{"product_id":"staging-the-mysterious-mother-9780300263657","title":"Staging \"The Mysterious Mother\"","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe first book-length study of Horace Walpole’s scandalous \u003cem\u003eThe Mysterious Mother\u003c\/em\u003e, including critical essays, an abridged script, and a facsimile edition.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHorace Walpole’s five-act tragedy \u003cem\u003eThe Mysterious Mother\u003c\/em\u003e (1768), a sensational tale of incest and intrigue, was initially circulated only among the author’s friends. Walpole never permitted it to be performed during his lifetime except as a private theatrical. He described his play as a “delicious entertainment for the closet” and claimed that he “did not think it would do for the stage.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eYet the essays in this volume trace a history of private readings, amateur theatricals, and even early public performances, demonstrating that the play was read and performed more than Walpole’s protests suggest. Exploring a wide variety of topics—including the play’s crypto-Catholicism, its treatments of incest, guilt, motherhood, orphans, and scientific spectacle, and the complex relations between print and performance—the essays demonstrate the rich relevance of \u003cem\u003eThe Mysterious Mother\u003c\/em\u003e to current critical discussions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe volume includes the proceedings of a mini-conference hosted at Yale University in 2018 on the occasion of a staged reading of the play. Also included are the director’s reflections, an abridged script, a facsimile of Walpole’s own copy of the full-length play, and reproductions of the illustrations he commissioned from Lady Diana Beauclerk.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47471615377644,"sku":"9780300263657","price":131.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780300263657-staging-the-mysterious-mother.jpg?v=1775247879","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/staging-the-mysterious-mother-9780300263657","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}