Theatre and Performance Studies Commons^™

Preserving The Spirit Of African Storytelling In The Pittsburgh Cycle, Elizabeth L. Reeves

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will investigate and examine how August Wilson incorporated African storytelling ceremonials inside of Gem of the Ocean and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. By studying the mannerisms and characteristics of Aunt Ester (Gem of the Ocean) and Bynum Walker (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), this paper will help educators to understand that Wilson created these characters to preserve African griots inside his Pittsburgh Cycle. This paper will link how theatre educators in the 21st century can capture the spirit of the African griots. The socially responsible theatre practice is a teaching method that theatre …

Get In Where You Fit In: Creating A Safe Space For Students Of Color In The Academy, John Shévin Foster, Kashi Johnson, And Daphnie Sicre In Conversation, Daphnie Sicre, Kashi Johnson

Theatre Arts Faculty Works

Well-known playwright and theatre leader John Shévin Foster interviewed Kashi Johnson and Daphnie Sicre about the ways in which they use Hip Hop theatre pedagogy in their courses. Mapping their time together at Lehigh University as undergraduates up to becoming theatre professors themselves, Johnson and Sicre share how students might feel empowered by the opportunities given to them in their courses.

Voice In Screenwriting: Discovering/Recovering An Australian Voice, Rosemary Kaye Ferrell

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This creative practice research explores the concept of an identifiable screenwriter’s voice from the perspective of screenwriting as craft, proposing that voice can be understood and described based on its particular characteristics. Voice is understood to be the authorial presence of the screenwriter, whose mind shapes every aspect of the text. This presence is inscribed in the text through the many choices the screenwriter makes. More than this, the research argues that the choices made inflect the text with a cultural-national worldview. This occurs because of the close association between voice and personal (including cultural/national) identity, and because of the …

Dialogue Not Diatribe: Methods For A Practice Of Socio-Humanitarian Playwriting, Siobhan Dow-Hall

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This dissertation is the result of a practice-led research exploration of how creative writing practice may be expanded and developed with particular application to the writing of what I refer to as socio-humanitarian drama. I have developed this notion to promote discussion and consideration of specific issues of social justice and human rights within playwriting. While this practice-led research enlisted reflective practice in the task of developing and extending my own writing practice, this dissertation does also outline specific, practical modes of creative process, or exercises, that could be applied more broadly for others who may seek to develop their …

Bonding Theatre And Chemistry: An Educational Exploration, Matthew Gurniak

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This paper analyzes the educational aspects of theatre and music and the impact that they have on an audience. The goal was to begin a new conversation about science and theatre and how the two can learn and gain unique insight from each other. To examine how these two antithetical fields can interact, I composed a new, innovative musical that tells the love story between two professors through the use of concepts from general chemistry. The results and responses from the performance of the play were overwhelmingly positive from members of both disciplines. They have inspired continued interest in this …

Across The Great Divides: An Exploratory Tryptich, Andrew Vaught

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Three Year Clock, Sam Roeck

Theses and Dissertations

Roeck: I mean, it’s “a” future. It’s like half what I want to be and half completely not what I want. I didn’t want to create a future that I was entirely excited about because I’m not actually that excited about the future. It looks pretty fucking grim.

Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s performance of Oklahoma!. Books and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, music by Richard Rogers.

Performed on November 11-13, 18-20, 2016 at the Mitchell Theatre.

The high-spirited rivalry between the farmers and cowmen of the Western Indian Territory provides the colorful, turn-of-the-century backdrop for Curley and Laurey’s love story. But with these headstrong romantics holding the reins, the road to love is as bumpy as a surrey ride down a dusty road. Despite many hardships, their rocky romance leads to a new life beginning in a brand new state. Rodgers & Hammerstein's first collaboration remains, …

Ephemeral: An Original Play, Kierstan N. Devoe

Student Publications

Interesting conversations are had when an American woman spends a weekend with her Czech penpal and his relatives at his recently deceased mother's cottage. Based on a series of interviews with Czech citizens and personal experiences, Kierstan DeVoe's play focuses on the complex nature of tragedy and nostalgia, complete with moments of warm laughter and great tension.

Antigone

Taylor Theatre Playbills

Taylor Theatre presents Sophocles’ timeless tragedy “Antigone,” translated and directed by Joe Ricke.

Performed September 29-October 2, 2016 at the Mitchell Theatre.

