Other Theatre and Performance Studies Commons^™

Managing Cosplay Performance: The Forms And Expectations Of Convention Roleplay, Isaac V. Price

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Costume play (i.e. cosplay) is a performance of fandom rife with rituals and communication practices. Cosplay roleplaying performances are cultural practices that reveal how cosplayers interact with one another and among non-cosplaying members of their fandoms. This study examines the expectations that cosplayers hold for roleplay, the forms of roleplay, and the ways in which roleplay can become an instigator of harassment. Through the lens of Face-Negotiation Theory, the author discusses how roleplay functions to maintain or threaten the public images of cosplayers and their audiences, and what strategies cosplayers implement to avoid the loss of face.

Hotel De Vagabundos: Reviewing African American Theatre Journey., Manuel Francisco Viveros

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This analysis examines how Hotel de Vagabundos, a play written by a black playwright from Colombia, fits into the core of definitions of Black Theatre in the United States. I will examine six documents I consider relevant to shape the idea of Black Theatre in the US from 1900 through 2005. The author's experience in New York during the 1940s inspires Hotel de Vagabundos. The author navigates the globalized ethos idea unleashing clashes about identity to criticize aspects of American culture about immigrants, poor people, and internalized racism within African American and Black diasporic communities. The play “like a …

The Magic Circle: An Essential Experience Through Virtual Theatre, Brandon Roye

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the similarities of video game design elements within the world of theatrical scenic design. Using my 2019 scenic design of Marc Camoletti’s bedroom farce Boeing Boeing as the backdrop, I discuss the core concepts of game design. I then describe the scenic process of the production and the journey from concept all the way through to a virtual reality recreation of the design. The study of game design in theatre has the potential to open a wide new world of opportunities in the scenic design industry. This paper examines how the theatre can benefit from game design …

Flaws In My Father | Better Engaging With Trauma, Grief, Loss, And Pain Through Storytelling., Neil Fontano

Theatre & Dance ETDs

In this essay, I will review my playwriting methodology and growth as an artist during my time as a Dramatic Writing Candidate at the University of New Mexico. I will begin by examining my personal narrative and the initial impulse to apply for and accept a position in the Dramatic Writing Program. I will continue by dissecting my own writing methodology and its numerous influences: a sense of place, character, and time. Further, I will give an explanation of and demonstrate my own methods developed during my second year work on “Thelonius | My Brother’s Keeper.” In addition to academic …

Designing Theatre Lighting For New Works Festival 2020, Bridger P. Caicedo

Honors Thesis

Lighting Design encompasses a major part of the theatre experience and this responsibility must not be taken lightly. It requires extensive preparation, expertise, technological expertise, and quite a bit of creativity. I have since experienced most of this process and learned an incredible amount about how to design a show. Over the course of this project, I outlined goals and mile markers to measure my progress until the project was completed and opening night filled the eyes and hearts of the audience. Unfortunately, this progress was harshly and quickly halted by the emergence of the worst global pandemic in almost …

Limboland: A One-Act Play About Death, For Kids, Megan Huggins

Honors Scholars Collaborative Projects

LimboLand: A One-Act Play about Death, for kids

Megan Huggins

Thesis Director: James Al-Shamma, Ph.D

Thesis Committee: Shawn Knight, Jessica Mueller

A loose adaptation of Dante Alighieri’s epic poem Inferno, LimboLand uses Alighieri’s model of the nine circles of Hell to illustrate the five stages of grief. In a script designed for theatre for young audiences, Dante, a young child, travels through different rooms as he attempts to cope with and understand his sister’s death. Dante follows Virgil, an older child, who knows a lot about the afterlife system without understanding any of it. The play includes an appendix …

In The Pit: The Sight And Sound Of Broadway Pit Orchestras, Kyle Krygielski

Undergraduate Distinction Papers

The number of musicians in a Broadway pit orchestra has always been a point of contention between the American Federation of Musicians, Local 802 and the League of American Theatres and Producers. These two organizations have had many collective bargaining agreements that have helped dictate and alter the size of orchestras on Broadway. On one side you have the musicians, who are concerned with preserving jobs and the musical integrity of a show, and on the other you have the producers who are trying to ensure the overall and financial success of the show. This thesis examines these orchestral changes …

Baton Rouge Slam!: An Obituary For Summer 2016: A Critical Performance Ethnography Of Eclectic Truth Poetry Slam, Joshua Hamzehee

