Identity, who we are, is at the core of every human being, thus at the core of every character from every play. How the character identifies his self through gender and sexual identity will shape both physical and emotional choices that an actor will make through the rehearsal process. As an actor, it is absolutely imperative to resist the urge to pass judgment on the characters we portray. As more characters in modern drama are openly gay, there is an increasing urge for an actor to fall into campy stereotypes. Through a performance of the role of Molina in Manuel Puig's Kiss of the Spider Woman, this thesis will examine the blurring line of gender identity of the leading man in contemporary drama and explore the challenges of portraying a feminine man in a non-stereotypical way, remaining true to the identification of the character. A thorough historical analysis presents a look at the evolution of the homosexual throughout modern drama, from self-loathing party boys of the seventies to ordinary fathers, husbands, and sons in modern households. A structural analysis of Puig's text will aid in the choices made by the actor. Lastly, a complete character analysis will examine the psychological motivations behind Molina's actions as well as the changes in his gender and sexual identity throughout the piece. This thesis will culminate in a comprehensive development, rehearsal and performance journal, which will document and address challenges, discoveries, failures and victories during the production process.

La novela El beso de la mujer araña del escritor argentino Manuel Puig es una novela que trata dedos presos en una cárcel bonaerense durante la dictadura militar argentina. Esta tesina se centrará enla identidad femenina de Molina. El objetivo de esta tesina es examinar la celebración de lafemineidad de Molina, y su construcción de una identidad femenina. Esta identidad se conectarácon la idea de la identidad femenina como socialmente construida, opuesto a la noción de génerocomo algo innato. Es decir, la identidad femenina de Molina y sus ideas de lo femeninocorresponden a la idea de la identidad femenina como socialmente construida. Apoyándonos enteoría feminista y teoría queer, estableceremos la conexión que existe entre la identidad femeninacomo la ve Molina, y la identidad femenina como construcción social. / The kiss of the spider woman, novel written by Argentinian novelist Manuel Puig, is the story oftwo prisoners in a prison in Buenos Aires during the military dictatorship. This thesis will focus onthe feminine identity of protagonist Molina, a homosexual man who choses to regard himself as awoman. The aim of this thesis is to examine his construction of the feminine identity, and connectthat construction with feminist and queer theories of gender as socially constructed, opposed toinnate or given by biological gender.

La obra El beso de la mujer araña (1976) del escritor argentino Manuel Puig se basa en la convivencia de dos personajes principales en el calabozo de una cárcel en Buenos Aires durante la dictadura argentina. Es destacable la manera en que estos personajes desarrollan una relación basada en la intimidad. Debido al desarrollo del concepto de género, ahora visto más allá del biologicismo, se abren nuevas posibilidades de interpretación sobre esta relación. El objetivo de nuestro trabajo ha consistido en realizar una nueva lectura sobre la identidad del personaje Molina y la relación con su compañero de celda Valentín desde la perspectiva transgénero. Para ello nos hemos basado en terminología de las nuevas categorizaciones de identidadde género, así como también la teoría de la performatividad del género y la teoríade la autoasignación de la identidad sexual de Judith Butler. Ha sido interesante descubrir cómo estos nuevos conceptos que tenemos hoy en día en la comunidad Queer nos revelan nuevas definiciones sobre la identidad del protagonista Molina y sobre su relación con el activista izquierdista Valentín. / Kiss of the Spider Woman (1976) by the Argentine writer Manuel Puig is based on the connivance of two main characters in the Buenos Aires prison during the Argentine dictatorship. These characters develop a relationship based on emotional and sexual intimacy. Nowadays, the debate about the concept of gender has developed, since we can now see beyond the limits of biology, which opens new interpretation of this argument. The objective of our investigative work is to carry out a new analysis of Molina’s identity and his relationship with his prison partner Valentine, from a transgender perspective. We used terminology from the new categories of gender identity, as well as the theory of the gender performance and the theory of sexual assignment by Judith Butler. It is intriguing to learn how the concepts prevalent in the Queer community today reveal new definitions about the identity of the protagonist Molina and about his relationship with Valentine.