In this story, the bold yet cursed princess Antigone, daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, chooses to confront her unmovable uncle/king about his decision to dishonor her brother by refusing his burial. Her choice to defy him shocks the entire city of Thebes. Ultimately, all concerned, including the audience, are forced to wrestle with the relationship of divine law to human laws.

This striking production, translated and directed by Joe Ricke, explores this universal question in the ancient context …

Staging Colorism, Mya D. Flood

Theater Summer Fellows

Colorism is a topic not frequently discussed in the African American community. My research focuses on representations of colorism in American drama. Using this research, I am workshopping a creative performance piece about this taboo topic to educate both Ursinus students and community members of all racial backgrounds. The research involves dissecting plays that confront colorism and the everyday struggles dealing with the stereotypes that come along with lighter and darker skin. My research takes the form of an annotated bibliography of plays about colorism and/or racism, a 20 page research paper about colorism in drama, and a draft of …

Ancient Greeks Today: Modern Adaptations Of The Orestes Myth, Arthur L. Robinson

Theater Summer Fellows

This research closely examines the ancient Greek myth of Orestes, the boy who murdered his mother to avenge his father. It first draws upon the works of Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles, who all wrote different variations of the same myth. This is followed by an examination of several more modern day adaptions of the myth, including but not limited to Eugene O’Neill’s Mourning Becomes Elektra, David Foley’s Murders at Argos, and Ferdinando Baldi’s The Forgotten Pistolero. The research highlights differences made to more effectively reach the varying audiences of the time, and the techniques used to create a successful …

Movement As The Driving Force: Empowering Live Dance Performance Through The Integration Of Film, Kelsey Victoria Mary Paschich

Theatre & Dance ETDs

Dance and film are two distinct mediums of expression. Movement drives both of these art forms and is the commonality that serves as the thread that connects them. These mediums serve as modes of discovery, thinking, and representation. Time and space are shared components between dance and film. Over the past century, there have been many different relationships on and off the stage between the two and as a result of this, new genres like screendance, dance for film, and multimedia performance have emerged. Live dance performance has been strengthened by the possibilities and uses of multimedia elements in real …

Teaching Choreography In A University Setting: Experiencing Collaboration Through Dramaturgical Thinking, Ariel Burge

Theatre & Dance ETDs

I began my research with the intent of finding a way for student choreographers in university dance programs to become more involved in their peers work. In addition I hoped to find a teaching model that would provide the experience of peer collaboration. I found in my own training that I wanted to have more interaction with my peers through working creative relationships. I felt that choreography classes were the ideal place to implement a working collaborative experience. Through my research I discovered the concept of dance dramaturgy. I realized that choreography students engaging in the practice of dramaturgical thinking …

Hypotheticals, Mirielle Smith

The Anthology

A prose story

The Real F-Word: Feminism An Exploration Of Feminism And The Female Experience On College Campuses, Beatrice R. Owens

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Using third-wave feminism and playwriting as the foundation, this project intends to examine the history of feminism as it influences the current third-wave in the United States of American with a specific focus on the impact it has on college students. This project examines the development of feminism throughout history and asks whether that historical development has contributed significantly to the way in which millennial men and women understand and relate to feminism presently. Through the compilation of research and the creation of a performance piece, performed on April 1, 2016 in the Wayland Performance Studio, this project examines what …

The Old Sorrow, Emmett J. Schlenz

Honors Thesis

From 1969 to 1998, the conflict known as the Troubles raged in Northern Ireland, killing 3,500 people and devastating Belfast. Many dramatic adaptations tackle the conflict, from Neil Jordan’s Oscar-winning The Crying Game to Fifty Dead Men Walking. These adaptations usually focus on combatants in the conflict, however; none, to my knowledge, full address the experience of Belfast hospital staff, from doctors to nurses to porters. Hospital staff – especially those working at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, which lay at the edge of the Falls Road, an area keenly affected by the conflict – came from all …

Chatterbox, Rebecca Sanchez

Theatre & Dance ETDs

This essay articulates the creative process and artistic influences of two plays written by Rebecca M. Sánchez. The plays, Chatterbox and Re: Living are influenced by a variety of artists including Emilio Carballido and Maria Irene Fornes. Chatterbox details the ill fated love of Valentina and Marco. In both linear and memory sequences the audience can view the complexity of obsession, and the role of perception and memory in reality. Re: Living begins and ends with four university professors locked in a campus closet during an active shooter situation. This play address a normalized state of violence and emergency preparedness …

2016 Otterbein Summer Theatre Season Brochure, Otterbein University Department Of Theatre And Dance

Theatre and Dance Annual Brochures

Annual promotional piece of the upcoming season's shows.

