Theatre and Performance Studies Commons^™

Dialogical Practice, Meenakshi Jha

Graduate School of Art Theses

Within an interdisciplinary and dialogical practice where process is as significant as final form/s, I delve in matters not to resolve but to explore them. Digging deep in my studio practice over my philosophical yearnings to talking loud and clear about my life in performances, I venture out in the geographical expanse to connect with self and others. In fact, the more I practice my craft, I feel a lesser and lesser gap between my ‘self’ and others. The walk outwards brings me closer to my internal realizations as a human being. In short, my practice is based on the …

Enhancing Motor Coordination: An Eshkol-Wachman Movement Notation (Ewmn) Perspective, Dr. Nira Al-Dor

Journal of Movement Arts Literacy Archive (2013-2019)

The article integrates multi-layered learning and its potential for human development in parallel domains—psycho-motor, cognitive and social-emotional—while focusing on the complex motor coordination that is involved in mastering literacy skills. It presents Eshkol-Wachman Movement Notation (EWMN) and the coordination phenomena that are based on this method and supported by pilot study on the impact of learning EWMN on the development of coordination. The present pilot study provides proof of concept both for its assessment tools and the idea that EWMN may facilitate coordination. Objectives: to examine improvement in coordination during an intervention program. Participants: 45 dance department students, …

Dancing Around A Memory, Tyler Lovie, Bailey Erwin, Aislinn Williamson

Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)

Sometimes music speaks to you. The words and rhythm it presents translates into physical communication. The story is told in a vulnerable way that elicits how each individual in the audience can relate it to their own life. As choreographers, we enjoyed exploring our individual approaches and interpretations to the movement dynamics and how they balanced each other. At times we went for a literal translation of movement while at other times abstracted the lyrics. Key words triggered key phrases of movement and sometimes the literal movements reinforced the statement. The goal was that the movement and music blend together, …

Art As A Collective: Common Ground, Katelyn Stewart

Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)

In the modern day of our busy lives, we often forget the integral role art plays in human life. Through art, we are reminded and forced to reflect on our commonalities and past experiences. As artists, we have the power to elicit emotional response and reflection. As an audience, we have the responsibility to ourselves to take the time to listen. Art comes in many equally powerful forms, but dance has the unique ability to intertwine art forms into one collective piece of work. To demonstrate this concept we will examine the student choreographed piece, “Common Ground”. This piece follows …

Moving Through Feelings Integrating Dance And Private Counseling: A Creative Dance Technique Based Curriculum For Children Ages 10-12 Undergoing Talk Therapy, Jessica Bourassa

Honors Program Theses and Projects

According to Private counselors, one of the top reasons children are undergoing talk therapy is because they have experienced a trauma that affects their day to day lives, learning abilities, difficulties with social interactions, and behavioral issues. More than sixty-eight percent of children have experienced a traumatic event by the age of twelve and more than twenty percent of those children develop side effects that can lead to anxiety disorders, depression, suicidal thoughts and other emotional issues (Hamner 1). With these side effects, children often undergo talk therapy in order to work through their experiences and learn to heal from …

Love The Art In Yourself: Empowering Actors To Honestly, Comfortably, And Successfully Embody Their Characters, Alyssa Germaine

Honors Program Theses and Projects

As an actor, I have performed in more than twenty plays and worked with ten different directors over the years. The outcomes of these performances have varied, and so has the effectiveness of the different approaches I have experienced. As an early career director, I am working to find my own creative voice as well as my personal style of directing and communicating with actors. The purpose of this process is to address the relationship between the actor and the director and how this can best serve a production from the rehearsal process and into performances. A director’s initial role …

Power In The Hands Of The Uninvolved, Sarah Vita

Across the Bridge: The Merrimack Undergraduate Research Journal

The Dutchman, written by Amiri Baraka, expresses the racism of the 1960s. While skimming the surface to find the tones of racism and white oppression exhibited by Lula, Baraka craftily sneaks the bystander effect into his stage directions. The bystander effect is easily looked past in this play because the words of Lula and her actions distract from the small details that create the real problem.

