Brecht in India: The Poetics and Politics of Transcultural Theatre by Prateek (review)

Abstract

whole one might like. Some chapters seem more grounded in Quinn’s examinations of “liberty” and “revolution” in performance while in others the subjects seem disconnected or forced (this is especially true of the last chapter in the text). In addition, while this book is much needed, much more remains in terms of combining Quinn’s new scholarship with the other, better known proletarian theatre movements of the Meiji and Taishō eras; one hopes that this will be Quinn’s next project. Finally, there are several small typographical errors in the text which could cause confusion for the readers. Despite these small objections, Performing the Politics is an exceptional work of scholarship. Quinn is to be commended for his examination and reclamation of works by artists such as Sasaki Takamaru and Sudō Sadanori; these artists are under-represented in English scholarshipand their presencehere ismore thanwelcome. Inaddition,he demonstrates an admirable scholarly practice of including the Japanese textsof theplayshementionsaswell ashisaccomplishedtranslationsof the text. This inclusion is key because, as the text suggests, translation, especially of terms like liberty and revolution, is key to his central argument. Quinn’s work is excellent reading for those interested in Japanese theatre, political theatre, andmodernity and translation studies.