Tom Stoppard's Arcadia (Modern Theatre Guides) Paperback – March 6, 2009

This guide is tied for 1st for insightfulness (the other being the 4-plays Faber Critical guide that included Arcadia.) This guide though is very much the full story. All the usual re. chaos theory, iterated equations, romantic vs age of reason, and so on. BUT ALSO all about the performances, Stoppard, Stoppard's writing, and points such as Stoppard writes ideas and isn't concerned with developing a character; that's not his goal. The character serves the ideas he wants to be expressed (with good articulation -- literally too [primary for actor is good enunciation, according to stoppard].) This kind of tidbit might not appear in other insightful guides. But this fact is not why to get this guide. The fact, rather, shows the breadth of scope. Everything is covered -- except for text notes. (For those get the excellent Faber guide. You do probably need that because the text notes are NOT limited to the science-y stuff. You probably don't know a lot of the history, geography, 19th C vernacular, etc.) So that (text notes) is the ONLY thing missing in this guide. This guide even shows some very subtle aspects such as how blocking and other subtleties can enhance the text and messages and plot that Stoppard designed. Then, to those who don't know what kind of thing "workshopping" a play is -- like I didn't -- well that is an eye-opener. Not about Stoppard. Not about Arcadia. But about acting (I know, like of course), but also this: about acting pedagogy / methodology. Like what kind of things TO DO to get acting better. So inventive are some of those to-do's. In fact ONE method is so creative there is even text in the book that explains/justifies that method of getting better acting. So this is a bonus if you are only a theatre-goer or plays reader. You will learn, indeed how actors learn stuff regarding their roles and acting. Interestingly when I did a couple times have an after-the-play opportunity with the actors or director, a question I asked was kind of like some of the workshop stuff. But I won't go into that here.IN SUMMARY, this guide has everything you can think of, plus MORE than you could think of, EXCEPT no text notes. Buy this and Faber, the latter for the text notes (plus coverage of the grand ideas too). Then you will be all set to savor Arcadia to the max. (It goes without saying [this guide does say it though], you MUST have the play text. So that's a third book you'll need.)Finally, Aracadia is so wonderful that you CAN just read the text -- especially if you have seen a live performance. I've done that many a time. Nothing is lost (and no fear to be had either) in "over-analyzing". In fact some nuances actually do enrich your enjoyment of the text. And the final, finally, I saw the play twice, by the same company. Outstanding! (Howard Community College, MD, near Washington DC metro area. Critics gave not just the play but the actors outstanding reviews. I doubt there ever was a better Septimus anywhere, for example.)Enjoy and analyze as much as you like with no fear of the joy going out. Not with Arcadia.

I taught Arcadia to high school students in an Advanced Placement English class in Istanbul, and this text was an immensely useful guide for examining motifs, themes and characterization, as well as background on Stoppard. If only there had been a chapter on iterated integers for the mathematically challenged, it would have been a perfect guide.

The contents are accurate and informative, but there just isn't enough "stuff" here. I expected to see more excerpts from the actual script.

I am a theatre director and a college professor. I think this book is very helpful in understanding the myriad strands of this brilliant play. I plan on purchasing it for all my actors. It's a great way to begin research!

While helpful in placing "Arcadia" in the context of Stoppard's intellectual career, this book is a good deal drier, more superficial, and less nuanced than the play. In my opinion, it is not necessary for, or even particularly helpful to a rich appreciation of reading and watching the play.

This is by far the most informative and excellent critique of Arcadia that I have read. It gives fascinating information on staging, structure of the play, details on Stoppard himself and very relevant critics reviews. A must if you are studying this play, putting on the play or studying Arcadia for A'Level. It makes for a gripping read that is both intellectually stimulating and yet also accessible. The best book I have bought for a long time. Excellent!

Useful - probably more so for drama students than lit students in terms of the types of activity it suggests at the end.

I thought it was brilliant, hilarious and even moving, and it's perfect for A2 coursework, which was what I needed it for.

When I saw this play performed in Edmonton at the Citadel Theatre, I had trouble trying to perceive what the intention of the play was. There was a lot of information about chaos theory, determinism etc., along with scene changes from past to present day. I looked up Arcadia online, and the impression I got was that this would be a play about an idyllic paradise. It also presented me with a picture of Nicholas Poussin's painting The Shepherds of Arcadia, or, Et in Arcadia Ego. In the painting the shepherds puzzle over the latin inscription on a tomb. Et in Arcadia Ego is a sort of "Momento Mori" phrase. Momento Mori meaning: don't forget, you too will die. The inscription meant " I too, once lived in Arcadia.", or " Even in Arcadia, death holds sway." Well, this was puzzling to me because that did not seem to be what the play was about, although, there are some parts of the play that could be attributed to this aspect of deterministic thought. But the analysis of the play was much more detailed than that and really gave me more insight into what all of the science and mathematical references in the play were about. I would definitely recommend the book by John Fleming of the University of Texas for anyone interested in the play or in Tom Stoppard in general. There are plenty of reference works, websites and further reading recommended in the book as well.