A completely new idea in any field of artistic endeavor is a rare phenomenon and is, in most instances, worthy of study. Bertolt Brecht, in his theories, writings, and productions, has given the world a theater that is the antithesis of present-day theatrical aims and ideals. It is to the study of this new form of theater that this thesis is devoted.

This thesis looks to explore Urinetown: The Musical through a critical and theoretical framework, analyzing the show's presentation and deconstruction of theatrical character tropes through musical satire. Using the theories of theatre theorists such as Bertolt Brecht, Peter Brook, and Augusto Boal, this thesis discusses the use of theatre as a device for political and social commentary. Additionally, this thesis focuses more specifically on the show's character of Penelope Pennywise as a new kind of character in the theatre: an "ingénue gone awry," within the context of approaching a performance of the character in a performance of the musical.

This thesis examines dance as a means of social and political revolt in the AIDS epidemic. The course of the AIDS epidemic within the United States was inexorably shaped by the way dancers and choreographers used their art form to rebel against concepts of masculinity, sexuality and disease transmission. Through confronting their audiences with the reality of their loss and humanizing themselves and their loved ones that passed away, dancers were able to change the image of the epidemic and push for necessary political and social reform. This paper also analyzes the ways that norms of masculinity and the stigma of effeminacy in modern society developed, through tracing the development and disappearance of the male dancers on stages across the world. This examination explores the connection between dance and queerness, as well as effeminacy and sexuality, and calls into question the ways in which our bodies and movements are colonized. These were concepts that were all explored during the AIDS epidemic as well as dance and social revolutions through out the earlier part of the 20th century.

Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne are arguably two of the most highly read and heavily debated nineteenth-century antebellum authors in America. Their writings fascinate readers, while their character depictions, particularly their characterizations of fictional women, prompt intense academic debate. This thesis examines the previously less-studied historical developments surrounding Poe and Hawthorne in the antebellum era that shaped their approach to writing fiction. In particular, this study scrutinizes the effects of the development of a newly popular art form, ballet, the ascendency of female authorship, and the impact of American theatrical reform upon antebellum authors’ authorial faculties, especially Hawthorne and Poe.

Abstract INTERDISCIPLINARY CONNECTIONS BETWEEN SCIENCE & THEATRE Jessica Nicole Dotson A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2015. Major Director: Dr. Noreen C. Barnes, Director of Graduate Studies, Associate Professor of Theatre In the 1990s, astronomer Peter Usher was searching for new ways to teach his introductory astronomy class at Pennsylvania State University. He began to engage his students by searching for astronomical connections from other disciplines. His focus was turned to the arts, especially the works of William Shakespeare. Usher found, while searching through the canon of Shakespeare's work, astronomical references that explored the “new astronomy” of the Elizabethan age (Falk 171). This thesis will explore the writings of Usher, in regard to the astronomy of Hamlet, along with the interdisciplinary connections between art and science in and outside the classroom and museum theatre. From interdisciplinary classroom methods, to arts and scientists collaborating together for the betterment of man-kind, the use of theatre is a way of rediscovering the humanity of human history. The collaboration between the disciplines serves as one of theatre's greatest purposes, to educate and represent a living history of man.

Ce mémoire aborde trois oeuvres du théâtre québécois contemporain, Scotstown de Fabien Cloutier, Yukonstyle de Sarah Berthiaume et Félicité d’Olivier Choinière dans le but de les comparer. Cette comparaison doit alimenter une réflexion sur le concept de québécité, que le présent mémoire définit comme la mise en place d’un traitement de l’identité qui encourage le développement d’une certaine ambivalence identitaire. En stipulant que les discours identitaires sont empreints de ce que Gérard Bouchard appelle les mythes sociaux, ce mémoire analyse le corpus proposé pour en extraire les parts rationnelles de ces mythes, mais aussi les parts émotionnelles, qui agissent comme fondation de l’identité au même titre que la raison. Ce faisant, ce mémoire a pour ambition de déplacer une perception de la québécité ancrée dans une tradition historique et politique influencée par le nationalisme pour ramener ce concept vers une définition plus large, mais aussi plus polysémique pour interpréter l’histoire de la dramaturgie québécoise, qui entretient depuis la Révolution tranquille un rapport ironiquement ambivalent à l’égard des discours identitaires. / This memoir addresses three works of contemporary Quebec theatre, Fabien Cloutier’s Scotstown, Sarah Berthiaume’s Yukonstyle and Olivier Choinière’s Félicité, for the purpose of comparing them. This comparison must fuel a reflection on the concept of Quebec-ness, herein defined as the establishment of a treatment of identity promoting the development of an ambivalent identity. By providing that identity discourses are marked by what Gérard Bouchard calls “social myths”, this memoir analyses the proposed corpus with the intent of extracting the rational part of such myths along with their emotional parts, with both parts considered equally significant in the foundation identity. This memoir seeks to move away from common conceptions of Quebec-ness that are rooted in a political and historical tradition influenced by nationalism and proposes a more global definition of this concept, a definition that takes into account various meanings, allowing us to revisit the history of Quebec dramaturgy, as said dramaturgy ironically maintains an ambivalent position in regards to identity discourses since the Quiet Revolution.

