spared his sharp eye and his caustic wit, himself and some big Hollywood names included\' Alastair Campbell\'Laced with his characteristic generosity, self-deprecation and cut-the-crap wisdom\' Harriet Walter\'Mesmerizing\' Peter Biskind\'Blisteringly brilliant\' Bryony Gordon\'Funny and irreverent\' The Times Σελίδες: 400, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0707, Διαστάσεις: 12.8x12.8cm

\'Piercingly honest… witty… wonderful\' - The Observer\'My favourite way to learn is when a funny, clever, honest person is teaching me – that\'s why I love Rosie Wilby!\' - Sara Pascoe\'Funny, sweet, entertaining, insightful, life-affirming...\' – Viv Groskop\'Hilarious, honest and brilliant\' – Helen Thorne\'Rosie Wilby unearths the hope and hilarity that can come from heartbreak\' – Abigail TarttelinIn 2011, comedian and podcaster Rosie Wilby was dumped by email... though she did feel a little better about it after correcting her ex’s spelling and punctuation. Obsessing about breakups ever since, she embarked on a quest to investigate, understand and conquer the psychology of heartbreak. This book is a love letter to her breakups, a celebration of what they have taught her peppered with anecdotes from illustrious friends and interviews with relationship therapists, scientists and sociologists about separating in the modern age of ghosting, breadcrumbing and conscious uncoupling.Mixing humour, memoir and science, she attempts to assimilate their advice and ideas in order to not break up with Girlfriend, her partner of nearly three years. Will this self-confessed serial monogamist, and breakup addict, finally settle down? Σελίδες: 208, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0502, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm

Σελίδες: 90, Έτος Έκδοσης: 0517, Διαστάσεις: 12.4x12.4cm

Get to know a national icon in Eddie Izzard\'s hilarious and dazzling autobiography\'Comic genius . . . Entertainment incarnate\' Telegraph______Star of stage and screen. Tireless supporter of charity. Marathon runner. Political campaigner.Fashion icon. Human.There is no one quite like Eddie Izzard. This is the story of how she broke through.Her relentless optimism has led her to always do things her own way, even if it didn\'t work the first time, and her incredible self-belief has pushed her to keep on trying, even if it didn\'t work the second or third time either.Whether she was putting on teddy bear shows on boarding school beds or swordfighting on the streets of London, Eddie never stopped trying to achieve her dreams of becoming a performer.Brimming with her distinctively surreal humour and disarming candour, Believe Me tells the story of a person who never took no for an answer.______\'This book is a raw, honest exploration of what it means to live your truth, to be unapologetically ambitious. It\'s about being brave. And hilarious\' Chelsea Handler\'Laughter trumps sorrow in candid comedian Eddie Izzard\'s Believe Me\' Vanity Fair\'A comedy gem\' Guardian Σελίδες: 416, Διαστάσεις: 12.9x12.9cm