Tom Bryant is our fields leading dramaturg, especially when it comes to creating gripping plays rooted in United States history. His brilliance shines through every chapter of this book with his open-hearted collaborative nature, his uncanny ability to raise dramatic stakes, and his clear-eyed focus.
Bill Rauch, Artistic Director, Perelman Performing Arts Center, USA
This is it. When a significant art form lacks the literature to build crucial and necessary works, It takes a supple and very experienced mind to connect the important dots. This book does that. American playwrighting is deficient in its ability to take on the history of the country. By exploring some of the most significant players in that field doing groundbreaking work, Tom Bryant opens up for all of us the work in creating plays about our history.
Vincent Murphy, Professor at Theater Emory, USA
Tom Bryant has been in the trenches, working intimately with wonderful playwrights who have benefited by his insight, research, intelligence and passion. He is a dramaturg who elevates our whole profession, as at home in a research library as he is in a rehearsal room. This book is a wonderful resource for those who want to be in the room where it happens.
Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director of the Public Theater and Professor of Dramatic Writing and Arts and Public Policy, New York University, USA
