Digital Commons Network^™

Voices Of Identity: Exploring Devised Theatre As Social Resistance And Catalyst For Change, Elizabeth Danielle Belvin

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Devised theatre offers a unique artistic and pedagogical approach that challenges conventional hierarchies of storytelling by centering collaboration, personal narratives, and collective authorship. This dissertation explores the role of devised theatre in identity formation and social resistance, particularly for students from historically and currently marginalized backgrounds. Through a qualitative inquiry rooted in interviews and a podcast-based research methodology, this study investigates how devised theatre creates spaces for self-exploration, fosters community-building, and serves as a means of resisting dominant cultural narratives. This study finds that devised theatre functions as both an artistic and political practice, allowing participants to reclaim agency over …

The Survival Of An American Theater: An Intrinsic And Historical Case Study Of The Success Of Arena Stage, Kay Oliver

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Arena Stage was founded in 1950 in Washington, DC, by Zelda Fichandler, Tom Fichandler, and Edward Mangum. Today, Arena Stage serves a diverse annual audience of more than 300,000 people. It is the largest theater company dedicated to American plays and playwrights in the country. This study presents a single intrinsic historical case study of Arena Stage to examine the internal organizational structure and leadership dynamics that guided the theater through seven decades of turbulent American history. Arena Stage has provided world-class programming while the nation was grappling with the Vietnam War (1950–1975), Brown v. Board of Education (1954), political …

Explosions Are Always Entertaining But…: Investigating The Impacts Of Science Shows On High School Students, Shanii Phillips, Miriam Sullivan, Ann Grand

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Science shows are often posited as a route to encourage young people to engage with science. Using a mixed methods approach, our research investigated the impact of attending a science show on high school students’ intentions to study science or pursue a career in science. We found that while a single visit to a science show has little impact on students’ aspirations, it can reinforce students’ confidence in their ability to succeed in science. In terms of design and performance, the best-received shows included ‘real-world’ content that students could identify as relevant to their lives.

From Campus To Career: Enhancing Career Support Services For Graduate International Students At The University Of Kentucky, Aku Fiagbeto, Ratwah Alhazmi

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

During the 2023–2024 academic year, the University of Kentucky enrolled a total of 1,285 international students, with 784 (61%) being graduate students. International students play a crucial role in enriching the university’s cultural and academic landscape. While UK has achieved record enrollment and improved student success rates, including a 66% graduation rate that places it among the top 100 public institutions in the U.S., it is important to consider whether these trends apply to international students as well. Retention and graduation rates for this demographic may differ from those of domestic students, highlighting potential challenges such as visa restrictions, financial …

Ai Art And U.S. Copyright Decisions: What The U.S. Can Do Differently Than China And The E.U. To Efficiently Promote Balance Between Ai Innovation And Copyright Regulation, Adam Pycior

Loyola University Chicago International Law Review

The rapid development of Artificial Intelligence ("Al") in recent years has spurred a plethora of discussions concerning ethical boundaries, government regulations, and more. Thaler v. Perlmutter highlights a unique one: the challenging question of if, and how, AI generated artworks may be copyrightable. The court denied copyright to plaintiff Stephen Thaler's work "A Recent Entrance to Paradise" generated by his AI system, "The Creativity Machine," holding that autonomously generated works cannot be copyrighted under the existing precedent. However, the court failed to answer, though it acknowledged, the pressing question as to the degree of human input necessary to copyright such …

Directing The Temperamentals: Exploring Identity, Activism, And Historical Resonance In Lgbtq+ Theater, Eric E. Parrish

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This thesis presents an in-depth analysis and directorial approach to Jon Marans' play, The Temperamentals, which dramatizes the early struggles of the LGBTQ+ rights movement in 1950s America. The production focuses on the personal and political dynamics surrounding the formation of the Mattachine Society, one of the first sustained gay rights organizations in the United States, through the lives of its co-founders, Harry Hay and Rudi Gernreich. This analysis explores the relevance of the plays' themes in the contemporary socio-political landscape by exploring the interaction of personal identity, societal repression, and collective activism depicted in the play. These chapters detail …

Hölderlin's Naturalism: Nature And Human Agency After Kant, Saurabh Saurendra Pal

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on Friedrich Hölderlin’s engagement with human self-relating to the natural world in the wake of Kantian rethinking of the human being as a normative subject. While it has often been noted that following the Pantheism controversy of the 1780s, a generation of poets and thinkers looked towards Spinozistic monism to overcome the dualisms and limitations of Kant’s Copernican revolution, the relevance of this development to moral concerns has received less consideration. This study proposes that the recurrent theme of “unification with nature” in Hölderlin’s literary and theoretical writings signifies a yearning for moral community¬—rather than metaphysical union—with …

Abolition In Color: Written And Oral Narratives Of Struggle In Black Latin America, Karina Alexandra Lopez