Decolonizing Playwriting Through Indigenous Ceremonial Performances, Jay B. Muskett

Theatre & Dance ETDs

This dissertation attempts to express the importance of storytelling within the Indigenous Theater framework. It does so by first analyzing the progression of the writer’s unique upbringing and analyzing the influences of story upon an indigenous identity. I will also attempt to describe the aesthetics of Native Theater along two lines of methodology which includes praxis described and developed by Hanay Geiogamah and Rolland Meinholtz. I will also explain how the script 1n2ian tries to follow those concepts of Native Theater to create a ceremonial performance that uses a blending of both methodologies.

The Art Of Promotion: An Exploration Of Public Relations And Dance, Shannon Cleary

Honors Projects

This PR proposal is a guideline that can be successfully implemented into the BGSU Dance Program’s promotional efforts, specifically publicizing the annual Winter Dance Concert. Through inventive social and multi-media efforts, innovative collaboration with community and campus partners, and interactive updates to the Dance Program promotional efforts, this campaign will target and reach BGSU students, faculty and staff, Wood County community members, prospective BGSU students, local media and K-12 students in Wood and Lucas County. This proposal will mold a declining program into a thriving and engaging dance environment at BGSU.The implications for the field of dance and PR are …

The Art Of Promotion: An Exploration Of Public Relations And Dance, Shannon Cleary

Honors Projects

This PR proposal is a guideline that can be successfully implemented into the BGSU Dance Program’s promotional efforts, specifically publicizing the annual Winter Dance Concert. Through inventive social and multi-media efforts, innovative collaboration with community and campus partners, and interactive updates to the Dance Program promotional efforts, this campaign will target and reach BGSU students, faculty and staff, Wood County community members, prospective BGSU students, local media and K-12 students in Wood and Lucas County. This proposal will mold a declining program into a thriving and engaging dance environment at BGSU. The implications for the field of dance and PR …

Shift Dance Intensive: Developing Dance, Arts And Culture In Hong Kong, Kelsey Marie Ang

Honors Thesis

Currently, Hong Kong “lags behind” other countries in terms of arts and cultural development (Chow). There is a lack of support for the arts in Hong Kong (Chow; Lee). Although Hong Kong needs world class, high quality performances in order to develop and build arts audiences (Lee), dance training in Hong Kong is inadequate at enabling dancers to reach an international level (Yung). My senior thesis project investigates how to increase dance education opportunities, nurture local talent, develop the artistic community and increase community engagement with dance by developing and executing a summer dance intensive in Hong Kong. My project, …

"Within The Hollow Crown": Performing Kingship In Richard Ii And Henry Iv Part One, Angeline Morris

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines the parallels and connections between Richard II and Prince Hal in Shakespeare’sRichard II and 1 Henry IV and what the results would be if the characters were cross-cast, or played by the same actor onstage, in performance. Criticism on the plays has often addressed the parallels between the two characters, but as of yet no one has examined ways to show this in performance. This paper acts as a form of critical introduction for a proposed combined performance text of both Richard II and 1 Henry IV, arguing that the textual parallels between the two …

Democracy In America, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2018-2019 Borders and Boundaries

Romeo Castellucci is one of Europe’s best-known directors, a firebrand known for productions that are as thought-provoking as they are visually stunning. He returns to Peak Performances with the American premiere of “Democracy in America,” freely inspired by the work of Alexis de Tocqueville. Castellucci conjures majorettes who stir the crowd’s enthusiasm for democracy in America, colonial settlers who confound the native Americans, and a puritan couple who struggle to farm a barren land. He asks us to consider the empty promises of a political system steeped in Biblical egalitarianism rather than the concept of tragedy so essential to ancient …

Performing Arts Labor Unions And Young Industry Professionals: An Analysis Of Current And Future Relations, Caroline Thompson

Honors College Theses

This thesis surrounds the evolving topic of unionization, particularly within the performing arts industry. As trends and regulations develop that tend away from labor organization, with an increase in non-Equity professional opportunities and the enforcement and growth of legislation such as Janus vs. AFSCME and state-by-state right-to-work laws, unions such as the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) have more reason to market themselves than ever before. This thesis aims to examine the relationship between AEA and young theatre industry entrants, aged 18-25. The study, furthermore, employs an in-depth analysis of the AEA’s social platforms, with particular focus on Instagram, Twitter and …

