Media

From its outset the IBS produced two different publications with contributions solicited internationally from scholars and theater people at all stages of their careers. Communications from the International Brecht Society (edited by Gisela Bahr from 1971-77) was originally conceived as a newsletter “for the exchange of ideas and information pertinent to [the IBS members’] ‘common cause.’” The mimeographed brochure of a few pages generally appeared three times a year, but this rhythm was not always maintained. It expanded to a journal format in 1982 under the editorship of Marc Silberman, who also reduced the publication schedule to two issues per year; since then it has featured, besides IBS news and reports, short essays, performance reviews, and bibliographical information. In 2000 the publishing schedule shifted from biannual (with an average of 80 pages) to annual (with over 100 pages). In 2015, Communications ceased publication as a print journal with issue 43-44 (2014-2015) and became an online blog site. See the IBS internet blog.

For print issues of Communications, click here.

The IBS’s second publication, Brecht Yearbook, is devoted to the results of scholarly research. The Yearbook was titled Brecht heute / Brecht Today from 1971-73, then Brecht-Jahrbuch from 1974-80, and thereafter The Brecht Yearbook / Das Brecht-Jahrbuch with individual volume titles. The fact that it was published in Germany and (mostly) in German during its first 10 years gave rise to criticism and complaint among IBS members who were either not academics or not proficient in German, especially from non-German theater practitioners. When Suhrkamp Verlag in Frankfurt am Main cancelled the publication contract after 1980, John Fuegi shifted the production to Wayne State University Press in Michigan under a new editorial board. During the 1980s the widespread interest in Brecht’s writings that had launched the IBS was diminishing, and despite a generational shift in leadership this affected the numerical strength of the society and the frequency of its publications. The Yearbook no longer appeared annually, so that libraries and institutional subscribers began to cancel. When the publisher demanded a very large publication subsidy in 1987, the IBS shifted to independent desktop publishing with vol. 14 (1989), and until 2014 the Brecht Yearbook continued to appear annually, distributed by the University of Wisconsin Press.

In 2016 production shifted to Camden House Publishing with vol. 40.

For vols. 1-42, see the digital Brecht Yearbook, all freely accessible here. It is now possible to download complete pdf-files of each volume.

The IBS has been at the forefront of Internet communications. Its website was launched in 1997 to supplement Communications and has developed into the largest and most informative portal on Bertolt Brecht, most recently adding an IBS Facebook page as well:

https://www.facebook.com/brechtsociety

The IBS also supports an online bibliography of Brecht’s works in English translation.