Theatre and Performance Studies Commons^™

Lenore: Poe And Baudelaire At Play, Carolyn Martha Fado

Senior Independent Study Theses

This Senior Independent Study Project is a postmodern play inspired by the work of the nineteenth-century poets Edgar Allan Poe and Charles Baudelaire. The scholar Lenore loses her grasp on reality as she studies the work of these two poets and she becomes lost in an imaginary world. This project is collaborative; music composition major Cara Haxo wrote a song cycle based on parts of the script. The play is preceded by a critical introduction.

The Tyrants Within Us And The Thread Of History : The Creation Of "Sic Semper Tyrannis," A One-Person Play, Benjamin Todd Koucherik

LSU Master's Theses

The assigned task was to create and perform a 20-40 minute long one-person play, with no other guidelines or restrictions offered. Having never performed in or written a full one-person play, my challenge was two-fold: create a cohesive and coherent script, and craft the production and performance of that script. From several inspirational sources, I was spurred on to explore the dynamics of revolutionaries, fanatics, and vigilantes through the lens of presidential assassin John Wilkes Booth. Through the combination of Booth’s infamy and the modern day realities of fame-seeking, political divisiveness, and tragically pervasive “spectacle killing” events, I was ultimately …

Attention Must Be Paid: A Critical Study Of The Non-Traditional Leading Man In Twentieth Century Drama, Trevin Cooper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The role of the non-traditional leading man has painted a strong image which mirrors the cultural development of our identities; we turn to these men/characters to understand who, or why, we are. Their contributions require acknowledgement. This thesis is a study of the vital role the non-traditional leading man has played in the evolution of twentieth-century theatre. It will examine, through the use of ten plays, one from every decade of the twentieth century, and twelve male roles, the theory that some of the greatest leading male characters in modern theatre are not epitomized by the qualities identified with the …

An Actor's Approach: Stepping Into A Role And A World Of The Past, Danielle Gosselin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To step into a character and a world of the past, the actor must not discard the present, but seek to find connections and links between the worlds. I was cast in the Orlando Shakespeare Theater production of Sense and Sensibility, a Jon Jory adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel, in the role of Lucy Steele. This was an equity production, and it ran February 6th – March 17th, 2013, in the Orlando Shakespeare Theater’s Margeson Theater. Lucy is a female character from England in a period often referred to as the Regency era. As a woman from today’s United States …

Applying Historiography To Fictional Works: A Case Study Of William Inge's Picnic, Nicholas Murphy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historiography is the writing of history based on the examination of sources and synthesizing these sources into a narrative that will stand the test of critical methods. Historiography is not the study of history but rather provides a tool to analyze each written account of a historical event. The concepts of historiography are traditionally reserved for the study of factual based history and not for fictional events or people. However, just as history seems to evolve over time, authors also revise their fiction work. If history is adapted and changed over time to fulfill the historian’s desires, can fictional works …

Boy Meets Boy: Envisioning Queer Youth Novels For Translation To The Stage, Daniel Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Queer Youth, or young people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning, is a demographic with an increasing presence in contemporary society. Along with this increased presence has come an increase in support groups available to these youths that range from Gay-Straight Alliances at their schools, community groups from their local gay and lesbian center to, most recently, theater companies that have begun to offer workshops and performance opportunities within the Queer Youth Theatre genre. Queer Youth Theatre is an emerging form of topical theatre that deals with issues and situations queer youth may face in their daily …

Interactionz: Engaging Lgbtq+ Youth Using Theatre For Social Change, Jonathan Jackson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Theatre for social change is a term used to describe a wide range of theatre-based techniques and methods. Through implementation of performance techniques, participants are encouraged to creatively explore and communicate various ideas with the specific intention of eliciting a societal or political shift within a given community. Through this thesis, I will explore the impact of applying theatre for social change in a youth-centered environment. I will discuss my journey as creator, facilitator, and project director of interACTionZ, a queer youth theatre program in Orlando, FL formed through a partnership between Theatre UCF at the University of Central Florida …

An Examination Of The Actor's Approach To Playwriting: Are Playwrights Able To Write About What Is Unfamiliar To Them?, Kayla Zaniboni

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Playwrights write about what is familiar to them. Their inspiration comes from their childhood, past relationships, and their personal view of the world. But could a playwright write about something to which they have no personal connection? Using the book Triggered: A Memoir of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, I will write a one act play about mental illness. I have no personal experience or personal connection to mental illness, but I will approach the process the same way as an actor does a character. I will go into the writing process as an actor, completing character analyses for the characters and using …

