Arts and Humanities Commons^™

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 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 …