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

This dissertation examines the different types of anti-slavery narratives written by people of Afro-descended writers in Cuba and Brazil at the end of the nineteenth century. During this time, literature acted as propaganda to further the spread of abolitionist ideas and ultimately end the abhorrent institution. While scholarship has tended to focus on the texts written by white abolitionists, this study places particular focus on the short stories and novels written by writers of color and points out the ways in which these texts not only contributed to swaying public opinion towards abolition, but also looked towards both the past …

Beyond Catharsis: The Evolution Of Popular Tragedy In Video Game Narratives, Nicole E. Chancey

Master’s Theses

“Beyond Catharsis: The Evolution of Popular Tragedy in Video Game Narratives,” establishes a connection between traditions of Tragedy and video game narratives, arguing that the ways in which tragedy manifests within interactive media is an extension and development of previous, more formal understandings of Tragedy. Using Oxenfree (2016), Elden Ring (2022), and Baldur’s Gate 3 (2023), this thesis claims video games feature adaptations of traditional tragedy and catharsis that expand the genre. Through players directly instigating the action of the game, the allowances and limitations of the player’s agency, and the instances of misfortunate fates, interactive narratives translate tragic concepts—outlined …

W448-002b-04 - College Of Visual And Performing Arts: Theatre And Dance:, College Of Visual And Performing Arts

University Archives Finding Aids

No abstract provided.

W448-002b-03 - College Of Visual And Performing Arts: Theatre And Dance: Theater Season Records, College Of Visual And Performing Arts

University Archives Finding Aids

No abstract provided.

Mind The Gap: Supporting Freshmen Voice Students Transitioning To Higher Education Through Coaching Conversations, Erica L. Gabriel

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The experiences one may encounter while matriculating through the K-12 system of education are vastly different from the world of higher education. While one feeds directly into the other, the transition can be a difficult one for young singers also navigating the developmental leap from adolescence to adulthood. This is due to several systematic and instructional differences, compounded with unique challenges encountered by freshman voice students in the first year. Gaps in support systems compiled with new and increasing financial, social, and academic demands can lead to a decline in overall student well-being and an increase in stress.

This increase …

What Might Contract Theory Be?, Gregory Klass

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Few contract theories begin with so comprehensive a discussion of method as does Stephen Smith’s book, Contract Theory. In the first chapter, “What Is Contract Theory,” Smith describes an interpretive approach guided by four goals: fit with the existing law, internal coherence, moral attractiveness, and transparency to legal actors.

This chapter in Understanding Private Law: Essays in Honour of Stephen A. Smith, does a deep dive into Smith’s description and defense of those goals. Smith pictures the contract theorist as an observer standing outside legal practice, interpreting the law but not participating in it. That picture results in …

Safe Space: A Novel And Accompanying Critical Study Into The Participatory Culture In Fandom And A Historiographic Approach To The Fragmentation Of Popular Culture In Select Novels By Kurt Vonnegut And Thomas Pynchon., Edward Whitfield

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This research is submitted as both a novel and supplementary critical study. It explores the dynamic interplay between media consumers and content creators within the context of contemporary online critical discourse. The study is anchored by the novel Safe Space, a metamodern science fiction novel that explores the tension between progressive and orthodox ideologies within Anglo-American science fiction fandom – a symbolic battle in the Culture Wars.The investigation uses a historiographic, long durée (or long term) approach to test the hypothesis that periods of cultural anxiety are related to a loss of confidence in great hegemons. The research interrogates the …

The Military's Constitutional Role, Brenner M. Fissell

Faculty Publications

A basic principle of the American constitutional order is that civilian authority must be supreme over that of the military. The violation of this principle by the British was one of the grievances enumerated in the Declaration of Independence, and the Framers responded with a Constitution that made military rule impossible. But why is so-called “civilian control” of the military so important? This deep normative question has yet to be thoroughly answered by scholars, most of who assume it away as a given. This Article takes up that task, using contemporary political theory to defend the principle of civilian control. …

Governing Intelligence: Singapore’S Evolving Ai Governance Framework, Jason G. Allen, Jane Loo, Jose Luna

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This paper provides an outline analysis of the evolving governance framework for Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Singapore. Across the Singapore government, AI solutions are being adopted in line with Singapore’s “Smart Nation Initiative” to leverage technology to make impactful changes to the nation and the economy. In tandem, Singaporean authorities have been assiduous to release a growing number of governance documents, which we analyse together to chart the city-state’s approach to AI governance in international comparison. Characteristics of Singapore’s AI governance approach include an emphasis on consensusbuilding between stakeholders (particularly government and industry but also citizens) andvoluntary or “quasi” regulation, …

"A Changed Understanding Of Our Present": Moby-Dick As Prophetic Ecological Activism, Katie Ann Schini

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Moby-Dick: Or, The Whale is a classic of American literature, spanning multiple genres and remaining culturally relevant nearly 175 years after its original publication. Though on the surface Moby-Dick reads as an adventure story of a man who experiences the whaling industry firsthand, Herman Melville’s text continues to invite new generations of readership through the framework of the twenty-first century climate crisis.

