J. P. Wearing - Critical Reception of Wearing's Works

Critical Reception of Wearing's Works

Wearing's careful research and concise writing have been much praised. For example, his volume of the collected letters of Arthur Wing Pinero was called "probably the most important material published on Pinero since his death.... Wearing has written an excellent introduction and valuable explanatory headnotes for each letter, a task that looks deceptively easy." A review of Wearing's 16-volume series on the London Stage stated: "In his remarkable series, J. P. Wearing... has chosen to give us a chronological listing of works... presented in major London theatres since 1890, a series now covering seven decades. I know of no other venture on this scale making available the theatrical riches of a great modern city in this detailed way.... Here is a wonderful place to start research." Other reviews call the London Stage volumes "invaluable" and "thoroughly accurate" and state: "here is a proverbial mine of useful information here, sensibly organized and, within, well indexed. Scholarship on the theatre covered by these volumes will surely become a rich beneficiary of Wearing's industry and good judgment."

Of Wearing's 2007 fictionalized "Shakespeare Diaries", Swansea University Alumni Association News notes: "Writing in diary form, in the delightfully whimsical style of Shakespeare himself, Wearing incorporates many fragments of lines and phrases from The Bard's plays and poems. Fascinating endnotes provide further annotation and information for those readers who wish to know more." A review of Wearing's American and British Theatrical Biography: A Directory concludes, "nowhere, aside from Wearing, can one find such a comprehensive listing of basic biographical information for America and Britain spanning the long history of theatrical activity in those countries and nicely digested in the pages of one volume. Like Wearing's previous scholarship, the present work addresses a demonstrable need, filling a notable gap in a practical, efficient, and serviceable way."