Immediacy In Comedy: How Gertrude Stein, Long Form Improv, And 5 Second Films Can Revolutionize The Comedic Form, Alexander Hluch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Comedy has typically been derided as second-tier to drama in all aspects of narrative. Throughout history, comedy has seen short shrift in both critical reception and academic investigation. Merit is simply placed on drama far before that of comedy. This is not for comedy’s own lack of skill or craft, but simply for comedy’s misappropriation as a narrative form. Throughout the years, by way of either competition or economic superiority, comedy has been pigeonholed into the typified dramatic structure that drama so thoroughly encapsulates. Being forced into a form that exemplifies complex, climactic structure and explicit character development, comedy in …

How To Improve Theatre Arts Education In Chinese Higher Educational Institutes, Ji Ding

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Arts degree in theatre. Theatre Arts in China is in a state of decline. There are several possible ways to change this situation. This thesis will, through the comparison of Theatre Arts in higher education between China and the US, discuss what good lessons China may draw from the US in order to improve. The improved education of Theatre Arts in Chinese higher educational institutes may then be able to help the decline of Theatre Arts in China.

Play Selection Process Of Minnesota Catholic High Schools, Amanda Pyfferoen

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Arts degree in theatre. It details the parameters and results of a survey distributed to Catholic high school theatre directors in Minnesota. The survey inquired about the process for selecting plays, what themes or lessons the directors refrain from presenting and if there is a need for a list of guidelines that could assist directors in selecting Catholic appropriate theatre pieces to present. There is further development of a proposed guideline and potential rating system that could be implemented into Catholic high school theatre programs.

Sites Of Passage: Art As Action In Egypt And The Us-- Creating An Autoethnography Through Performance Writing, Revolution, And Social Practice, Tavia La Follette

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

As a performance artist and arts activist I present my research project to the audience in performative writing, a postmodern research style that advocates the integration of the artist/researcher identity. In the summer of 2010, I left for Egypt to teach a performance and installation art workshop at Artist Residency Egypt, the first step of the Firefly Tunnels Project, a virtual and tangible exchange between artists in the United States and Egypt. This venture began with the awareness that the 10th anniversary of 9/11 was approaching. What I could not have foreseen were the other world events that would have …

Framing Anorexia : A Play Script And Multidimensional Investigation Of Anorexia : A Play And Critical Essay, Louise Helfgott

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis explores anorexia nervosa in young people. It comprises two components: a play script, "Frames", about 16-year-old Elizabeth who is combating the disorder, her troubled friend Ben, and their families, and a critical essay that reviews qualitative and quantitative literature about anorexia and contextualises the play in relation to selected narratives, plays and films. In my field research, I interviewed a number of professionals working in the field of anorexia and the essay also discusses their views and insights.

Few plays deal with anorexia in an in-depth manner to explore the onset and development of the illness. "Frames" addresses …

One Art With Two Sides: Theatre And Performance Art, Jacob Watts

Honors Theses

Theatre is typically a scripted performance, performed by actors within a "Theatre space" and observed by an audience. When capitalized, "Theatre" refers to a field of art and study. It is produced to tell a story, or create meaning. Theatre contains elements of plot and characters, often using the characters to tell a story. Visual performance art is art that focuses on live human performance and defines itself in terms of "visual art" and not in terms of "Theatre performance." Performance art does not always occupy a specific place or use a specific kind of script. It often lacks character, …

The Shape Of Things: One Director's Journey From Script To Final Dress, Lyndsay Somers Hicks

Theses

The purpose of this written thesis is to document my journey. as the director, from script to final dress rehearsal; after that the performance belongs to the actors and technical crew. During this journey I collaborated with a team of designers, artists and a mentor. I opened my mind and my experience to their expertise, leadership and artistic license. ln this documentation is my concept. my vision, my heart, and my process step-by-step resulting in the performance that I humbly present as my interpretation of Neil LaBute's The Shape of Things.

A Scenic Design For Neil Labute's The Shape Of Things, Barbara L. Mcgowan

Theses

The Shape of Things is not a play that would use a traditional box set. The biggest challenge was trying to create and then draft a non-traditional set that could be used for ten distinct locations. This paper is an analysis of the play from the perspective of a scenic designer. It includes past production information, an in-depth look at how religion affects the story and a journal following the show from design to strike. The appendices included various images rejected and/or used for the projection screens, design plans used for construction and photos from the production.

Infusing Technology Into The Performing Arts At Cal Poly, Tyler Whipple

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

No abstract provided.

