Performance Studies Commons^™

The Actor’S Rhythm, Internal Beat., Lashondra Cherell Hood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a conversational document that will examine the manifestation of the auditory(hearing) and motor(physical motion) cortex of the cerebrum and how this connection influences character physicality in theatre. In this thesis, The Mountaintop, written by Katori Hall, is used as a gateway to conduct research on music and rhythm as it affects the body and creating physical character choices. By reflecting on personal musical exploration,that of my peers, and students, its concluded that this method can be used for all stages of character building and performance experiences. The various backgrounds of the subjects — students and peers — …

Under Construction : Acting, Creativity, Collaboration, And Siti Company., Carol Stewart

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a case study of New York’s Saratoga International Training Institute (known as SITI Company), one of the most innovative American theatre companies of the last twenty-five years. Research for this study was based in part on the author’s experience with the work of SITI throughout those years, including participation in intensive training with the company and observations of rehearsal and performance of the 2014 world premiere production of Steel Hammer at the Humana Festival of New American Plays, at Actors Theatre of Louisville. SITI Company is defined by their dedication to actor training, and to a democratic …

Baptizing Shakespeare, Na'tosha De'von Barron

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis I will be discussing my process in preparing and performing the role of Lady Macbeth, and how I used the parallels of the King James Bible to approach the text. I will show how this method will allow theatre people to teach Shakespeare to African Americans in a way that will become second nature to grasp. I will include the events of the play, my character analysis, intake on the rehearsal process, production photos, resume, headshot, program, and a link to my website.

To Be Thus Is Nothing, But To Be Safely Thus: Applying The Michael Chekhov Technique To The Character And Fight Direction Of "Macbeth", Scott Nicholas Russell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an exploration of the Michael Chekhov technique as it was applied to the role of Macbeth, as well as the Fight Direction of the play. This production of Macbeth ran from February 1, 2019 to February 10, 2019 at the Global Campus Theatre at the University of Arkansas in downtown Fayetteville; this thesis includes documentation of the show. Additionally, this thesis includes documentation on my self-created one-person show, Forte and Foible, my headshot and resume, and link to my website.

An Intimate Portrayal Of Madame Armfeldt In A Little Night Music, Mollie Armour

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis contains documents supporting my thesis role, my personal statement of artistry, a script for my one person show, and materials used in my professional career.

Embodied Nostalgia: Early Twentieth Century Social Dance And U.S. Musical Theatre, Phoebe Rumsey

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation, I claim the collective emotional connections and historical explorations characteristic of musical theatre constitute a nostalgic impulse dramaturgically inherent in the form. In my intervention in the link between nostalgia and musical theatre, I look to an area underrepresented in musical theatre scholarship: social dance. Through case studies that focus specifically on how social dance in musical theatre brings forth the dancer on stage as a site of embodied history, cultural memory, and nostalgia, I ask what social dance is doing in musical theatre and how the dancing body functions as a catalyst for nostalgic thinking for …

Privileged Eyes: How A Look In The Mirror Informed The Creation Of Marilyn And Desiree, Halley Electra Mayo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is for the performance of Desiree in A Little Night Music, by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler; the development, writing, and performance of the one-person-show Privileged Eyes; and development of a website and statement of artistry.

What It Means To Be A Man: A Character Study Of Macduff, Justin Alexander Mackey

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis I will be discussing my process as an actor when approaching a role, specifically the role of Macduff in William Shakespeare’s, Macbeth. I will include a character/script/event analysis as well as a journal of my experiences during the rehearsal process. I will also include production photos, programs, a link to my website, and my headshot and resume at the end.

She Kills Monsters

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

Subverting The Nature Of Thing: Gender Agency In Spiritual Systems And Contemporary Performances Of Zimbabwe's Shona People, Rujeko S. Dumbutshena

Theatre & Dance ETDs

Gender, ritual and performance in the Shona cultures of Zimbabwe, are inexorably linked. They demonstrate how the flexibility of the Shona spiritual systems offers agency to ritual leaders and practitioners. The story of Murumbi Karivara, a Shona rainmaker from the 19th Century, provides the inspirational imagery for the researcher’s Masters of Fine Arts thesis concert DE RERUM NATURA - the way things are (performed on September 2 and 3, 2018). The researcher positions herself among contemporary Shona artists living in Zimbabwe and abroad who negotiate the spaces they occupy during ceremonies, on concert stages, and in institutions; to find autonomy …

Breaking Down The Fourth Wall With Artaud, Punchdrunk, And The Wooster Group, Megan Huggins

