Digital Commons Network^™

Aquí Y Ahora A Dance Tribute To Gustavo Cerati And The Expression Of Hispanic Immigrant Identity In New York City, Karina Terán

Theses and Dissertations

This Thesis explores how dance serves as a language of cultural identity among Hispanic immigrants in New York City. Through a multidisciplinary performance and research, it reflects lived experiences, blending movement and music to celebrate legacy, resilience, and community, while honoring the influence of Argentine rock icon Gustavo Cerati.

The Past In The Present: Photography, Vietnam War, And Memory, Yuya Kawata

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis focuses on three contemporary artists—An-My Lê, Dinh Q. Lê, and Harrell Fletcher—who use photography to explore the contentious memory of the war in Vietnam. Addressing different contexts in which the war is remembered, their works invite careful reflection on how to approach the elusive past.

Raised Spirits The Visceral Journey Of Black Generational Female Trauma And The Transcendent Healing Power Of Spiritual Dance, Wendy Ann Powell

Theses and Dissertations

Black female bodies have endured sustained trauma globally since the transatlantic slave trade, and it continues into 2025. The collective consciousness has carried the generational burden and mobilized it within the womb. Powell uses this intergenerational knowledge to frame the basis for spiritual dance practices as a healing praxis.

Modernism Unwoven: Art Deco, Brasilidade, And The Erasure Of Regina Gomide Graz, Antonia Machado Oliver

Theses and Dissertations

“Modernism Unwoven: Art Deco, Brasilidade, and the Erasure of Regina Gomide Graz” explores the life and practice of the Brazilian artist Regina Gomide Graz, whose textile works contributed to introducing Art Deco to Brazil. Regina is associated with many of the events that marked Brazilian modernism in the 1920s and 1930s and was engaged with the concerns of her milieu, for instance, the synthesis of European artistic developments with themes regional to Brazil and the development of a national aesthetic identity. Despite this, her work has scarcely been studied. This thesis examines the sociocultural, economic, and personal conditions that …

Black America, Ethiopianism And Ethiopians: Tizita (ትዝታ), And The Longing That Binds, David Brunberg

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis maps the concept of Ethiopia within the development of Black American peoplehood and Pan-Africanist thought, while shedding light on the deep influence of an American-inspired Pan-Africanist ethos on the works of two Ethiopian-American bridge artists, Julie Mehretu and Aïda Muluneh specifically, and on art production more generally as expressed within contemporary Ethiopia. They are “bridge” artists because they straddle an international space between Black American and Ethiopian identities. It explores the following questions: How did an American Ethiopianism morph into or become synonymous with Afrocentrism? What crosscurrents can one see in contemporary art production in Ethiopia, and its …

Who Are Singer-Songwriters In The 21st Century? A Case Study On The Role Of Digital Communications In Socio-Musical Activity., Miranda Commisso

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis follows ten self-identified, singer-songwriters from diverse musical and cultural backgrounds to identify commonalities, with special attention given to the ways they invest power and meaning in their music through use of social media. While these musicians are seeking capital gains through use of social media, they do it as a way to make music their livelihood, not out of a desire for excessive wealth or fame, which reflects this musical category more broadly.

Piecemeal, Max J. Eisenberg

Theses and Dissertations

Exploring the history of photographic manipulation both inside and outside of the camera from the late 19th century until today. My work plucks out cultural and local signifiers from the state of Florida, and the American South as a whole, and disseminates them using a constructed symbolic vernacular in the form of in-camera collaging on large format film.

The Dinner Table, Eric Juhola

Theses and Dissertations

The Dinner Table is a dual-projection installation exploring familial ritual, memory, and selfhood. Viewers sit at a circular table while projections unfold across the table and a suspended window, prompting reflection on how ritual functions as performance—and what remains of the self when those rituals fade or disappear.

