From Library Journal Addressing an obscure era in our native theater, McConachie (theater, Coll. of William and Mary) offers a Marxist critique of mid-19th century American society. Theater reflected dominant political and social attitudes of the period, he argues, and its audience changed over time. An elite, paternalistic, and mostly masculine group patronized fairy tale melodramas; then heroic and apocalyptic theater attracted a mixed class of spectators; finally, a family audience, including women for the first time, came to see moralistic dramas. Strong on social and textual criticism, McConachie's analysis nevertheless fails to bring the age alive. This is an important academic study--not much work has been done on the period--but it needs a scholar with imagination and storytelling power to re-create this tumultuous time. Recommended for professionals only. - Thomas E. Luddy, Salem State Coll. , Mass. Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.