Mccartt-Jackson, Sarah, B. 1982 (Fa 1290), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 1290. Student collection titled “’Clogging’s Just Clogging’: The Richard McHargue Cloggers and Approaches to Vernacular Percussive Dance Study” in which Sarah McCartt-Jackson conducts an interview with Richard McHargue, a clogging instructor from Richmond, Kentucky. The interview contains McHargue’s early dancing memories, clogging terms, and opinions about the contemporary state of clogging. The collection also contains a partial transcript, fieldnotes, interview questions, content index, photographs, and the recorded audio interview on CD.

Mansfield Park By Kate Hamill (And Jane Austen), Christopher Nagle

ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830

This article reviews the world premiere of Kate Hamill's Mansfield Park directed by Stuart Carden and produced for the Northlight Theatre in Chicago in November and December 2018. Hamill’s bold new adaptation is notable for foregrounding the contexts of empire and the slave trade undergirding the novel, and in ultimately offering a feminist fairy-tale of radical self-assertion and self-determination for its heroine.

Neoclassicism And Camp In Sir William Hamilton’S Naples, Ersy Contogouris

ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830

Susan Sontag, in her now-classic “Notes on Camp” (1964), traces the origins of camp to the eighteenth century (13, 14, 33). And although it is precisely the baroque and rococo art movements against which Winckelmann rebelled that Sontag identifies as camp, it is worth reflecting on whether the notion of imitation that is central to both movements – imitation of ancient works in the case of neoclassicism, and imitation as parody in the case of camp (Meyer 7) – might not bring the two closer. Once the conceptual chasm separating neoclassicism and camp has begun to be bridged, we can …

Sterne’S Sentimental Temptations: Sex, Sensibility, And The Uses Of Camp, Julie Beaulieu

ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830

Laurence Sterne’s lack of commitment to the tenets of sentimentality in A Sentimental Journey—present in his ability to mock and praise the individual capacity to feel, and more precisely, in his satirical reading of the “cult of sensibility,” the new ideological imperative to have and to showcase deep, sentimental feelings—remains as one of the central challenges for readings of the novel. To explore Sterne’s portrayal of sensibility in A Sentimental Journey, I turn to camp sensibility, and the discussions that followed Susan Sontag’s “Notes on Camp.” Sterne’s novel could be read as camp, perhaps most notably in his …

Eighteenth-Century Camp Introduction, Ula Lukszo Klein, Emily Mn Kugler

ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830

A blend of the silly and the extravagant that puts the serious into conversation with the ridiculous, camp today is often signified by elements of eighteenth-century Europe with its elaborate hairstyles, exaggerated silhouettes, affected courtiers, and a rise in the consumption of exotic goods, candelabras, masks, and other markers of elite excess (often with a nod to the era’s demise in the form of either the French Revolution or subsequent Victorian strictures). Camp’s relation to queer modes of performance and its prioritization of style over (or in conjunction with) substance offers a queer aesthetic lens to re-evaluate the eighteenth century …

Enduring Resilience: An Exploration Of Puerto Rican Colonization, Hurricane Maria, And Ongoing Healing Through Cultural Rituals, Jasmin Isabel Torrejón

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This thesis seeks to illuminate the economic, cultural and social subjugation of Puerto Rico, and its people, through the stripping of personal and political self-determination imposed by U.S. colonization. This research explores historic examples of Puerto Rican perseverance and analyzes psychologically protective factors supporting survivorship and resilience, such as familism and ontological security. The effects of Hurricane Maria on mental health are highlighted in the research, as is the correlation between a lack of electrical power and adverse health/wellness outcomes. Models for collective liberation and social justice are discussed and exemplified through the case study of a march that took …

Center For Art & Theater News, Georgia Southern University

Center for Art & Theater (Archived)

