This thesis uses Cybernetic Fruit: A Posthuman Fairytale (a show directed by Shauna MacDonald and Nico Wood) to explore notions of posthumanism. The thesis of this project is that every being possesses beingness (one could say, a soul), be it raccoon, raspberry, or rock; that nothing is perfect or ever can be, for perfection and imperfection (like order and disorder) are human constructions spun from human vantage points and seen with a human-level of resolution; that collaboration fosters propagation of a posthuman discourse and compassionate behavior; and finally, that staging philosophical inquiry, in the flesh and for the community, is a potent methodology for germinating new theoretical fruit.

This research explores the validity and value of ‘solo devising’ as a means for specifying a category of theatre-making that has been little discussed, compared to group devising, in existing literature on devising and postdramatic theatre. Primary source material was obtained through carrying out extended interviews with five experienced British theatre practitioners who have made work that could be described as solo devised performance: Tim Etchells, Bobby Baker, Mike Pearson, Nigel Charnock and Wendy Houstoun. In analysing these interviews, referred to in detail but not reproduced in full, the enquiry draws on a range of writings, including Oddey, Heddon, Harvie, Alexander and George, on devising and making performance and in particular on Melrose’s concept of practitioner-centred expert knowledge, Lehmann’s notion of the postdramatic and Sennett’s specification of expertise in craftsmanship. Chapter One considers solo practice in relation to the idea of a solo devising economy, the interviewees’ professional work and other experimental solo practices within theatre, performance, dance and art. Chapter Two explores how the interviewees create multiple performance personae, doing and undoing notions of individuality and autobiography through strategies of working ‘about’, ‘from’ and ‘beyond’ the self. Chapter Three explores solo devising processes, involving research, generation of material, composition, performance and ‘orchestration’. Chapter Four scrutinises different kinds of collaboration, including ‘audiencing’, as both enabling and productively confounding activities occurring within solo devising. Chapter five specifies some findings about solo devising: that it both involves expert, crafted, individual working, requiring orchestration of a high number of activities and skills, and, simultaneously, practices of negotiated authorship with other artists and audiences, enabling a potentially political reading of its distinctly ambiguous working. An additional finding is that close attention to what expert practitioners say about their work can yield rich information about a specific practice.

This thesis presents a workbook for creating a course that combines researching both theatre for young audiences and devised theatre to create a touring production and company. Devised theatre is a form of theatre where the script originates from collaborative creation, improvisation, and physical movement. This course explored the past, present and future of theatre for young audiences both domestically and abroad. Students worked in a collaborative effort devising and producing a TYA piece based on Hans Christian Anderson’s The Snow Queen and studied the child audience through reading assignments and practical experience. This thesis is intended to showcase the value of teaching college undergraduate how to perform TYA productions as well as to show how devised theatre can help foster the actor’s creativity and help to reach a whole new generation.

The creation of the performance work UKULELE MEKULELE is used as a site to uncover the interactions between the work of the sole author and group-devised processes. The increasing acceptance of the 'openness' in contemporary theatre practice has strong implications for the role of the sole author, who traditionally has been the provider of the 'closed' - known quantities that are subsequently 'realised' by a production. How can the sole author best write for the seemingly contradictory environment of the group-devised production? Critical incidents from the performance are selected for study. These 'moments that work' and their provenance are utilized as examples of the interaction of the various forces at play in the performance making process. The researcher's intimate contact with the artwork entails a unique vantage point from which to observe these forces at work. Their evocation and analysis will have relevance for the creators of live art in collaborative contexts.

One purpose of community-engaged work is to build and reflect the community; to allow their voice to be heard. This research explores the relationship between the professional artist facilitator and participants in a community-engaged setting while applying devised theatre practices. The facilitating artist brings to the group their expertise in playmaking and storytelling. The research centers on how a facilitating artist might approach devising a community-engaged performance project with awareness of his/her ability to influence the group. How can the facilitator channel their influence to provide productive guidance for the collective creativity in order to honor the community’s intent and minimize the distortion created by the facilitator’s perspective? Are there guidelines that can be established in order to ensure that the community’s voice is undiluted? I begin by engaging in dialogue with established current practitioners in the field and examining literature published on the subject with this goal in mind. From this research a roadmap of perils and pitfalls, signs to look for that indicate tension or discomfort within the group, and techniques and tips for productively refocusing the group’s work have been created. The objective of the research is to formulate a philosophy on facilitation that aligns with my artistic mission and values, ensuring the work truly builds and reflects the communities from which it is produced.

