Performance Studies Commons^™

Theatre As Sanctuary: Queer Identity, Religious Trauma, And The Path To Healing, Casey Worley

Theses and Dissertations

Growing up as a queer individual in a deeply religious Southern Baptist community, I learned early that faith and identity could feel like irreconcilable forces. I sat in the pews, surrounded by voices that preached love but often excluded people like me. For years, I struggled with the question: Can I be both queer and faithful? This tension—between belief and belonging, between the church I was raised in and the identity I could no longer deny—became the foundation of my journey, my artistic practice, and this thesis.

Through this research, I explore the intersections of queer identity, religious trauma, and …

The Survival Of An American Theater: An Intrinsic And Historical Case Study Of The Success Of Arena Stage, Kay Oliver

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Arena Stage was founded in 1950 in Washington, DC, by Zelda Fichandler, Tom Fichandler, and Edward Mangum. Today, Arena Stage serves a diverse annual audience of more than 300,000 people. It is the largest theater company dedicated to American plays and playwrights in the country. This study presents a single intrinsic historical case study of Arena Stage to examine the internal organizational structure and leadership dynamics that guided the theater through seven decades of turbulent American history. Arena Stage has provided world-class programming while the nation was grappling with the Vietnam War (1950–1975), Brown v. Board of Education (1954), political …

The Launch: A Senior Cabaret, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024-2025 Season Productions

No abstract provided.

The Fight Master, Fall 2024, Vol. 43 Issue 2, The Society Of American Fight Directors

Fight Master Magazine

No abstract provided.

Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet Of 1812, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024-2025 Season Productions

No abstract provided.

The Importance Of Being Earnest, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024-2025 Season Productions

No abstract provided.

Gemstoning: Character Creation Exercise For The Classroom & Production, Abigail Dillard, Lucas Skjaret

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

In the summer of 2023, we participated in an online training course with the Stella Adler Studio of Acting titled Awareness Without Judgement: A Teacher Training Intensive. Over the weeks, we studied with three main teachers at the Studio on Character, Technique, and Script Interpretation with ‘master classes’ led by actors and scholars scattered over the weeks. The course is designed for theatre practitioners who want more in-depth experience and exposure to the more pedagogical side of acting and performance; in other words, for acting teachers who want to use the techniques of Stella Adler within their teaching. Given this …

Beehive: The '60s Musical, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

It's A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

Forever Plaid, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

Feldenkrais And Music Informed Listening: A Neurophenomenological Perspective On Autism, Arona Primalani

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Phenomenologists identify the subjective body and its felt-senses as the basis for human development and consciousness, including mental health. Several mental health disorders, when viewed from a phenomenological perspective, share common symptomology related to varying extents of fractured selves, which in turn hinders dynamic interaction between individuals, their actions, and their relationships with their social and material worlds. Autism is one such condition. Hence, I created an intervention to investigate how listening, which foster subjective and intersubjective experiences, lies at the heart of somatic and arts-based interventions. This thesis, first, begins with a summary of the presenting symptoms observed in …

Method Acting As A Therapeutic Intervention For Trauma Recovery, Remi Moses

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

While considered controversial by some, Method acting as popularized by Lee Strasberg is a technique that elicits powerful and authentic results on stage and screen. The foundational Method acting techniques, the Relaxation Exercise (RE) and the Sense Memory Exercise (SME), share similarities to bottom-up therapeutic processes like Somatic Experiencing and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. By implementing a trauma-informed drama therapy framework with these two exercises, the RE and SME were restructured as a therapeutic intervention for people in trauma recovery. The author implemented a study of three consecutive group therapy sessions for people healing from trauma where clients participated …

Scare If You Dare: A Look Into Scare Acting, Hana Goss

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Scare acting has always been the unsung villains of the entertainment industry. For three months of the year, for about five minutes of a haunted house, they get attention. However, the work scare actors do to is way more than just a five second “boo.” Scare actors have been at the beginning of theatre and continue to influence modern entertainment. Even though the patrons may be the ones feeling the danger, scare actors may be even more in danger than them. Each scare actor is unique from their looks to their moves. It might be take a lot of nerve …

An Actor's Approach To Contemporary Theatre, Ethan Harbin

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper is a composite of research and reflection in regards to Comemedia dell'arte as well as contemporary theatre. It is a personal exploration of the life and legacy of Aurand Harris. My personal application of the research is documented in this thesis.