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This critical performance ethnography presents the theory, methodology, and practice surrounding the fieldwork, scripting, and performance of Baton Rouge SLAM!: An Obituary for Summer 2016. As participant-observer, director, and co-performer, I unpack social drama, performance ethnography, and slam culture by employing a lens rooted in critical race theory. Local poets permitted me to de- and re-contextualize their interviews into ensemble scenes and theatricalize their slam poems about the recent summer’s charged events. One year later, this involved and embodied process of ethnographic bricolage became the ensemble cast performance of Baton Rouge SLAM!: An Obituary for Summer 2016. Community members and …

Louder Than A Bomb: Poetry Slams And Community Activism Create A Powerful Brew, Kristin Lems

Faculty Publications

Louder than a Bomb is the oldest youth poetry slam in the country, born out of Chicago's oral performance resources, including Second City. The article shares LTAB's beginnings, evolution, growth, and influence, and the author describes the experience of being a judge at the annual poetry slam.

The Fight Master, Spring 2020, Vol. 42 Issue 1, The Society Of American Fight Directors

Fight Master Magazine

No abstract provided.

Musical Theatre Senior Showcase Project, Elena Matchen

Honors Capstone Enhancement Presentations

No abstract provided.

Exploring How Media Portrayals Of Mental Health Affect Public Perceptions Through Devised Theatre, Lauren Lash

Honors Projects

A performance piece and this corresponding paper serve as my honors project, which has two main foci: devised theatre and how the media affects perceptions of mental health. This packet is a documentation of the rehearsal process and sources that influenced the piece and a link to the piece itself. Documenting the rehearsal process included a list of songs, rehearsal plans, rehearsal schedules, and my reflections on the process. Helpful sources included a photo release form, which allowed me to include a recording in this packet, and my annotated bibliography included sources about devising, portraying mental health in theatre, and …

Political Theatre: Entertainment Or Instrument Of Social Change?, Olivia M. Matthews

Senior Theses

This paper explores political theatre as a means of conveying information and inspiring action regarding socio-political issues. Through a staged reading of The Exonerated, and subsequent audience discussion and survey, the effectiveness of theatre as a means of commenting on political problems was explored. The conclusion was reached that theatre is uniquely suited for this role due to the emotional human connection forged by seeing examples of real people dealing with the addressed issues.

The Many Editions Of The Front Page: How Gender Shapes The Story, Nicole Moore

Conspectus Borealis

No abstract provided.

Creating An Omaha Fringe Festival, Tamar Neumann

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Tamar Neumann

UNO Theatre Graduate Program

Omaha Fringe Festival

Creating an Omaha Fringe Festival

For my research project, I started a small theatre Fringe festival that consisted of ten different performances (plays) over the course of three days. Each performance group got three performances. The artists self-produced their works and the festival provided the venue, technical staff, and marketing. I recruited volunteers to help staff the box office and usher and I hired staff to run the technical side of the theatre. The festival also gave the artists 75% of the total box office. My research focused on answering the …

The Wolves

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

9 To 5 The Musical

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

In Support Of Abstraction: Physical Interiority Beyond Postmodern Dance, Irene Hultman Monti

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

I investigate how speculative philosophy informs critical thinking about dance and its performance, encompassing both the act of creating and the action of executing. Speculative thinking augments and draws out new experiences and realities in the artistic body. I will argue that speculative theories widen the understanding and implementation of dance and its performance through a combination of human and nonhuman forces. This broadened understanding encourages progress, transformation, and evolution within the field of dance. I discuss the human (that which is experienced through sensibilities, therefore tangible and understandable on a cognitive and practical level) and the nonhuman (forces beyond …

Opera And Children’S Literature: 1895-Present, John P. Delooper

Publications and Research

This presentation discusses the findings resulting from the creation of a comprehensive bibliography of English Language children’s opera books published from 1895 to present. Historically opera was often assumed to be an elitist art in the United States and was thus seldom discussed in library collection development literature, and equally rarely highlighted in children’s literature periodicals. Recently, two librarians, supported by a Carnegie Whitney grant from the American Library Association, investigated the impact of opera themed children’s books by compiling a bibliography which documented instances of opera in published English Language children’s literature over the last 125 years. By analyzing …

Creating Life-Long Relationships With The Arts: A Caring Philosophical Approach, Jennifer Sparkman Bartee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It is important to understand how performing and visual arts teachers make their classes personally relevant for students. This study examines what the intentions of elementary performing and visual arts teachers who chose to teach with additional affective content. Four research questions were addressed in this study: 1) What are the instructional intentions of care-oriented elementary arts teachers? 2) What are the affective intentions of care-oriented elementary arts teachers? 3) How are these intentions actualized (or not actualized) within elementary arts classrooms? 4) What is the significance of these findings for elementary schools throughout the country?