This thesis investigates the dramaturgy of devised theatre for young audiences, specifically children ages 2-5. The chapters dissect current applications of dramaturgy in regards to the development of dramatic and performance texts, and present an exploration of devised theatre. My research revolved around qualitative research tactics through a review of the current literature on dramaturgy and devising, unobtrusive data collection, and interviews with the artistic directors of three Theatre for Young Audience (TYA) companies: Patch Theatre Company based in Adelaide, Australia, Theatre Mala Scena based in Zagreb, Croatia, and the Coterie Theatre located in Kansas City, Missouri. In addition, I viewed productions by each the above companies which helped to uncover how the artists move theory into practice based on their personal theories on TYA, dramaturgy, and devising. Through this research I reveal how dramaturgy proves a key element in moving improvisations into performance texts, creating theatrical experiences that capture the imaginations of the very young.

Den här rapporten undersöker med en devisingprocess som utforskande metod ett gestaltande av en text utifrån idéerna om sammanflätningar bortom uppdelningen mellan teori och praktik. Processen möter under arbetets gång på motstånd och behöver därför fördjupas ytterligare innan gestaltningen kan komma vidare igen.

The paper explores the complicated intersection between Black womanhood and performance by considering Josephine Baker as a site to engage the concept of “performing identity.” It discuss both the development of burlesque and the history of Josephine Baker to provide a foundation for the investigation of her early-career movement and visual practices. Then, the paper explore these hallmarks through Sherril Dodds’ “critical components of neo-burlesque striptease” writ into her book, Dancing on the Canon: Embodiments of Value in Popular Dance. The second half of this document includes a script of CATHARSIS, a self-devised solo show created to process one’s personal journey towards self-recognition amidst the (de)stabilizing effects of adoption. The show broadly explores the dynamic relationship between visibility, movement, and healing as Megh negotiates what it means to take space and be vulnerable in an environment that seeks to minimize black femme expression. The script is followed by a reflection on the initial two performances.

This thesis is concerned with the challenges of devising a full-masked theatre performance that is largely accessible to audiences of every age, social background and culture. The contribution to original knowledge is in the study's examination of the relationship between the devising processes of a full-masked performance, neurobiology, human ethology and the accessibility of audience reception (Bennett, 1994). The thesis addresses the concept of accessibility by taking a phenomenological approach to devising and audience reception, with particular focus on the role of neurobiological systems and structures, in particular the mirror neuron system, the pleasure-reward system, and pattern recognition systems, in the communication and reception of performance meaning (McConachie, 2008). The research is framed by the concept of a universal theatrical language proposed by practitioners Peter Brook and Tadeshi Suzuki, which has the potential to connect people at the deepest levels of their humanity (Pavis, 1996: 6). Practical approaches adopted in the research are informed and supported by anthropological and human ethological claims of universality (Ekman, 1975; Brown, 1991; Eibl-Eibesfeldt; 2007 [1989]; Schmitt et al. 1997). This thesis theorizes that human beings possess innate neurobiological systems that interact with culturally specific concepts, conditions and knowledge in such a way that when deployed appropriately, these innate neurobiological systems can be a platform for human cognition and for the designing of performances accessible to an audience of different ages, social backgrounds and cultures. It also proposes that innate neurobiological systems create a universal framework that makes it possible for the said broad-based audience to read and receive a performance using similar codes of cognition and aesthetic reference irrespective of age, social and cultural backgrounds. The research process led to the creation of an original full-masked theatrical performance and eighteen performances of this piece were given to different audiences in a range of venues and locations in Northamptonshire. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis of how the various audiences received the performance suggest that the devising methods employed did contribute to making the performance accessible to an audience with a broader constituency than theaters normally envision (Pitts-Walker, 1994: 9-10). This research enables practitioners for whom a wide audience and accessibility are an explicit focus to adopt devising approaches that will help to achieve the desired wide-ranging reception and accessibility in mixed audiences irrespective of race, age, gender and culture.

How can a playwright share authorial control with a group of actors when creating a new play script? How does the individual playwright address matters of genre, form, style and structure to create a unifying theme, while remaining true to the dramatic intention and aesthetics of the group? What impact will the collaborators have on a playwright's work? Will they help or hinder the writing process? This exegesis closely follows the creation of a new play, The Woods, in a process where the playwright intended to facilitate a collaborative process with the actors rather than act as sole author. Issues arising in this mode of working include the real meaning of sole authorship, aesthetic integrity and creative power balance. The analysis of these issues will have relevance for theatre practitioners working in collaborative contexts.