All the World's a Stage

''Makers of Magic'' traces connections between contemporary theater and ancient religious ritual. Maintaining that theater began not with plays but with actors, Ronald goes back to prehistoric cave paintings and the holiday rituals of ancient Greece. The rituals provided continuity, Mr. Harwood says, ''helping people to come to terms with their ordinary, everyday lives.''

Focuses on the birth of Greek theatre.

Discusses the early history of comedy in the theatre, mostly in Greek and Roman theatre.

Discusses Christianity's influence on early theatre and mystery and morality plays.

Explores the explosion of theatre in the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods.

Covers Shakespeare and his Renaissance contemporaries.

Celebrates the French drama of the seventeenth century. Regarded as a golden age for the genre, the period witnessed Racine perfecting the classical rules, Corneille breaking from the past and Molière caricaturing society rather than ignoring its vices. 'The Vices of Mankind' features extracts from seventeenth-century masterpieces Le Cid, L'Impromptu de Versailles and Tartuffe (performed in a specially reconstructed Tennis Court Theatre, in accordance with the series's strict emphasis on theatrical authenticity), in order to bring the history of French theatre to life.

Covers the Restoration and Restoration theatre.

Discusses theatre amidst the political and social change of the late 18th century and early 19th centuries.

Introduces Ibsen, Shaw, Strindberg, and the creation of a new sort of theatre.

Discusses new acting methods popularized by Constantin Stanislavsky, as well as the works of Anton Chekov.

Discusses Broadway as the crucible of the American theatre, and the explosion of works in New York in the 20th century.

Reflects on the overall history of the theatre and speculates on what works of the modern age will persist.