To respond to these …

Listening Back: A Podcast About Encouraging Social Change Through Theatre Of The Past, Madison Rose

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This CE/T explores the nature of theatre as a tool to encourage social change. Theatre is an important art form that can influence audiences into considering contemporary societal concerns and taking action. This capstone specifically addresses theatre prior to the 2000s as effective commentary on modern issues in America, such as police brutality, discrimination, reproductive rights, and religious hypocrisy. I have created a podcast as a resource for young dramaturgs and activists about existing and accessible plays that can be used to address important societal issues. This project is a culmination of my interest in theatre, history, communication and social …

Direction Of The Play: The Importance Of Being Earnest, Sabrina Haesche

All Graduate Projects

The following documentation includes the conceptualization, research, implementation, and reflection of the entire production process of THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST in February 2020. The documentation includes both character and visual production research, historical context and significance, as well as the evaluation of the play as a vehicle for speaking to the community of Moses Lake.

Transforming Trauma: Performing The Works Of William Shakespeare As Rehabilitation For Incarcerated Individuals, Elyssa Mersdorf

Theses and Dissertations

This paper is the summation of my research and exploration into the history, social ramifications, and individual psychological impact of incarceration and the use of theatre as a vehicle of rehabilitation. Throughout my studies, I encountered evidence in the forms of personal accounts from theatre practitioners, scholarly articles, inmate testimonials, and historical journals regarding the success of such carceral theatre programs in the reformation of the prisoners they serve. How have past prison procedures and strategies hindered or helped inmates in their preparation for their transition from life in a penitentiary to reintroduction into larger society? What are the financial …

Drag Artist Interviews, 2019, Ezra Temko, Adam Loesch

SIUE Faculty Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

This public dataset contains transcripts of 22 in-depth semistructured interviews with drag artists. Students conducted these interviews during Spring 2019.

The Societal Influence On Individual Identity And The Relationship Of Costume Design In Caryl Churchill’S Cloud 9, Laura Kay Plikerd

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Cloud 9 is a play written by Caryl Churchill in 1978. Act one of the play takes place in 1870, British Occupied Africa and act two takes place in contemporary London. In our production, contemporary London was set in 2018. The dramatic shift in time during the two acts brings attention to the changing societal ideals and practices of each era. The costumes for this production of Cloud 9, illuminated the differences between the times by highlighting the stark differences in societally accepted fashion in the chosen time periods and regions.

In Cloud 9, the costumes create a …

Too Young Or Too Old? Age And The Politics Of Performing King Lear - Successfully!, Jim B. Wallace

The Kennesaw Journal of Undergraduate Research

“It is sometimes said that the problem with the part of Lear is that by the time you are old enough to play it, you are too old to play it.” (Jonathan Bate)

Theatre critics rarely see an outstanding performance of King Lear. The thesis of this paper is that it is possible to successfully perform the role of Lear however it takes much more than excellent acting skills to do so. To successfully play Lear requires a visceral understanding of the profound psychological and physical changes that generally begin around age sixty-five. This paper demonstrates that what one learns …

The Costume Design Process For The Phantom Tollbooth, Chloe Elizabeth Cappuccilli

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis will give an account of the costume design process for The Phantom Tollbooth at West Virginia University. Specifically, the responsibilities of the role of Costume Designer, from initial meetings to final production. This document will include research about child psychology that inspired the primary design process, specifically the influence of children’s dreams, and their relationship to toys. This information was utilized to create designs explicitly for children’s theatre audiences. I will present and evaluate the costume designs, including the design evolution until the final production. Detailing the process of costume construction while working with a costume shop. Visual …

Rent And How To Pay It, Grant Austin Prodan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This Document is a record of my process as the Technical Director of West Virginia University School of Theatre & Dance’s production of Rent. Included in the document is a detailed description of my budgeting, planning, and execution of the build as designed during a pandemic. The document is supported by images, schedules, drafting, and other paperwork.