Play Script: Treed, Thomas Kee

Bridgewater Review

No abstract provided.

The Art Of The Process: The Creation And Production Of Wrinkles In Our Clothing, Julia Alexandra Yancey

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Wrinkles in Our Clothing

One night after a party Andrew realizes that he has never truly lived. Christine finds her passion somewhere she never thought she could have it. These two young adults, making their way through college, realize that now is the time to decide how they will choose to live their lives. They face the challenges that most young adults face such as societal expectations, a parent’s ideal image of their child, and having the courage to take that first step. Although these two do not meet in the lives of their characters they appear to know each …

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Taylor Theatre Playbills

Taylor Theatre presents William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Performed April 29-30 and May 6-7, 2016 at the Mitchell Theatre. Mischief meets merriment in this fresh re-imagining of Shakespeare's most popular romantic comedy.

In just one night, four magical stories are cleverly woven together: the marriage of the Athenian duke to the Amazon queen; the battle of the king and queen of the fairies; the follies of four lovers in a forest; and the hilarious antics of amateur actors staging a play. Enter a vibrant world where fairies fly overhead, a donkey bursts into song, and love potion makes your …

My Mind Made No Sound: The Downward Spiral Of Scholars In One Act, Jacob Lorrin Buechler

Student Theses and Dissertations

This is a one-act play on the world of academia. Set in a city during an academic conference, inside a bar, the characters are representations of my real life involvement in higher education. Told in a creative nonfiction style, using characters and stories that I have personally faced, this play brings to life the conflicts and tragedies inherent in our higher education process. Through the seven different characters, each with their own arrogance and prejudices, the play reaches into the ethos of what it means to be a scholar, what events lead to our toleration of what education means, and …

Engaging With The Dory Fleet: A Panel Discussion On A Collaborative College And Community Oral History Project, Brenda Devore Marshall, Tyrone Marshall, Mary Beth Jones, Kathleen Spring, Jackson B. Miller

Northwest Communication Association Conference Papers & Presentations

This peer-reviewed program was presented at the annual Northwest Communication Association Conference in Coeur d’Alene Idaho on April 15, 2016. The presentation features an overview of the Launching through the Surf: The Dory Fleet of Pacific City project and includes detailed notes from each speaker.

Special thanks go to Mary Beth Jones and Brenda DeVore Marshall, who served as transcriber and editor for the detailed speaker notes.

Burch, Kelly Calvert, B. 1964 (Sc 3001), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 3001. Script for a one-act play titled “Allen County: A Work in Progress” written by Kelly C. Burch in commemoration of the bicentennial of Allen County’s formation in 1815. Includes script, program, DVD, and news clipping about the play’s performance on 28 June 2015 at Allen County-Scottsville High School.

The Importance Of C.S. Lewis To Faith-Based Theatre As Seen In The Silver Chair, Andrew J. Wilkinson

Senior Honors Theses

The paper contains an adaptation of the book The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis and details the purpose for why this particular story is important for the faith-based theatre community. There are a number of Christian themes that are evident in the story that are examined as well as the elements of the story that make it apt for adapting to a play format.

Antitheatricality And Irrationality: An Alternative View, Kent Lehnhof

English Faculty Articles and Research

"Over the last three decades, antitheatrical authors like Stephen Gosson, Phillip Stubbes, and William Prynne have become increasingly visible in the literary and cultural studies of the early modern period. Even so, the tendency has been to treat these authors as ideological extremists: reactionary hacks whose opposition to stage plays originates in outrageous ideas of the self, impossible notions of right and wrong, and bizarre beliefs about humanity’s susceptibility to external suggestion. This characterization can be traced back to several of the pioneering studies in the field, including Jonas Barish’s The Antitheatrical Prejudice (1985) and Laura Levine’s Men in Women’s …

Risd Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective Program, Agnieszka Taborska, Bill Newkirk, Risd Archives

RISD Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective

No abstract provided.

Risd Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective Poster, Agnieszka Taborska, Bill Newkirk, Risd Archives

RISD Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective

No abstract provided.

Risd Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective Program, Agnieszka Taborska, Bill Newkirk, Risd Archives

RISD Cabaret 1987-2000 Retrospective

No abstract provided.