The theatrical production reinterprets an ancient Chinese legend where a snake spirit becomes a beautiful woman to explore human experiences. Mary Zimmerman brings a fresh perspective to The White Snake, blending themes of transformation and the quest for understanding within a captivating narrative.
A perennial bestseller, The Catholic Children\'s Bible is one of the best-selling titles in the children's market. It has sold well over 1.5 million copies and will be treasured by Catholic children of all ages. Every story in both the Old and the New Testament is extensive with 2 or more chapters for each one and at least one vibrant illustration. Parents and grandparents can read the stories to younger children and most 10-year-olds will enjoy reading on their own. This is a perfect gift for Christmas, birthday, or moving up in school.
Enlivened by rum, mutiny, and buried treasure, Treasure Island is the classic pirates' tale, widely regarded as the forerunner of this genre. After discovering a treasure map, young Jim Hawkins sets off to sea as cabin boy aboard the Hispaniola, where he encounters one of the most unforgettable characters in literary history.
This adaptation of a late sixteenth-century classic Chinese comic novel, Journey to the West, based on Anthony C. Yu’s translation, takes as its point of departure the true story of a seventh-century monk and his fabled pilgrimage from China to India in search of sacred texts. Mixing whimsy with spiritual weight, Zimmerman’s script combines comedy, adventure, and satire in a moving allegory of human perseverance.
'Caxton's Ovid' is a Middle English translation by William Caxton, which he completed in 1480, of a Middle French version of the 'Ovide moralisé en prose II'. This edition presents Book I of the two texts in parallel. 'Caxton's Ovid' and the 'Ovide moralisé en prose II' derive from a wider group of allegorized versions of Ovid's 'Metamorphoses' and represent a synthesis of classical and Christian learning. This edition shows one way in which the Middle Ages accommodated Ovid's 'Metamorphoses': here it is presented as an encyclopaedic compendium in which classical mythology, which combines Ovid's transformation myths with myths from other sources, is enriched with Christian learning, biblical episodes, and other encyclopaedic details. The introduction addresses the question of Caxton as translator, and the edited texts are followed by a commentary and glossary. The volume is the first in a series designed to edit the whole of 'Caxton's Ovid'.
A twelve-member cast enacts Scheherazade's tales of love, lust, comedy, and dreams. Scheherazade's cliffhanger stories prevent her husband, the cruel ruler Shahryar, from murdering her, and after 1,001 nights, Shahryar is cured of his madness, and Scheherazade returns to her family. This adaptation offers a wonderful blend of the lesser-known tales from Arabian Nights with the recurring theme of how the magic of storytelling holds the power to change people. The final scene brings the audience back to a modern day Baghdad with the wail of air raid sirens threatening the rich culture and history that are embodied by these tales.
This dramatic adaptation of Homer's myth begins with a modern young woman who is struggling to understand Robert Fitzgerald's translation of The Odyssey. A classical muse appears, and the young woman becomes the goddess Athena--a tireless advocate for Odysseus in his struggle to get home. With her trademark irreverent and witty twist on classic works, Zimmerman brings to life the story of Odysseus's ten-year journey, depicting his encounters with characters such as Circe, the Cyclops, Poseidon, Calypso, the Sirens, and others.
The narrative reimagines the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, showcasing their perilous journey filled with formidable challenges. Through this voyage, the characters embody the universal themes of unpredictability, emotional depth, and the harsh realities of failure and loss. Mary's adaptation not only highlights the adventure but also reflects on the profound lessons learned along the way, making it a captivating exploration of myth and human experience.
Mary Zimmerman’s The Secret in the Wings adapts a group of lesser-known fairy tales to create a theatrical work that sets their dark mystery against her signature wit and humor. The framing story concerns a child and the frightening babysitter with whom her parents leave her. As the babysitter reads from a book, the characters in each of the tales materialize, with each tale breaking off just at its bleakest moment before giving way to the next one. The central tale is told without interruption, after which each previous tale is successively resumed, with each looming disaster averted. As in Zimmerman’s other productions, here she uses costumes, props, sets, and lighting to brilliant effect, creating images and feelings that render the fairy tales in all their elemental and enduring power.