TITLE: History of the State Film Theatre AUTHOR: Bc. Markéta Pechačová DEPARTMENT: Katedra dějin a didaktiky dějepisu SUPERVISOR: doc. PhDr. Alena Míšková, PhD. ABSTRACT: This thesis endeavours to comprehensively describe history of the State Film Theatre since its foundation (as the Film Studio Theatre) in 1948 until it was definitively closed down in 1951. The opening chapter gives insight into cultural policy objectives and institutional structure of Czechoslovak theatres at the turn of 1940s and 1950s. The remaining three chapters, covering the time scope of particular theatre seasons, monitor organisational, dramaturgic, ideological and artistic transformations of the State Film Theatre; these changes were related particularly to social and cultural-political development in Czechoslovakia. The content of the thesis draws chiefly from primary sources: theatre programmes, scripts, theatre reviews, period articles, official records and other archival materials; thanks to these sources it was possible to authentically document both forms of particular productions and the position of the State Film Theatre within a broader cultural and social context. KEYWORDS: The State Film Theatre, The Film Studio Theatre, history of theatre, cultural politics, Czechoslovakia 1948-1951

Miguel Franco nasceu em Leiria em 1918, atuou no teatro amador de sua cidade, sendo varias vezes premiado como encenador e como ator. Na década de 60, em plena ditadura salazarista, Franco leva ao Teatro Avenida de Lisboa, por meio da consagrada Companhia Companhia Rey Colaço Robles Monteiro sua mais importante peca de teatro histórico, O motim, que retoma os eventos ocorridos após o levante do povo da cidade do Porto contra a Companhia dos Vinhos do Alto Douro, criada pelo ministro de d. José, o Marques de Pombal. A peca, após poucos dias em cartaz, é brutalmente retirada de cena pelo aparelho de repressão do regime salazarista. Este trabalho tem por objetivo analisar a peça de Franco, como exemplo do subgênero dramático do teatro histórico, procurando compreender como e por que se dão as relações que se estabelecem entre o tempo da ação da peça (século XVIII) e o tempo de sua escrita (segunda metade do século XX). / Miguel Franco was born in Leiria in 1918, acted in amateur theater of his city, and several times was awarded as director and as an actor. In the 60s, during the Salazar dictatorship, Franco leads to Teatro Avenida de Lisboa, with the consecrated Company Company Rey Colaco - Robles Monteiro his most important play of historical theater, O Motim, which incorporates the events that occurred after the uprising of the people of Porto against the Companhia dos Vinhos do Alto Douro, created by d. José minister, Marques de Pombal. The play, after only a few days on stage, was brutally removed from the scene by the Salazar regime repression apparatus. This paper aims at examining the Franco play as an example of the dramatic subgenre of historical theater, trying to studying how and why occur the relations established between the time of action of the play (XVIII century) and the time of its writing (second half of the twentieth century).

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T19:32:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rodrigo Seidl.pdf: 1488767 bytes, checksum: 0bd757518f92f78fba55bac5524e18fe (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-11-10 / The objective of this dissertation was to investigate the ways in which Elizabethan professional theatre practice was, at the same time, a product and a producer of historical changes. Following the construction of London s first purpose-built playhouse in 1576, theatre slowly became a lucrative business run by full-time professionals. Soon after this historical development, the professional companies suffered constant attacks. These claimed that plays propagated sin and idleness among those who watched or took part in them. Through the analysis of the anti-theatrical writings and laws produced between 1576 and 1603, we observed the nature of the changes in theatrical practice in London and questioned the motives behind the attacks against the stage. We found that the process of professionalization of the London companies incorporated many of the social changes at work at the time. However, the new theatres created new social spaces in which transgressive social practices found their place beyond the City s control. Therefore, the professional theatre played an active role in making these new social values visible / O objetivo desta dissertação foi investigar as formas pelas quais a prática teatral profissional elisabetana foi, ao mesmo tempo, produto e produtor de mudanças históricas. Após a construção do primeiro teatro permanente de Londres em 1576, o teatro aos poucos se tornou um negócio lucrativo administrado por profissionais. Logo após este desenvolvimento histórico, as companhias profissionais sofreram ataques constantes. Estes afirmavam que peças teatrais propagavam o pecado e o ócio entre as pessoas que assistiam ou participavam nelas. Por meio da análise dos tratados e leis antiteatrais produzidas entre 1576 e 1603, nós observamos a natureza das mudanças na prática teatral em Londres e questionamos os motivos por trás dos ataques contra o teatro. Nós percebemos que o processo de profissionalização das companhias londrinas incorporou várias mudanças sociais que estavam em curso na época. Entretanto, os novos teatros criaram novos espaços sociais nos quais práticas sociais transgressoras acharam seu lugar fora do controle da Cidade. Portanto, o teatro profissional desempenhou um papel ativo ao dar visibilidade a estes novos valores sociais

One-Third of a Nation, the Second Amendment, a Living Newspaper Play Thesis By Linda Ann Watt for a MFA Degree in Theatre Pedagogy Documentary theatre, including living newspapers and verbatim theatre, use socio-political commentary at critical moments in history to disseminate facts and offer ideological critique dramatizing the crisis through the lens of emotion, which can incite societal change. This thesis explores this didactic medium with a written play about the second Amendment and gun violence.