Performing Taboo: The Creation Of An Aesthetic Through The Exploration Of Censorship In Theatre And The Challenges Of Directing Killer Joe, David Todd Zimmerman

Theses and Dissertations

This document explores the performance of taboo on the stage. The exploration is focused around the establishment of my personal aesthetic, which was developed through my studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. Starting with my first trip to Broadway, my journey goes through the class work that I did at VCU and the two plays that I did on the Shafer Street Alliance Laboratory Theatre stage: my performance and use of latex costumes in Funnyhouse of a Negro, and my direction and the troubles with producing Killer Joe. The exploration concludes with a look at the theatre in parts of Virginia …

A Christmas Carol (November 29-30, December 1-2, 2012), Charles Dickens

Student Theatre Programs

Program for A Christmas Carol (November 29-30, December 1-2, 2012).

To view the photos from this production of A Christmas Carol, please click here.

The Glass Menagerie Program [2012], University Of Southern Maine Department Of Theatre

Programs 2012-2013 Season

By Tennessee Williams

Directed by Thomas Power

This production was a Participating entry in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KC/ACTF).

A Man Of No Importance (October 12-13, 18-20, 2012), Terrence Mcnally

Student Theatre Programs

Program for A Man of No Importance (October 12-13, 18-20, 2012).

You Can't Take It With You Program, University Of Southern Maine Department Of Theatre

Programs 2012-2013 Season

By George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart

Directed by Wil Kilroy

This production was a Participating entry in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KC/ACTF).

The Gods Come For Play: Visualizing The Divine In Balinese Theatre, Chandler Payne, John Park

Featured Research

Playwrights, practitioners, and art historians have been shocked and inspired by Balinese theatre time and time again because it reveals the extent of devotion the Balinese have for their religion. Although many researchers have investigated the functionality through the performance aspect of the play, there is a lack of published research devoted how the functionality of the ritual and play are influenced by the physical aesthetic properties of the Barong and Rangda mask. The theatrical aspects are to be considered through investigating these masks in relation to the temple space of the Taman Aran. By investigating the aesthetic properties of …

Romeo And Juliet, Courtney Mohler

Scholarship and Professional Work – Arts

No abstract provided.

The Shape Of Things (September 20-23, 2012), Neil Labute

Student Theatre Programs

Program for the The Shape of Things (September 20-23, 2012).

To view the photos from this production of The Shape of Things, please click here.

8 Program, University Of Southern Maine Department Of Theatre

Programs 2012-2013 Season

A New Play by Dustin Lance Black

Directed by Wil Kilroy

2012-2013 Production Season Poster, Carrie D. Applegate

Department of Theatre Arts Posters

Poster for 2012-2013 Production Season. Season includes productions of Becoming: An Evening of Short Plays, The Importance of Being Earnest, Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Misunderstanding

The Anatomy Of Expression: Explorations On The Intersection Of Acting And The Alexander Technique, Kelley Schoger

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this paper is to illuminate how the principles of the Alexander Technique and the role of bodily systems can serve as a foundational support for actor training. Inclusion of the Alexander Technique in the acting curriculum proves to be an effective tool for bridging the gap between kinesthetic learning and its application to beginning acting training. Starting with the nervous system, the operating principles of the Alexander Technique are discussed through research and personal insights. Next, in light of how self-discovery plays a key role in the first year of actor training, the idea of release in …

Barefoot In The Park, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2012 Summer Theatre

What happens when two very different people fall in love? Paul likes to wear his gloves in the winter and Corie wants to walk barefoot in the park. Mix in the crazy neighbors upstairs, Victor Velasco, who "wears Japanese kimonos and sleeps on rugs" and Corie's mother who "wears a hairnet and sleeps on a board" and expect some complications. Set in 1963, Barefoot in the Park captures the tension between the freedom of the burgeoning 60's and the conventions of the waning 50's. Corie and Victor are pre-hippies, attuned to their libidos and their desire for freedom and adventure. …

Nothing To Be Done: The Active Function Of Samuel Beckett's Text, Deleah Vaye Emery Waters Silva

Theses and Dissertations

Fintan O'Toole states: "Plays survive not by being carefully preserved, not by being exhibited from time to time in theatrical museums, but by being tried and tested, taken apart and reassembled" (Game Without End).One of the great misconceptions and critiques of Samuel Beckett is of his presumed unrelenting control over his works. Artists, hoping to creatively collaborate with Beckett as they move his texts to performance, feel limited by his strict enforcement of that which he has written in his texts. Traditional relationships and functions allow directors to interpret an author's text. Not so with Beckett. Beckett demands …