Ressler's "Dramatic Changes" is a powerful guide for anyone brave enough to create a space for young people to discuss sexual orientation and gender identity. Her accessible style and tangible suggestions describe a creative and educationally sound approach to supporting youth in thoughtfully wrestling with one of the most controversial social…

Analyzes "Natalie Mann," an unproduced and little-known drama of ideas by Jean Toomer. Discusses the revolutionary feminist treatment of both the female and male characters. (FMW)

A brief reading of "Desire under the Elms" by Eugene O'Neill illustrates how a conventional Oedipal reading of the playscript opens up spaces within the text for deconstructive free-play. In this case, a tension is identified and foregrounded between this conventional application of the Oedipal complex and Freud's interpretation of the…

Asserts that drama is one of the most popular genres among adolescent students. States that it mobilizes their energies, exercises their imaginations, and rewards them for social interaction. Reviews four anthologies of plays for classroom reading in secondary school. (PRA)

Discusses seven books and a film that can help teachers capitalize on the benefits of drama in the classroom. (ARH)

Recommends eight plays from the 1980s which will challenge the thinking of students with issues such as evolving independence of young people, growing up in the context of racism and discrimination, insights into the world of the deaf, and the suffering of humanity during the French Revolution. (MG)

Reviews 15 recent books on Shakespeare appropriate for secondary school teachers and students, including books on films of Shakespeare's plays, a teacher's guide, companions for the plays, acting editions, narrative versions of several plays, a biography, a study of Elizabethan England, and a book of trivia. An elementary-level video is also…

Reviews the prominent portrayals of women as heroes and harbingers of social reconstruction in the dramas of Nigerian playwright Femi Osofisan. Juxtaposes the new class of women whose sound judgment and racial consciousness contrast with that of an older, reactionary class. (FMW)

Attempts to bridge the gap between theater professionals and classroom teachers by annotating some books about theater, including "Scenes: The Unseen People Who Make Theatre Work," which may be used with children of various ages. (MM)

Reviews the work of Penina Muhando, a Tanzanian playwright whose plays are available only in Kiswahili. Synopsizes nine plays and analyzes the use and development of sex and gender roles in her characters to illustrate the problems of sexual and political oppression. (FMW)

Reviews a videocassette, two sound filmstrips, and one set of computer courseware; all intended to motivate students to discover and release the stories within them. (ARH)

This book offers teachers the tools they need to incorporate drama into their language classes. It provides instructions on how to do the following: conduct a drama class; use acting and role-play exercises; select appropriate scripts for language learners; guide students to write their own scripts; and dramatize scripts for performance. Chapter…

Discusses 20 Australian titles published in 1994, including picture books, short story collections, thrillers, poetry, novels, and books with Aboriginal themes, that are suitable for grades 1-12. (JKP)