Overview

W.B. Yeats, the Abbey Theatre, Censorship, and the Irish State: Adding the Half-pence to the Pence utilizes new source material to reconstruct the current understanding of the relationship between the productions of the Abbey Theatre and the politics of the Irish state. This study begins in 1916, at the start of the Irish Revolution and in the midst of the theatre's financial crisis, and it ends with the death of the Abbey Theatre's last surviving founder, W.B. Yeats. To date, histories of the Abbey Theatre have repeated Yeats's assertion that there was no censorship of the theatre in Ireland. However, this study incorporates financial records, government correspondence, Dáil debates, and minutes from the Abbey's directors' meetings to produce surprising conclusions: censorship of the theatre did occur, but it occurred internally rather than by external means. Yeats and his fellow directors privately self-censored plays when there was potential for financial gain, such as in the Abbey's campaign for a state-sponsored reconstruction scheme - the details of which have never been explored prior to this study. Any attempts by the state to directly interfere in the theatre's programme were unsuccessful but were manipulated by the press-savvy Yeats in order to create profitable controversies. Despite Yeats's vocal campaign against censorship, his organisation of the Irish Academy of Letters, and his famous speeches from the Abbey stage decrying the censorship of the 'mob', he was willing to sacrifice the freedom of the artist when he foresaw an opportunity to ensure the longevity of his theatrical enterprise.

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9780199590575

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Reviews

meticulous research Rebecca DMonte, Years Work in English Studies The path toward securing the Abbey's financial stability is the meat of this book, and it is presented in the form of a highly readable thriller thanks in no small part to the author's fast-paced style and access to the directors' minute books ... The timing of this book could not be more appropriate or appreciated. Elizabeth Mannion, Irish Literary Supplement Arrington guides us through the machinations with aplomb, writes with wit and sure-footed poise, and has an avid eye for detail. Altogether, this is a thoroughly enjoyable and stimulating book, one that makes an important contribution to the field. Ben Levitas, University of London In view of the impressive amount of varied material presented, the book will prove of invaluable use to future researchers interested in the historiography of the Abbey Theatre ... Arrington's approach is pragmatic and her methodology allows for the minute financial details to be incorporated into a historical description. Anne Etienne, The Review of English Studies

Arrington guides us through the machinations with aplomb, writes with wit and sure-footed poise, and has an avid eye for detail. Altogether, this is a thoroughly enjoyable and stimulating book, one that makes an important contribution to the field. Ben Levitas, University of London

Arrington guides us through the machinations with aplomb, writes with wit and sure-footed poise, and has an avid eye for detail. Altogether, this is a thoroughly enjoyable and stimulating book, one that makes an important contribution to the field. Ben Levitas, University of London In view of the impressive amount of varied material presented, the book will prove of invaluable use to future researchers interested in the historiography of the Abbey Theatre ... Arrington's approach is pragmatic and her methodology allows for the minute financial details to be incorporated into a historical description. Anne Etienne, The Review of English Studies

Author Information

Lauren Arrington is Lecturer at the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool. She completed a D.Phil at the University of Oxford in 2008 and was subsequently appointed Adrian Research Fellow in English at Darwin College, Cambridge. She also holds an MA in Anglo-Irish Literature and Drama from University College Dublin and a BA in English from Carson-Newman College, Jefferson City, Tennessee. She grew up in Levy County, Florida.

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