American Studies Commons^™

Performing Menken: Adah Isaacs Menken's American Odyssey, Renee M. Sentilles

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

This dissertation explores notions of self-invention and performance in mid-nineteenth century America by examining the life and writings of actress and poet, Adah Isaacs Menken, from roughly 1835 to 1868. During America's Civil War years, Menken became an international star in the controversial title role of Mazeppa, an equestrian play. at the climax, soldiers forcibly stripped Mazeppa (Menken) to reveal her body in a costume suggestive of nudity. The soldiers tied her to a horse and sent her careening up a steep mountain into the theatre rafters. This provocative "breeches part" allowed Menken to pursue unusual freedoms for a woman …