• 'BFA 2019: Senior Exhibition' on view at Center for Art & Theatre

"Playhouse Creatures:" A Study Of Restoration Actresses, Emily Laplante

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Creatures. Women. Actresses. We are here because of women like Mary Betterton, Doll Common, Nell Gwyn, Elizabeth Farley, and Rebecca Marshall. Theatre is about telling stories. Their story is a timeless one: of suffering, resilience, dedication, love, and comradery. Actresses were first permitted by royal decree to act upon the stage in 1669 by King Charles II of England. This decree created a spark within the playhouses to see actresses in the flesh perform. With this came a ripple effect of a host of expectations and suppression. This Honors Capstone is a comprehensive look into the themes of April De …

An Examination Of Factors Associated With Body Appreciation, Sociocultural Attitudes Of Appearance, And Ratings Of Diverse Performing Artists, Stephanie Rathjen

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Introduction: Multiple studies have found that performing artists have low body image which may be associated with the media’s portrayal of performers. Low body image can cause negative health effects including depression and eating disorders. This study explores body attitudes among performing and non-performing arts students and the possible media influences on those attitudes.

Methods: Undergraduate students (n=522) were asked to participate in an anonymous online survey regarding their perceptions of their individual body perception. During the survey, they were randomized to watch a video depicting either slim mostly Caucasian performers (video A) or performers of different ethnicities …

To Speak Ghosts And See Echoes: Longing In Lolita, Emily Aucompaugh

CURCE Annual Undergraduate Conference

Underneath the plot of Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, which focuses on the musings of a pedophile and murderer who attempts to “confess” actions and impulses of which he feels no guilt, a secondary motif emerges of a man motivated, guided, and consumed by longing, which he cannot assuage due his fixation of desire on a subject that does not exist. Longing embodies Humbert’s greatest joy and deepest pain, a feeling of anxiety and anticipation which eclipses the necessity of completion. Lolita invokes longing, the desire towards absent things, in two ways. Firstly, Nabokov alludes to a cornucopia of other poetic, …

Mixed Reality’S Ability To Craft And Establish An Experience Of Space, Corey Jones

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Mixed Reality, when integrated into architecture, will enable open spaces and the perception of the built environment to change rapidly with little physical fabrication.

As architects, we design with a desired experience of space in mind and don’t typically design with a rapidly changing built environment to meet a fluctuating programmatic demand. Theater Program however, often requires such rapid changes to the perceived environment, that is the stage, and is an activator of social interaction based on a shared experience of the performances.

What would be the architectural implications if we were to integrate mixed reality as a factor of …

Center For Art & Theater News, Georgia Southern University

Center for Art & Theater (Archived)

• Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art announces 'Juried 2019' winners

Body Dissatisfaction Among Ballet Dancers, Isabelle Fatima Barlaan

Senior Theses

Athletes are required to maintain a healthy and strong physique, however they can experience pressure to look a specific way. Certain types of sports promote a thin body image which athletes are insisted to follow. As a result of this, there is a trend often seen in female athletes and body dissatisfaction because of the sociocultural and sports community pressure. Body dissatisfaction is the negative subjective evaluation of the weight and shape of one’s own body. The level of body dissatisfaction a female athlete can experience varies among the type of sport they participate in. Studies show that female athletes …

The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time An Actor’S Reflection, Emily Austin

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis delves into the creative process of creating characters for the play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. The characters that were created include: Mrs. Shears, Woman on Train, and Voice One. This thesis highlights the creative process through methods of research that dissect the authors, story, autism, and the actor’s experience throughout the rehearsal process. Sources such as interviews with autism consultants and family members of those with autism added useful information towards the creation of the characters. Research on the performance aspect was centered around the exploration of a character’s past through diagrams …

Identity: An Expression Of Life Through Dance, Rachel Crabtree

Undergraduate Honors Theses

"Identity: An Expression of Life Through Dance" is a reflection on the process of choreographing and performing a series of dances based on self-discovery and research on innovators of dance and their techniques.

An Exploration In Costume, Hair, And Makeup Design: Selected Projects In Areas Of Costume Design, Sara Shouse

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Selected projects in areas of costume design.