Introduction

This Introduction outlines the structure of the book as it surveys contemporary Irish theatre from 1957 to the present in a two-part structure. Part I: Histories, situates the theatrical activity of twentieth- and twenty-first-century Ireland within its social and political contexts, identifies key practitioners, landmark productions, institutions, festivals and seminal revivals. Part II: Theories, offers five key theoretical frameworks—nationnation, languagelanguage, bodybody, spacespace and interculturalism—to examine contemporary Irish theatre practices in the Republic and Northern Ireland. The deliberate decentralising of the play text and playwright as the most important nodal points for understanding the progression of contemporary Irish theatre is argued and the decision to foreground the contributions of artistic directors, scenographers, actors, directors, activists and administrators justified.