Joe Papp: An American Life

Rating:
Summary: review from his neice
Review: havent read all of it yet; but ive read her, the authors first book which is pretty accurate; my uncle was an amazing, dynamic and brilliant innovator in many fields; not only in theatre which he dedicated his life to; but sensitive to all people; because of him homeless people are being given food now; progams he started when he was alive; my whole family have the papp blood; myself as a teacher, linguist, dancer, singer,etc; sister artist;;;this was given to us by my grandfather an immigrant from poland who loved music, yiddish theatre, was an actor, comedian,;;etc. may my uncle, Joseph Papp who has given my mother, and family, never be forgetten; looking forward to getting the book and will follow with unbiased critique

Rating:
Summary: A dense, informative bit of theater history
Review: The story of Joe Papp is the story of a precious stage ofAmerican theater history -- an intensely productive period forAmerican playwrights and New York theater -- and as such, this book is satisfying. The author is a Papp fan, so it's to her credit that this reader found Papp complex and industrious, but not terribly likable or insightful about the theatrical art or craft. As a visionary, his successes are a matter of record -- though no one would want producers to emulate his thoughtless, irresponsible, "raging bull" approach to developing the artistic and financial security of an organization. Yet the man was a force of nature, and his interaction with his community -- documented here in detail -- is of genuine historical interest.