Thunder in the Air

by Brian Masters

For four hundred years the London stage has nurtured great actors. In this celebration of their achievements, Brian Masters recreates their impact in performance, ranging from Thomas Betterton to David Garrick, Edmund Kean, Mrs Siddons, Henry Irving and dozens of others, close to the present day with Laurence Olivier and John Gielgud. Arguing that the work of great actors does not die with them but is passed down in the work of today's stars, Brian Masters brings together the rich tapestry of a unique tradition, utilising both hilarious anecdotal evidence and historical fact.

300 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1907

About the author

Brian Masters is a British writer best known for his biographies of mass murderers, including Killing for Company, on Dennis Nilsen; The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer; She Must Have Known, on Rosemary West; and The Evil That Men Do. He has also written about the British aristocracy and worked as a translator.

Reviews

[eliseazanotti · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish they would have let Gerda say more.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of a set of "chamber plays" Strindberg wrote in the last 5 years of his life. The staging and characterization are very simple - a few rooms in a Stockholm apartment block and a couple briefly revisiting their failed marriage. The title alludes to the short and intense nature of summer storms - a metaphor employed in an understated way in keeping with the emotional tenor of the play.

[Thomas Atkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and well informed book about great stage actors and actresses by the famous
British author Brian Masters. A masterful work that should be in every library.