Contemporary British plays are commonly thought of as political if they address an issue that is already seen as political (Kritzer, 2008). This thesis explores the idea that the political stance of a play is articulated at the level of its structure, as well as in its content. Contemporary playwriting practices in British theatre are dominated by ‘serious drama’. Serious drama yokes together politics, dialectical structure and a realist dramaturgy and the resultant form is held up as an ideal against which the political efficacy of a play can be judged. Through an application of the concept of the ideology of form (Jameson, 1981), this thesis re-reads the structures of serious drama in terms of how they reflect the social and economic structures of post- Fordism in their representation of spatio-temporal structures, causation in the dramatic narrative and their imagining of the social subject. Through this reading, this thesis problematises serious drama’s claim to a progressive socialist politics. In contrast, the experimental dramaturgies of a range of contemporary British plays (1997-2011) are read as mediating, negotiating and critiquing the social and economic structures of post-Fordism through their dramatic structure, and so articulating a potentially radical politics. Caryl Churchill’s Heart’s Desire (1997), David Eldridge’s Incomplete and Random Acts of Kindness (2005) and David Greig’s San Diego (2003) are read as negotiating the effects of spatio-temporal compression (Harvey, 1990). Mike Bartlett’s Contractions (2008), debbie tucker green’s Generations (2007) and Rupert Goold and Ben Power’s adaptation of Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author are analysed in terms of their causal structures (Althusser, 1970). Finally Anthony Neilson’s Realism (2006), Simon Stephens’s Pornography (2007) and Mark Ravenhill’s Shoot/Get Treasure/Repeat (2008) are investigated for the ways in which they re-imagine the social subject through subjective, narrative, unassigned and collective modes of characterisation.

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Over the past three decades, the plays and productions of Theatre de la Vieille 17 have made significant contributions to French Canadian children's theatre. Their productions embrace a fantastical and imaginative narrative that make them accessible to most audiences. As much as this company shows a remarkable openness to the world, it maintains strong ties to the Franco-Ontarian theatre milieu. This thesis examines key elements that have contributed to La Vieille 17's continual commitment to children's theatre as well as ways in which its productions and policy making have resulted in its increasing artistic and financial success. This study begins by looking at La Vieille 17's three most significant plays: Le Nez, Mentire, and Meta. This analysis takes into consideration the narrative of each play, production elements, co-producers and collaborators, funding, the scope of their tour, and awards and recognition. Each of these aspects contribute to giving these productions a broader world view and help to establish La Vieille 17 as a leading producer of children's theatre. The second part of this thesis analyses key moments during the company's history as well as moments in which it has acted as a common front with other Franco-Ontarian theatre companies. Both of these activities have shaped La Vieille 17's children theatre programming and have led the company to create a successful model in which to produce their works.

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An analytical history of the representation of gender on the English stage from Shakespeare to modern times is followed by a detailed examination of the National Theatre of Great Britain's production of 'As You Like It' in 1967, the first production of a play by Shakespeare for over three hundred years in which the female parts were played by male actors. Subsequent cross-cast productions of Shakespeare's plays by Glasgow Citizen's Theatre, Prospect theatre Company, Lindsay Kemp, Theatre du Soleil and Goodman Theatre Chicago are discussed and the views of directors and critics of those productions analysed. The thesis then presents the results of a series of workshops with actors into the playing of gender and examines, by means of an experiment employing Gender Schema Theory, how actors construct gender in a production of 'Twelfth Night'. The final part of the thesis describes a controlled experiment into audience perception of gender using a scene from 'Hamlet'. Theories are presented about the nature of the performance of gender on stage and the use of theatrical conventions, the relationship between social conventions and stage conventions, about the way in which an actor builds a character, the influence of biological sex on actors' creativity, and about audience participation.

Over the past three decades, the plays and productions of Theatre de la Vieille 17 have made significant contributions to French Canadian children's theatre. Their productions embrace a fantastical and imaginative narrative that make them accessible to most audiences. As much as this company shows a remarkable openness to the world, it maintains strong ties to the Franco-Ontarian theatre milieu. This thesis examines key elements that have contributed to La Vieille 17's continual commitment to children's theatre as well as ways in which its productions and policy making have resulted in its increasing artistic and financial success. This study begins by looking at La Vieille 17's three most significant plays: Le Nez, Mentire, and Meta. This analysis takes into consideration the narrative of each play, production elements, co-producers and collaborators, funding, the scope of their tour, and awards and recognition. Each of these aspects contribute to giving these productions a broader world view and help to establish La Vieille 17 as a leading producer of children's theatre. The second part of this thesis analyses key moments during the company's history as well as moments in which it has acted as a common front with other Franco-Ontarian theatre companies. Both of these activities have shaped La Vieille 17's children theatre programming and have led the company to create a successful model in which to produce their works.

Thesis (M.A.) -- University of Adelaide, Department of German, 1979.