The Hamilton Phenomenon

Edited by Chloe Northrop, Tarrant County College

ISBN: 978-1-64889-125-0
Availability: Pre-order
248pp. ¦ $83 £64 €71

'The Hamilton Phenomenon' brings together a diverse group of scholars including university professors and librarians, educators at community colleges, Ph.D. candidates and independent scholars, in an exploration of the celebrated Broadway hit. When Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical sensation erupted onto Broadway in 2015, scholars were underprepared for the impact the theatrical experience would have. Miranda’s use of rap, hip-hop, jazz, and Broadway show tunes provides the basis for this whirlwind showcase of America’s past through a reinterpretation of eighteenth-century history. Bound together by their shared interest in 'Hamilton: an American Musical', the authors in this volume diverge from a common touchstone to uncover the unique moment presented by this phenomenon. The two parts of this book feature different emerging themes, ranging from the meaning of the musical on stage, to how the musical is impacting pedagogy and teaching in the 21st century. The first part places Hamilton in the history of theatrical performances of the American Revolution, compares it with other musicals, and fleshes out the significance of postcolonial studies within theatrical performances. Esteemed scholars and educators provide the basis for the second part with insights on the efficacy, benefits, and pitfalls of teaching using Hamilton. Although other scholarly works have debated the historical accuracy of Hamilton, 'The Hamilton Phenomenon' benefits from more distance from the release of the musical, as well as the dissemination of the hit through traveling productions and the summer 2020 release on Disney+. Through critically engaging with Hamilton these authors unfold new insights on early American history, pedagogy, costume, race in theatrical performances, and the role of theatre in crafting interest in history.

Staging and Stage Décor: Early Modern Spanish Theater

Edited by Bárbara Mujica, Georgetown University

ISBN: 978-1-64889-346-9
Availability: Pre-order
$84 £65 €72

This is the first book on staging and stage décor to focus specifically on early modern Spanish theater, from the 16th to the early 20th centuries. The introduction provides an overview of Spanish theater design from the 16th century, with particular attention to the corral theater and Lope de Vega. The scope of the book is vast, with some of the articles deal with early modern stagings, while others deal with contemporary productions. It contains articles by an international array of specialists on topics such as stage décor and costuming, lighting, and performance space. It also broaches little-studied areas such as the use of alternative performance spaces, most notably prisons. The book provides in-depth analyses of particular archetypes - the melancholiac, the queen, the astrologer - and how they were, and are, staged. The focus on performance and performance space, costuming, set design, lighting, and audience seating make this a truly unique volume. This book is aimed at students of Spanish literature and theater, researchers interested in theater history and early modern Spain, as well as specialists in Spanish theater.

John Lenthall, The Life of a Naval Constructor

Stephen Chapin Kinnaman

ISBN: 978-1-64889-348-3
Availability: Pre-order
$77 £56 €64

Many stirring words have been written about the heroic deeds of the officers and the men of the U.S Navy before, during and after the Civil War. But very little has been published about the naval constructors who built the warships that made their exploits possible. Of all of the Navy’s constructors of this era, none had more impact than John Lenthall. A native of Washington D.C and the son of an ambitious English artisan, John Lenthall designed the early steamer Susquehanna and the large Merrimack class steam frigates, also working on the construction of Princeton, the world’s first war steamer designed with a screw propeller. His stellar rise through the ranks of U.S. naval constructors soon led to his appointment as the chief of the Bureau of Construction and Repair, the highest-ranking naval architect. Bred to the intricacies of Washington’s bureaucracy, John Lenthall was a survivor and continued on as bureau chief throughout the unrelenting turmoil of the Civil War. It was only during the first years of the notorious Secretary Robeson’s reign that Lenthall was finally moved aside. By then, he had served for over seventeen years, a recording that has never been equaled. “John Lenthall: The Life of a Naval Constructor” is thoroughly documented with previously untapped primary archival source material, offering historical insights, gripping narratives and illustrations that have never appeared before in print. It presents the results of ground-breaking original research on a subject that has never been fully explored. Kinnaman’s treatment of Lenthall and the legacy of his fellow constructors brings to life a previously untold chronicle of American ingenuity and achievement.