Jawad, Mohammed A. Alani

Theses and Dissertations

In a luxurious suburban glass house in Toledo, Ohio, tensions simmer within a fractured family on the brink of unraveling. Jawad, a 17-year-old Pakistani American, struggles with his identity and rejects the traditional path to college, much to the frustration of his father, Kamal, a businessman trying to juggle a demanding career and a complex family life. Kamal’s new wife, Ishraq, is caught in her own struggles with body image and the overwhelming pressures of her roles as a new mother and stepmother. Beneath the surface, an unsettling attraction brews between Jawad and Ishraq, further complicating the already strained dynamics. …

Horse Boy, Madeline Dennis-Yates

Theses and Dissertations

Have you seen the new boy at the barn? Why does he get to ride Gemini? More importantly, why don’t Sarah and Ava get to? A bittersweet comedy about gender, class, and who’s jumping highest that asks: Who will love the horse girls if they lose each other?

Edges, Brandon Bogle

Theses and Dissertations

Edges is an adaptation of Three Sisters set at the twilight of the Harlem Renaissance, a once-influential black family faces the looming shadow of the Great Depression, throwing into question all of their dreams. With inspiration from Purpose by Branden Jacob-Jenkins and Is God Is by Aleshea Harris, this play explores family, desire and the depths to which people struggle to define themselves and survive.

House Meeting - A Play With Music, Levi J. Shrader

Theses and Dissertations

‘House Meeting’ Synopsis & Related Works

Levi J. Shrader

House Meeting

Brother Preacher’s been away on his mission to find a way to heal Little Brother’s deadfoot so he can walk again and live for the Lord. Family and neighbors gather for a Holiness house meeting to offer their thanks to God. When the cure seems to be deadlier than the affliction, Sister tries to remind them that, although this life is a suffering one, it isn’t worth destroying for a power God never intended for them.

Plays I believe House Meeting is in conversation with:

Beggars In the House …

All You Can Eat, Kelly Schiesswohl

Theses and Dissertations

All You Can Eat is a 2D-animated horror short following the patrons and inhabitants of a bakery as they prepare for its annual pie-eating contest. As the contest nears, tensions rise after the discovery of a dark secret amongst the staff inspires rebellion. Through the visual metaphor of pie and the pie-eating contest, this film explores how sexual violence functions on a systemic level. It explores our collective conditioning to a range of behaviors that contribute to patriarchal oppression and the social cycles that reinforce them across generations. Through design and surreal storytelling, this film captures the urgent threat of …

A Modern Prometheus: Frankenstein's Relevance In Our Modern Society, Amanda C. Partida

Theses and Dissertations

For over two hundred years Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has been in the public consciousness. It took only five years for the first adaptation, Presumption; or the Fate of Frankenstein, to be staged in 1825. Since then, there has been at least one adaptation every decade, with Universal Studios’ 1931 Frankenstein as the most famous adaptation, which shows just how much Shelley’s novel of science and hubris has resonated with audiences for many years.

This thesis aims to connect the ever-changing scientific anxieties of society with the most well-known Frankenstein film adaptations. By focusing on four specific films Frankenstein (1931), …

#Helpplz: Mental Health Representation In Theatre For Young Audiences, Kate Elizabeth Dirrigl

Theses and Dissertations

#HELPPLZ is a play for young theater audiences that depicts four teenagers with various mental health challenges. It’s target audience is for children ages ten to fifteen and should be performed by actors of similar ages. #HELPPLZ is an immersive theatre experience, as a audience members watch four actors perform from four different lifestyles and point of views, all while broadcast on screens behind the actors. Every seat is a good seat in the house. This play follows a shift in trends of mental health depiction in contemporary theatre. No longer demonized and much more accessible, plays such as Dear …

Navigating Light And Darkness: The Intersection Of Space, Faith And The Psyche In Ana Plácido’S Luz Coada Por Ferros, Alondra V. Ramirez Herrera

Theses and Dissertations

Ana Plácido (1831-1895) was a Portuguese writer whose literary contributions remain largely overshadowed by her infamous trial for adultery and her relationship with Camilo Castelo Branco. Despite societal constraints on female authorship in the nineteenth century, Plácido used literature as a means of self-expression, autonomy, and intellectual freedom. This thesis employs spatial theory to analyze her collection of texts Luz Coada por Ferros (1863), written during her imprisonment, to explore the interplay between physical confinement and artistic freedom. By examining the symbolic and psychological dimensions of space in her work, this study highlights how Plácido navigated themes of female agency, …

