French Literature Reviews - 2026

Émeline Jouve, Un siècle d'avant-garde. Essai sur le théâtre étatsunien
Theatre and Performance

While the theatrical avant-garde has been the subject of relatively few publications, American theater more broadly is also somewhat underrepresented on our bookshelves. Even though American culture is ubiquitous, finding information specific to its theatrical traditions is not always easy. This book was conceived to fill this gap, offering a broad audience an introduction to the history of the US stage and some of its most prominent figures. Special attention has been paid to the writing style to ensure the book remains accessible to the general reader. Whenever theoretical terms are introduced, definitions can be found in the glossary provided at the end of the volume.

The book uncovers three generations of the avant-garde: the first wave, corresponding to the birth of a native theater, spans from 1910 to 1940; the second wave is a post-WWII phenomenon lasting until the 1970s; and the third wave follows directly from the previous one and extends to the present day. It is the shifting stance of rebel artists toward establishment institutions—epitomized by Broadway—that allows for the identification of three distinct trends in the history of the American avant-garde.

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Un siècle d’avant-garde. Essai sur le théâtre étasunien is an immersion into the history of New York theater viewed through an avant-garde lens. Until now, the concept of the avant-garde in the United States has largely been reserved for theatrical forms emerging immediately after the Second World War. This restrictive chronological framing fails to do justice to the aesthetically innovative and politically subversive works that existed before the 1950s and after the 1970s. The book therefore proposes moving beyond the limiting concept of the historical avant-garde, approaching the creation of iconoclastic plays through the framework of the so-called experimental avant-garde.

Three avant-garde waves are thus brought to light: the first wave corresponds to the birth of a native theater and spans from 1910 to 1940; the second wave is a postwar phenomenon lasting until the 1970s; and the third wave extends to the present day.

In addition to redefining the avant-garde to honor the experimental impulse that shaped a marginalized theater, Un siècle d'avant-garde offers a comprehensive overview of American drama. While the presentation of US theater history does not claim to be exhaustive, the conclusions drawn from these theatrical productions provide a clear roadmap for exploring a century of predominantly New York-based experimental creation.

The study of the theatrical avant-garde often focuses on European movements, yet the American tradition developed its own distinct trajectory through a persistent tension with mainstream institutions like Broadway. By examining the evolution of iconoclastic plays from 1910 to the present, the work situates these creative shifts within a broader history of New York stagecraft. The author organizes this progression into three specific waves, moving away from narrower definitions that previously limited the avant-garde to the post-World War II era. Readers interested in the history of experimental performance may find this overview of the American stage relevant.

This volume addresses the development of a native American theater by analyzing the shifting relationship between rebel artists and the theatrical establishment. By extending the chronological scope of the avant-garde beyond the mid-twentieth century, the text highlights the continuity of subversive and aesthetically innovative practices. The analysis emphasizes the experimental impulse that has characterized marginalized theatrical forms throughout the last century. Through the lens of these three waves, the book provides a structured introduction to the figures and trends that have shaped the history of US drama, while offering a glossary to clarify the theoretical terms used throughout the discussion.