Arquitectura Sostenible: Entre Medición y Significado

Edited by Carmela Cucuzzella, Concordia University and Sherif Goubran, The American University in Cairo, Egypt

ISBN: 978-1-64889-337-7
Availability: Pre-order
$49 £36 €41

Cada día, nuevos artículos, libros e informes presentan nuevos métodos, estándares y tecnologías para lograr la sostenibilidad en arquitectura. Además, los nuevos materiales, dispositivos tecnológicos y datos se consideran cada vez más los elementos básicos del futuro de la arquitectura. A medida que adoptamos cada vez más este avance tecnológico, debemos ser igualmente conscientes de que podemos estar empujando la arquitectura hacia una ciencia administrativa y alejándonos de sus preocupaciones centrales, como la expresión, la contextualidad, la funcionalidad y la estética. La arquitectura sostenible que se centra en las medidas abstractas de consumo, energía y emisiones pierde de vista el papel vital que tiene la arquitectura en nuestro mundo: es el campo que crea nuestros espacios públicos y nuestros lugares de vivienda, de negocio, de producción, del ocio y la creación. Además, no comprende la dimensión humana de los edificios, como elementos que están profundamente conectados con los contextos históricos de sus lugares, y que juegan un papel clave en la definición de nuestras relaciones sociales y nuestra conexión con los espacios que ocupamos y utilizamos. 'Arquitectura Sostenible: Entre Medición y Significado' da un paso atrás para reflexionar sobre cómo la sostenibilidad en el entorno construido puede teorizarse y practicarse críticamente. Este libro expone que la arquitectura sigue siendo una ciencia humana y social que se encuentra en la intersección de medidas y significados. Revela que la arquitectura sostenible todavía puede operar en un espacio dialéctico de expresión, en lugar de servir como un manifiesto de los extremos técnicos o socioculturales. Pretende que la intuición, los sentidos y las habilidades humanas todavía tienen la clave para desentrañar futuros alternativos de espacios construidos sostenibles. Y lo más importante es que los humanos todavía tienen un lugar en la arquitectura sostenible. Este libro será de interés para estudiantes, académicos que inician su carrera, investigadores establecidos y profesionales que estudian la sostenibilidad en el entorno construido. Puede usarse como referencia para aquellos en los campos del diseño, arquitectura, paisaje y diseño urbano, estudios urbanos, geografía, ciencias sociales e ingeniería.

The Associational Counter-Revolution: The Spread of Restrictive Civil Society Laws in the World’s Strongest Democratic States

Chrystie Flournoy Swiney, Bloomberg Philanthropies

ISBN: 978-1-64889-182-3
Availability: Pre-order
$45 £33 €38

In an increasing number of countries around the globe, representing all regime types, in all regions, with all levels of economic and military strength, civil society’s autonomy from the state, its defining feature, is diminishing. While a variety of tools are used to restrict civil society organizations’ (CSOs) independence from the state, an increasingly popular and dangerously effective vehicle for accomplishing this goal is the law. Through the passage of legislation that imposes new restrictions on the ability of CSOs to operate free from excessive government scrutiny and control, governmental actors are gaining greater control over the non-governmental sector and in ways that benefit from the veneer of legality. Perplexingly, such laws are not only appearing in countries where they might be expected -- Azerbaijan, Burundi, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Russia, Zimbabwe, and countries throughout the Middle East. Indeed, they are increasingly appearing in democratic states too, including strong, fully consolidated democratic states with historically strong and independent civil society sectors: Canada, India, New Zealand, Spain, Israel, Hungary, Poland, and the US, to name just a few. Restrictive CSO laws, which are unsurprising in authoritarian-leaning states, are uniquely puzzling in the context of democratic ones, which have been the primary defenders, funders, and champions of a robust and independent civil society. This book explores this concerning and intriguing phenomenon by documenting its full scope and spread within the world’s strongest democratic states and attempting to explain its occurrence. Using a combination of mixed methods -- theory, process tracing, interviews, and statistical analysis – this timely analysis helps to shed light on a global phenomenon that seems to be fueling the democratic backsliding visible in an increasing number of democracies throughout the world. This exploration, which bridges comparative and international law, international relations, democratic theory, and state-civil society relations, attempts to make sense of this global contagion, the closing space phenomenon, which threatens to undermine one of cornerstones of any democracy – a free and independent civil society -- in the years and decades ahead.