In this thesis, I position Moby-Dick as a text that can be used to understand our modern society’s current dispositions of ecological grief. My thesis operates at the intersection of three main literary critical theories: ecocriticism, affect, and …

Annual Report, Associated Charities, Memphis, 1914

Documents

Annual Report of the Associated Charities, Memphis, TN. It covers the time period of 1913 September 1 - 1914 September 1.

Annual Report, Associated Charities, Memphis, 1918

Documents

Seventh Annual Report of the Associated Charities, Memphis, TN. It covers the time period of 1917-1918.

Annual Report, Associated Charities, Memphis, 1916

Documents

Annual Report of the Associated Charities, Memphis, TN. It covers the time period of 1915 September 1 - 1916 October 16.

Annual Report, Associated Charities, Memphis, 1919

Documents

Eighth Annual Report of the Associated Charities, Memphis, TN. It covers the time period of 1918-1919.

Newsletter, "Center City," Memphis, 1974 December 11

Documents

Newsletter, "Center City," Vol. 1, No. 28, Memphis, TN, 1974 December 11. Contains a section discussing, "Plays for Living" and how Family Service of Memphis received a grant and planned to use the money to fund 50 free performances for the "Plays for Living" program. The Family Service of Memphis performed several plays and utilized theatre as a tool to assist with implementing social change and to address sensitive issues with members of the community.

Script, "Well Of The World, A One-Act Play," Joan Vail Thorne, Family Service Association Of America, 1968

Documents

Script for the "Well of the World, A One-Act Play," by Joan Vail Thorne, WPCF Publication No. 19, written and produced for New York State Department of Health Pure Waters Program, by Family Service Association of America, 1968. The Family Service of Memphis performed several plays and utilized theatre as a tool to assist with implementing social change and to address sensitive issues with members of the community.

Flyer, "Pac And Family Service Present 'Plays For Living,'" Memphis, 1974

Documents

Flyer, "PAC and Family Service present 'Plays for Living' The Play and Discussion is on Child Rearing," Willis E. Montgomery Plaza Community Building, 1395 Pennsylvania Street, Memphis, TN, 1974 November 25 at 7:30 pm. The Flyer was made by the Kansas Street Project Area Committee, located at 1142 Kansas Street, Memphis, TN, 38106. The Family Service of Memphis performed several "Plays for Living" and utilized theatre as a tool to assist with implementing social change and to address sensitive issues with members of the community.

Registration Form, "We, The Family... A Play About The Family In Crisis," Joan Vail Thorne, Family Service Of Memphis, 1975

Documents

Registration form for "We, The Family... A Play About the Family in Crisis," by Joan Vail Thorne, Family Service of Memphis. The performance was held at the Jaycee Community Building, Cobb-Parr Park, Memphis, TN, on 1975 April 27 and dinner was provided beforehand. The Family Service of Memphis performed several "Plays for Living" and utilized theatre as a tool to assist with implementing social change and to address sensitive issues with members of the community.

Newsletter, "The Family," Family Service Of Memphis, 1973 Winter

Documents

Newsletter, "The Family, Keystone of Society in a Changing World," Vol. 7, No. 2, Family Service of Memphis, 1973 Winter. Contains a section discussing "Plays for Living" and how it was expanding to meet community needs. The Family Service of Memphis performed several "Plays for Living" and utilized theatre as a tool to assist with implementing social change and to address sensitive issues with members of the community.

“Being Natural Is Simply A Pose”: The Concept Of Foucault’S Panopticon In The Picture Of Dorian Gray And Orlando, Mya Corcoran

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

Comparing The Representations Of Order And Behavior In James Joyce’S “The Dead” And Samuel Beckett’S Endgame, Araav Thakker

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

The Oswald Review Of Undergraduate Research And Criticism In The Discipline Of English: Volume 27, 2025

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

To Be Or Not To Be Controlled: The Making Of Thespians In Nineteenth-Century Asylums, Olivia Kurylo

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Throughout the 1800s, superintendents of insane asylums incorporated the works of Shakespeare into their medical practices. Shakespearean plays became a conduit of power for the asylum superintendents, providing them with a literary model of sanity that they imposed on patients while simultaneously becoming a mode of communication for asylum patients to perform as ‘sane’ in accordance to the superintendents’ definitions. While the superintendents imposed a Shakespearean model of social normalcy onto the patients, the asylum patients used Shakespeare’s plays as a conduit for verbal expression. Essentially, asylums became Shakespearean plays as both the medical staff and the asylum patients employed …