Robert Leach

This book traces the career of the Russian revolutionary theatre director, Vsevolod Meyerhold, from his early years as a founding member of the Moscow Art Theatre with Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko, through his Symbolist period, his experiments with commedia dell'arte and other popular forms, to his demise in the Stalin era. Leach describes in detail Meyerhold's 'system' of theatre: his attitude to the audience, the place of the fore stage, 'biomechanics' and actor training, and the importance of the mise-en-scène. Finally, Leach explores Meyerhold's legacy, which can be detected in the work of Brecht, Eisenstein, Peter Brook and others.… (meer)

Leach does a fantastic job of reconstructing information to create an in-depth overview of Meyerhold's life and work. However, I don't think he did as great of a job relaying that information to us - the layout of the book is poorly organized, and some of the subjects (such as Biometrics, which Leach has spent the better part of ten years studying) are sadly superficial. As scholarship goes, it consolidates and disseminates invaluable information regarding Meyerhold's life and career, but it does so without providing a vast amount of insight. It did leave me with a renewed appreciation of Meyerhold's artistry, but also with a renewed thirst for additional resources.… (meer)