"Our Darker Purpose": Jean-François Ducis's Le Roi Léar In Eighteenth-Century France, Zerin Biehn

Theses and Dissertations

Jean-François Ducis's French adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear has received little critical attention since its publication in 1784. The play retains many of the main plot points that are familiar from Shakespeare along with Ducis's changes that helped make Shakespeare and King Lear more acceptable for the French stage. John Golder has interpreted Le Roi Léar as a pro-royalist play, but I argue that the play's portrayal of kingship and treason is much more nuanced. Ducis's Cordelia is framed for rebellion by her oldest sister, a situation which lacks the rich ambiguity of Shakespeare's Cordelia refusing to placate her father …

Exploring The Minuet: A Study In Piano Instruction Including Stylistic Concerns, Technical And Musical Challenges, And Pedagogical Analyses, Zhenyu Gao

Theses and Dissertations

The minuet, originating in 17th-century France, evolved from a courtly dance emblematic of aristocratic refinement into a significant form of instrumental music. Over the centuries, it has maintained its prominence in musical pedagogy and performance. This study provides a comprehensive exploration of the minuet’s historical development, tracing its Baroque significance in dance suites and individual keyboard repertoire to its transformation into a distinct movement during the Classical era. Furthermore, it examines the reinterpretation of the minuet within the contexts of Romantic and neoclassical compositions, including its enduring legacy in pedagogical collections, individual movements, and as a stylized dance form. This …

The Impact Of Ballet Techniques On Singing Performers, Julie H. Welch

Theses and Dissertations

Singing performers are tasked to being a multifaceted artist using their acting and even dance skills in a performance. Voice teachers have long incorporated physical activity into training, but traditional ballet techniques—such as core tension and neck elongation—can contradict healthy singing practices. Given ballet’s deep historical connection to opera and stage performance, this study aims to examine whether integrating ballet into vocal training enhances or hinders a singer’s technique and overall performance. This investigation surveyed forty subjects who identified as teachers, singing performers, or students earning a performance degree and interviewing select subjects for further information; results will be discussed.

The Double Bar-Line: A Qualitative And Quantitative Study Of Career Readiness For Historically Black College And University Voice Performance Majors, Brian L. Fenderson

Theses and Dissertations

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) play a crucial role in providing higher education opportunities for African American students, including those pursuing degrees in voice performance. In recent years, there has been a noticeable lack of performance opportunities and resources available to voice performance majors at HBCUs. This document aims to explore the challenges faced by HBCU voice performance majors who hoped to pursue a career in voice performance. Through a combination of literature review, qualitative interviews, and quantitative surveys, this study will examine the experience of voice performance majors from 1990 – present day. Interviews conducted will speak on …

A Performance And Pedagogical Guide To William Butler Yeats Songs By Ben Moore, James Allen

Theses and Dissertations

American composer, Ben Moore, has written music that has spanned genres including operas, children’s operas, art songs, cabaret songs, and musical theatre songs. His career spans multiple decades, but his music is not performed as often as it should in the Classical Music community. Moore’s music can be daunting at first glance, but many of his composition stylings are present in many of his works. Should one learn how to navigate one of his art songs, they will have a guide that should translate over to his other works. I have decided to focus on the seven art songs with …

Unveiling Hidden Voices: A Guide For Expanding Collegiate Coursework To Include Female Opera Composers And Their Works, Veronica Kimberly Page

Theses and Dissertations

Opera, often viewed as a prestigious and elite art form, has been predominantly shaped by male composers throughout its history. The contributions of women composers in opera have been largely overlooked, however, despite their significant impact on the genre. This dissertation explores the role of female composers in opera, from pioneers like Francesca Caccini to contemporary figures such as Missy Mazzoli, arguing for the creation of a curriculum focused on their works. Such a course would fill a critical gap in higher education, offering a more inclusive understanding of opera’s history and evolution. Through an examination of women’s compositions, historical …

Atmospheric Characterization For Optical Paths In Lunar Proximity, Patrick D. Carattini

Theses and Dissertations

This paper presents a novel technique for estimating the Fried seeing parameter (r0) for optical paths around the Moon, where traditional methods fail due to the Moon's intensity. Using image processing, it derives the atmospheric optical transfer function (OTF) by using the Moon's edge as a step-input. A simulation chain validates the approach, achieving r0 estimation within 0.0012 m. Real-world tests confirm accuracy through visual and statistical analysis, offering an effective alternative for atmospheric characterization of optical paths close to the moon.

