1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910774760503321

Autore

Farmer Paul

Titolo

After the Miners' Strike : A39 and Cornish Political Theatre Versus Thatcher's Britain: Volume 1

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cambridge, UK : , : Open Book Publishers, , 2023

©2023

ISBN

1-80064-914-2

Edizione

[1st ed.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (284 pages)

Altri autori (Persone)

HillmanRebecca

KilburnMark

Disciplina

792.022

Soggetti

Agitprop theater - England - Cornwall (County) - History - 20th century

Workers' theater - England - Cornwall (County) - History - 20th century

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Preface / Rebecca Hillman -- Introduction / Paul Farmer -- 1. A Tour through the Miners' Strike / Paul Farmer -- 2. Into A39 / Paul Farmer -- 3. One & All! / Paul Farmer -- 4. Street Theatre and Cabaret / Paul Farmer -- 5. Touring One & All! / Paul Farmer -- 6. A39 International / Paul Farmer -- 7. A39 and the Tin Crisis / Paul Farmer -- 8. A39 Into 1986: The State of Things / Paul Farmer -- 9. Building the New Show / Paul Farmer -- 10. 'How much easier it is to honour the dead than to value the living'-The Tale of Trevithick's Tower / Paul Farmer -- 11. One & All! An unofficial history of Cornish tin mining / Paul Farmer, Mark Kilburn -- 12. The Tale of Trevithick's Tower / Paul Farmer, Mark Kilburn.

Sommario/riassunto

"In this rich memoir, the first of two volumes, Paul Farmer traces the story of A39, the Cornish political theatre group he co-founded and ran from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. Farmer offers a unique insight into A39's creation, operation, and artistic practice during a period of convulsive political and social change. The reader is plunged into the national miners' strike and the collapse of Cornish tin mining, the impact of Thatcherism and 'Reaganomics', and the experience of touring Germany on the brink of reunification, alongside the influence on A39 of writers Bertolt Brecht, John McGrath and Keith Johnstone.



Farmer, a former bus driver turned artistic director, details the theatre group's inception and development as it fought to break down social barriers, attract audiences, and survive with little more than a beaten-up Renault 12, a photocopier and two second-hand stage lights at its disposal: the book traces the progress from these raw materials to the development of an integrated community theatre practice for Cornwall. Farmer's candour and humour enliven this unique insight into 1980s theatre and politics. It will appeal to anyone with an interest in theatre history, life in Cornwall, and the relationship between performance and society during a turbulent era."--Publisher's website.