Overview

This handbook aims mainly at an analytical documentation of all the known textual remnants and the preserved artifacts of Arabic shadow theatre, a long-lived, and still living, tradition — from the earliest sightings in the tenth century to the turn of the twentieth century. The book consists of three main parts and a cluster of appendixes. Part One presents a history of Arab shadow theatre through a survey of medieval and premodern accounts and modern scholarship on the subject. Part Two takes stock of primary sources (manuscripts), published studies, and the current knowledge of various aspects of Arabic shadow theatre: language, style, terminology, and performance. Part Three offers an inventory of all known Arabic shadow plays. The documentation is based on manuscripts (largely unpublished), printed texts (scripts, excerpts), academic studies (in Arabic and Western languages), journalist reportage, and shadow play artifacts from collections worldwide.

Full Product Details

Author:   Li Guo
Publisher:   Brill
Imprint:   Brill
Volume:   143
Weight:   0.509kg
ISBN:  

9789004729605

ISBN 10:   9004729607
Pages:   286
Publication Date:   06 February 2025
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Available To Order  
We have confirmation that this item is in stock with the supplier. It will be ordered in for you and dispatched immediately.

Table of Contents

Preface List of Figures part 1: Research 1 Arabic Shadow Theatre in Historical Sources  1 Late ʿAbbasid Accounts (c. 1000–1250)  2 Mamluk Accounts (c. 1250–1517)  3 Ottoman Accounts (c. 1517–1900)  4 Western Visitors’ Accounts (c. 1760–1900) 2 Early Modern Scholarship  1 Orientalism and Arab Shadow Theatre: c. 1890–1945  2 Early Arab Scholarship: c. 1900–1950 3 New Studies  1 Western Scholarship Since the 1950s  2 Arab Research Activities Since the 1950s part 2: Resources 4 Primary Sources: Manuscripts and Artifacts  1 Manuscripts  2 Shadow Figures 5 Language, Style, and Terminology  1 Content and Language  2 Songs in the Shadow Play: Canonic and Non-Canonic Verses  3 Terminology 6 Performance  1 Scenes from Medieval Cairo  2 Shadow Theatre of the Ottoman Time  3 Scenes from Early Modern Era part 3: Repertoires 7 Medieval Arabic Shadow Plays: Ibn Dāniyāl and Others  1 Ibn Dāniyāl’s Three Plays  2 An Unconfirmed Mamluk Shadow Play 8 Ottoman Egyptian Shadow Plays  1 Sources  2 An Original Description of the Repertoire  3 Six Early Ottoman Egyptian Shadow Plays 9 Late Ottoman and Early Modern Egyptian Plays  1 Four Egyptian Shadow Plays of Late Ottoman Time  2 Short Plays from Early Modern Egypt 10 Syrian and Levantine Plays  1 An Overview  2 Lebanon  3 Syria, Damascus  4 Syria, Aleppo  5 Syria, the Coastal Region  6 Other Syrian Plays 11 North African Plays  1 The Maghreb: Tunisia and Algeria  2 Libya Epilogue: Notes from the Field Arabic Shadow Theatre Today Appendix 1: Arabic Shadow Plays: an Inventory Appendix 2: Shadow Theatre in Premodern Arabic Poetry  1 The Prime Metaphor: God, Reality, and Shadow Play  2 Performance as Illusions Making and Performer as Illusionist Appendix 3: The Cast  1 Egypt  2 Syria and the Levant  3 Tunisia and Algeria  4 Libya Appendix 4: The Programme of a Layla Celebration Appendix 5: Glossary (Arabic – English) Bibliography Index

Reviews

""Li Guo's Arabic Shadow Theatre 1300-1900: A Handbook is a sweeping survey and interesting introduction to all things shadowy and theatrical. It is rare to say that an academic study is a joy to read, but this book certainly proved to be the case. […] it is well worth engaging with and will stimulate discussions about theatre and shadow theatre beyond the Arab world."" Usman Butt, in Middle East Monitor (2020) “No standard work on the subject has been produced until now […] Dozens of synopses of plots, together with some translations are especially valuable.” Caroline Stone, in AramcoWorld “This handbook still has an inevitable focus on Ibn Dāniyāl and Egypt, but expands the boundaries of research in several directions, covering the role of German Orientalists and the rich tradition from the Levant. It admits that some areas still need investigation, especially considering the lack of material from Iraq, Morocco, and the period prior to the nineteenth century except for Egypt. Arabic shadow theatre is a kaleidoscope that can be used to look at cultural traditions and entertainment from an original angle.” Cristina Dozio, Zeitschrift Orientalistische Literaturzeitung , 117.3 (2022).

Author Information

Li Guo, Ph.D. (1994), Yale University, is Professor of Arabic at the University of Notre Dame. His most recent book, The Performing Arts in Medieval Islam: Shadow play and popular poetry in Ibn Daniyal’s Mamluk Cairo (Brill, 2012) is the winner of the IIM Prize for Research in the category “New conceptual tools,” Institut International de la Marionnette, France, 2015.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions