Strindberg's Secret Codes
Freddie Rokem
Norwich: Norvik Press, 2004
Freddie Rokem
Norwich: Norvik Press, 2004
Strindberg's works are enigmatic, taking the form of riddles that constantly ask readers, directors, actors and spectators to find new and creative solutions. Focusing on the plays, these original and searching essays seek to uncover the hidden secrets of Strindberg's codes as a writer. They include studies of many of his most celebrated works, including Miss Julie, The Father, The Dance of Death, Creditors, and the chamber plays, which are subjected both to close textual readings and analysed in performance. Freddie Rokem explores their unconscious processes and compares Strindberg's complex but endlessly fascinating project with the work of Ibsen and Freud in what is one of the most challenging books on his theatre in recent year.
Freddie Rokem is Professor of Theatre Studies at Tel Aviv University where he is presently the Dean of the Faculty of the Arts. He has published widely on contemporary Scandinavian drama, including Theatrical Space in Ibsen, Chekhov, and Strindberg (1986). His most recent book, Performing History: Theatrical Representations of the Past in Contemporary Theatre, received the Athens Prize in 2001.