Autistic Female University Students And Their Experiences With Depression: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Rosemarie Joy Hopkins Keenan

Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (autism) can have significant impacts on the lives of those who experience it. However, as autism can affect each person in unique ways, the exact impacts of the condition on a person's experiences are not well understood. This is especially the case for women and girls with autism, who are on diagnosed later in life and have historically been neglected in research studies when compared to autistic men and boys. Autistic people are underrepresented in university populations, and characteristics of a university education present new challenges for autistic students. Little research has been done to inform supports …

Activism Within The Music And Recorded Sound Archive, Julius Tanner

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the integration of applied ethnomusicology within the recorded sound archive of the New York Public Library. The process of repatriating recorded sound through community engagement lead to the development and eventual reparative work of outdated subject headings and other descriptive language within the archive. This thesis also explores how cultural preservation of similar non-physical fields such as naming conventions within linguistics and the development of gastronationalism combats globalization and ultimately colonization.

Aesthetics And Hidden Orientalism In Chicago's Nickerson Mansion, Julie Treumann

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis offers new research on the Sitting Room at the Nickerson Mansion, an 1883 Gilded Age-era house in Chicago, IL. As a rare extant example of neo-Islamic interior design, it provides a new lens on Orientalism in American domestic architecture and a new perspective on Mrs. Nickerson, a little-known female tastemaker of her time.

Body Of Work: Wax As Medium In Art And Science In Enlightenment Bologna, Kristen Pou

Theses and Dissertations

Eighteenth-century Bologna is well known for its body of accurate and precise wax anatomical models. However, wax was also used for non-scientific purposes: for portraiture and religious artworks. This paper sets forth an argument to explain the scholarly neglect of enlightenment Bolognese waxworks that did not depict anatomized human bodies.

British And South African Perceptions Of African Participation In The African Military Campaigns Of World War One, Eric Mathew Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Historians interested in reconstructing the events of World War One have consistently noted that the military campaigns that occurred in sub-Saharan Africa have been given scant attention. It is commonly accepted among researchers that while there has been some focus on the impressions of the individual European soldiers involved in this conflict, wide gaps still exist in the literature. Very significantly, a thorough search of the literature clearly reveals that the perceptions of whites towards their African counterparts who participated in the military campaigns has been very much neglected. This dissertation helps to close this gap by focusing on the …

The Long Shadow Of Pride And Prejudice On Contemporary Fictions Of Arranged Marriage And Marriages Of Alliance, Candice Belluscio

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an examination of the conflicts between arranged marriage and companionate marriage in selected contemporary Anglo-Indian novels and novels about Orthodox Judaism. The project’s guiding focus is how modern ideals of independence and choice in marriage coexist simultaneously with older ideals of marriage as family or personal “alliance.” The dissertation has a historical chapter that shows that although ideals of companionate marriage have become norms of 20th century western society and literature, the term “companionate marriage” is a recent invention and convention, and that various degrees and forms of arranged marriage, or marriages of alliance, continue despite their …

Stop Suffering For Your Art, Amanda Bryers

Theses and Dissertations

What does the process look like for an actor to disconnect from a circumstance that they take on during the course of a rehearsal or performance? And how does this disconnection process affect the actor’s mental, physical, and emotional health? This project consists of interviews of CSU student actors about their personal experiences in letting go of imaginary circumstances immediately following a performance, rehearsal, or actor’s exercise. The purpose of this project is to determine whether or not actor’s training provides sufficient tools for an actor to disconnect. Interviewees detailed their own personal methods, as well as whether or not …