Killers, Queers, And Cowards: Suffering And Freedom In Jean-Paul Sartre’S No Exit, Aaron Brewer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Throughout No Exit, Sartre’s mirror is key to understanding his characters and philosophy. It is his tool for exploring ideas that are limited by the time in which he lived. Here, the play does what all great works should do: it challenges the status quo and looks beyond what can already be seen. This thesis will use his established mirror metaphor and an expanded mirror metaphor to unearth the true nature of No Exit’s characters.

In setting down the characters’ path, Sartre asks questions that humans have considered for Millenia: Why are we here? Why am I suffering? How …

Bedeviled Beauty: My Journey Through White American Theater Institutions, J'Aila C. Price

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Game console: Oculus Quest

World: American Theater Institutions

Player: Minority

Place: United States

Level: “Ain’t no way.”

This thesis explores the contrast between the Westernized philosophies ingrained in my education and my identity as a Black female artist. It sheds light on the difficulties of pursuing higher education in the arts and the gaps that arise from limited exposure to culturally diverse Black resources, revealing the systemic issues in Western performance education. The paper also discusses the insights gained from my journey as a Black female artist, focusing on my thesis performance of Blood at the Root, which is …

A Performance-Based Exploration Of Vocal Anatomy And Pedagogy: Maximizing Technical, Stylistic, And Physiological Frameworks For Superlative Vocal Technique In Artistic Function, Michael J. Civitano

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the influence of specific frameworks in performance and vocal pedagogy on artists' capacity to enact evidence-based learning outcomes, with emphasis on vocal physiology and educator-performer relationships. Employing an experimental design, five philosophies that support capacity-building were tested across two trial settings, varying in intensity. The participant utilized narrative reasoning, diversified methods, and mentorship from specialized educators to apply frameworks. Findings indicate that, in practicing evidence-based learning and maximizing anatomic foundations of the voice, substantial developments in artistic capacity ensued. Educator-performer relationships mediate this process through reciprocal collaborations that foster capacity-building. Performers display optimal artistic capacity by effectively …

Transforming Into A Politically Engaged Actor Through Gem Of The Ocean., Tajleed Steven Hardy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores my transformation into a politically engaged theatre artist through my performance as Citizen Barlow in the University of Louisville's Department of Theatre Arts’ 2024 production of August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean. My thesis defines the characteristics of a politically engaged theatre artist and proposes specific ways actors can prepare to perform in any production of any play. My transformation into a politically engaged theatre artist resulted from a combination of the skills I gathered as an undergraduate student at Norfolk State University and the new analytical and acting techniques I learned as an MFA in …

The Storm In The Barn

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

The Voice Actor And Their Double: Working As A Voice Actor And Teaching Voice Acting In The Age Of Ai Voice Cloning, Adam Paul

Tradition Innovations in Arts, Design, and Media Higher Education

The rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and voice cloning technology presents significant challenges and opportunities in the field of voice acting and performing arts. This article explores the profound transformations taking place in the voiceover industry due to the convergence of AI, voice synthesis, and personal voice cloning technologies. The author, a seasoned voice actor, reflects on the impact of these advancements on his profession, from the democratization of voiceover tools to the emergence of AI-generated voices that closely mimic human speech.

The article delves into the intricate interplay between technology and human creativity, investigating the implications for voice …

Student-Directed One-Acts

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

You’Re Invited! Collaborating With Faculty And Students To Create A Successful Library Event, Laura Semrau

Transforming Libraries for Graduate Students

To celebrate the 400^th anniversary of the printing of Shakespeare’s First Folio, the Baylor University Libraries hosted a three-day celebration; “Shakespeare 400” drew faculty members from six academic departments and leveraged the talents of both graduate and undergraduate students. The four main events drew a cumulative crowd of over 200 people. Graduate students contributed to the events through music performance, a dramatic reading, enthusiastic promotion, and engaged participation. This presentation will explore key take-aways for including graduate students in library events.

The success of Shakespeare 400 was largely due to collaborations between the library, faculty members, and graduate …

Twelfth Night, Or What You Will

Theatre Programs

No abstract provided.

