Theater seems of little interest to the Times staff who put together the 100 Notable Books of 2024. Published plays are ignored (although books of poetry are included), and their annual list rarely features books about theater or by theater artists. As a public service I’ve scanned this year’s list to select a half dozen that might reasonably be considered of particular interest to theater lovers, listed from most likely to a stretch. I hope this encourages the Times to expand its concept of what’s notable.
The descriptions come directly from the Times, and the titles are linked to the full Times reviews. I’ve added a link to the books’ Amazon page, and a brief explanation of the theatrical connection.
COCKTAILS WITH GEORGE AND MARTHA by Philip Gefter
Rarely seen diary entries from the screenwriter who adapted Edward Albee’s Broadway hit are a highlight of this unapologetically obsessive behind-the-scenes look at the classic film starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Amazon page
As I wrote in my review of the book, Gefter “devotes ten of its thirteen chapters to the making of the movie, and only the first three to the playwright and the play. Those three chapters are rich enough in detail, and revelation – or at least speculation — to intrigue most theater lovers”
THE SWANS OF HARLEM by Karen Valby
For those who believe that the narrative of Black prima ballerinas begins and ends with Misty Copeland, Valby’s rich, prismatic portrait of the five dancers who formed the core of the Dance Theater of Harlem’s inaugural 1969 class offers a joyful and spirited corrective.Amazon page
It’s dance theater; in addition, at least one of the ballerinas performed on Broadway.
THE BLACK BOX by Henry Louis Gates Jr.
In his latest book, the Harvard scholar shows how African American writers have used the written word to shape their reality despite constraints imposed on them from outside, using the metaphor of the box to reflect ordeals withstood and survived since Africans were first brought to this continent.Amazon page
Gates includes some novelists (such as Zora Neale Hurston, James Baldwin and Richard Wright) who were also playwrights, although theater wasn’t their main focus..
OUR EVENINGS by Alan Hollinghurst
Hollinghurst’s latest brings readers deep into the trials and tribulations of Dave Win, an English Burmese actor confronting confusing relationships, his emerging sexuality, racism and England’s changing political climate over the course of his life, all tied together by Hollinghurst’s keen eye and affecting prose. Amazon page
The main character is an actor
GREAT EXPECTATIONS by Vinson Cunningham
In this impressive first novel, a Black campaign aide coolly observes as aspiring power players angle to connect with a candidate who more than resembles Barack Obama. Amazon page,
Cunningham is a theater critic for the New Yorker Magazine
LANGUAGE CITY by Ross Perlin
In this history of New York, Perlin, a linguist, focuses on residents fighting to preserve their spoken heritages. The result is sweeping and intimate, simultaneously a call to arms and a tribute to a place that contains almost as many tongues as speakers. Amazon page
I list this book because it was adapted into a live show that was presented for free this summer in one of the theaters on Little Island.
If you purchase one of these books through the Amazon page, I earn an affiliate commission.