[Archive] Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

Antonin Artaud, a radical theatre artist working during the first half of the 20thcentury, developed a style and philosophy of storytelling called the Theatre of Cruelty. Artaud wanted to shock his audiences into an emotional connection with the people and situations around them. Hoping to shake the audience out of their complacency by combating realism, Artaud envisioned performances that would eliminate the fourth wall and confront the audience directly. Two contemporary theatre companies, the Wooster Group and Punchdrunk,adapt Artaud’s ideas to modern storytelling practices. The Wooster Group incorporates technological advances in its jarring, innovative performances, and Punchdrunk creates immersive and …

Student One-Acts: "Way Deep" And "Dna"

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

Moon Over Buffalo Playbill, Providence College

Playbill and Promotion

Providence College Department of Theatre, Dance & Film

Angell Blackfriars Theatre Smith Center for the Arts

Moon Over Buffalo

A comedy from the playwright of "Lend Me a Tenor"

April 5-7 & 12-14, 2019

Written by Ken Ludwig

Directed by Brett Epstein

Set Designer: Josh Christoffersen

Sound Designer: Timothy Brown '20

Voice and Dialect Coach: Megan Chang

Costume Designer: Jessie Darrell Jarbadan

Lighting Designer: Jen Rock

Properties Designer: Peggy Becker

Flight Choreographer: Sarah Elizabeth Bedard

The Cast - George: Thomas Edwards, Charlotte: Julia DiBari, Ethel: Caprial Harris, Roz: Aisling Sheahan, Howard: Ryan Worrell, Eileen: Halle Pratt, Paul: Steven Sawan, Richard: …

Moon Over Buffalo Poster, Providence College

Playbill and Promotion

Providence College Department of Theatre, Dance & Film

Angell Blackfriars Theatre Smith Center for the Arts

Moon Over Buffalo

A comedy from the playwright of "Lend Me a Tenor"

Written by Ken Ludwig

Directed by Brett Epstein

April 5-7 & 12-14, 2019

She's Not Allowed To Do That: Two Actors Embody Female Same-Sex Sexuality [Poster], Orion Lee Risk

Research in the Capitol

The art of acting requires the authentic embodiment of another being; what happens in this process when a performance requires taking on a stigmatized sexuality? In summer 2018, an emerging theatre company in Cedar Falls, Iowa, produced Stop Kiss by Diana Son: a show that required its two female leads to embody same-sex sexuality. Guided by scholarship from Judith Butler, Jill Dolan, and Jerzy Grotowski — and following principles of practice-as-research — interviews and observation were used to explore and interpret how the actors in Stop Kiss experienced similarities and differences between their characters’ experiences and their own. Findings led …

Hegelian Political Theater, Cade M. Olmstead

Research in the Capitol

What could politics, theater, and the project of German idealism all hold in common?This research seeks to explore the usage of comedy in modern political discourse through the perspectives of theater and German idealist philosophy.

It begins with an analysis of ancient Greek theater by the philosopher G.W.F. Hegel, applies this reading to the 2013 Turkish Gezi Park protests, and ultimately makes a normative claim about comedy’s use in public discourse and proper democratic politics.

She's The Jazz: An Exploration Of Dance And Society In The Age Of The Flapper, Jillian Terry

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The 1920’s, most affectionately known as “The Roaring Twenties,” was a time of dramatic social and political change. Economic growth pushed Americans into an unfamiliar consumer society where people bought the same goods, heard the same songs, danced the same dances, and used the same slang. Prohibition laws led to the underground sale of alcohol in speakeasies where new freedoms were found through communities uniting in music and dance. Here we saw the emergence of flappers. Unlike the generations that came before, these women were seen performing unladylike actions, such as drinking and smoking, while embracing their sexuality. While not …

The Fight Master, Spring 2019, Vol. 41 Issue 1, The Society Of American Fight Directors

Fight Master Magazine

No abstract provided.

Performing Queerness, Jasmina Sinanovic

Open Educational Resources

This is a syllabus for a course Performing Queerness

3rd Place Contest Entry: Aesthetic Activism: Protest Art In The Delano Grape Strike, Felicia Viano

Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize

This is Felicia Viano's submission for the 2019 Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize, which won third place. It contains her essay on using library resources, a three-page sample of her research project on the use of art as a social movement tactic by the United Farm Workers during the Delano Grape Strike, and her works cited list.

Felicia is a senior at Chapman University, majoring in History and Peace Studies. Her faculty mentor is Dr. Robert Slayton.