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or Münster could only dream of. They were subject to much stronger
influence from their local authorities.
Another limitation of the volume is that it does not deal convincingly
with the question of the influence the audience had on the
repertoire. In his introductory chapter London mentions the failure
of contemporary Nazi drama, but his assertion that overtly propagandistic
drama played only a marginal role ‘because direct allusions
to the present were officially limited’ (p. 23) by decrees is only partly
true. We must distinguish between the first season after the Nazi
take-over (1933–4) and later ones. Propagandistic drama indeed
played an important role during the first ‘national’ season. Audience
reaction, however, was poor and attendance in many theatres
declined. To reach the expected records in attendance figures
Intendanten had to find alternatives to grave and stiff Nazi drama,
which all too often was also of poor quality. The reason for the failure
of the overtly propagandistic drama, therefore, seems to have
been a lukewarm reception rather than political directives. Apart
from these shortcomings, however, John London is successful in filling
a gap and providing a balanced account of recent research to a
broad, English-speaking readership. Although most of the contributors
do not present ground-breaking new research, the volume can
only be recommended.
ANSELM HEINRICH graduated from the University of Münster and
is currently working on a Ph.D. at the University of Hull. His thesis
is entitled ‘Entertainment at War. Provincial Theatres in England and
Germany and their Programmes During the Second World War. The
Städtische Bühnen in Münster and the Theatre Royal in York between
War Politics, Cultural Ambition and Public Taste’. At present he is
teaching theatre history and modern German theatre in the Drama
Department at the University of Hull.
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Theatre under the Nazis