Prison Theatre and the Global Crisis of Incarceration, by Ashley E. Lucas

Abstract

Prison Theatre and the Global Crisis of Incarceration is an excellent collection of essays about a population of people who are not supposed to be studied. As the chapters make clear, modern prisons have been built and maintained in ways that make it very difficult for those in the outside world to have access. Ashley Lucas, the main author of the book, has done a brilliant job navigating the methodological difficulties that arise when studying prison theatre. Most importantly, she has written a complex, humanizing, and heart-wrenching study that makes the prison performances on the page come alive for the reader. Indeed, because her writing is so visual, most readers should be able to picture the performances in their minds.