Introduction To Theatre Oer Course, Carmen R. Meyers

Open Educational Resources

Study of theatre and performance throughout history and across cultures including an examination of European, Carribean, and North and South American theatrical styles and genres.

This course is organized for a hybrid/asynchronous format. Our class meets on-campus every week for 75 minutes and the other 75 minutes will be completed asynchronously with weekly learning modules on Blackboard.

The first half of the course focuses on the history of theatre from Ancient Greece through Modern Realism. The second half of the course, students engage in the procedures of professional theatre artists through writing and refining a dramatic text; enacting a performance; …

Love And Solitude In Latin America: An Actor’S Take, Performing Graciela In Diatriba De Amor Para Un Hombre Sentado By Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Claudia C. Sevilla

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In this thesis I take a journey through twentieth century Latin America through inhabiting the role of Graciela created by the late great Gabriel Garcia Marquez in his only work of theatre. Through detailed historical research I explore human topics such as marriage and isolation embodied in Graciela that in a sense mirror a people and a continent. The challenges of producing a play with no budget or partners and the freedoms and constraints of performing a one-person show, which included an audience that does not speak the language the play is written in. How does an actor adapt to …

Celluloid Shakespeare: An Exploration Of The Relationship Between Film And Theatre Through Edgar In Shakespeare’S King Lear, Liam Michael Holton

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This document explores the actor‘s process and performance of Edgar in the 2021 WVU/WVPB production of William Shakespeare‘s King Lear. This production was directed by Professor Jerry McGonigle and was filmed during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in partnership with West Virginia Public Broadcasting. This experimental project would go on to receive national distribution by the National Educational Television Association (NETA) and was also in consideration for a NETA award, in addition to receiving an Ohio Valley regional Emmy Award nomination as a finalist in the category of Arts/Entertainment – Short Form or Long Form Content. The following text …

Portraying Women In Eugene O’Neill Plays: How Life Affects Art And How Art Is Made Manifest, Charity M. Turley

Senior Honors Theses

Throughout his career, Eugene O’Neill wrote plays with strong and compelling female characters which have earned him much recognition. O’Neill’s ability to perceivably tap into a humans’ psyche and portray the deep desires of humanity was done to an extent rarely portrayed on the stage before; especially giving such complex characteristics to women, which was unconventional and unexpected for his time. Many have asked, therefore, what led O’Neill to write women as boldly as he did? It is known that his formative familial and romantic relationships were plagued by hardship, even so, he admitted to writing many of his characters …

Stage Clutter: An Interactive Journey Following A Theater’S Existential Ponderings, Taylor Tsiamas

Scripps Senior Theses

“Stage Clutter” is a devised, interactive theater piece that focuses on accessibility in theater, as well as questioning what theater is by deconstructing the divide between the “audience” and “performer”. The event consisted of audience participation and exploration, as well as solo performance and puppetry, along with other accessibility features. It aims to center community and joy and subvert Western theatrical “norms” in order to help decolonize theater spaces.

Puppy Love And [Information] Play: An Intersection Of Theatre, Queer Kink, And Consent, Emily Kitchens

Faculty Articles

This note from the field centers on a nexus of queer kink subcultures and consent-based intimacy work in theatre. I report, investigate and wrangle with the process of incorporating queer kink aesthetics into the production of Love and Information by Caryl Churchill I directed at KSU February 2023. What I have learned and hope to demonstrate throughout the paper, is that queer kink subcultures are often paradigmatic examples of communities built on consent, and we as performing arts practitioners can more visibly expand the margins of our cultural competency dialogues to not only include them but look to them as …

In Yellow: A Solo Poem-Play, Emily Kitchens

Faculty Articles

“In Yellow” was developed in the INKubator residency at Art House Productions (Jersey City, NJ) in 2019 with the following blurb:

In Yellow is a solo poem-play about a relationship between a young woman and a ceramic doll her grandmother made that she has just accidentally broken. It is about grief. It is about breaking out of generationally instilled feminine values. It is about the color yellow. It’s all true.

“In Yellow” is an experiment of a poem and play for one voice. I was in New York City for about 10 years, before that The Bay Area, but am …