My thesis proposal is to research, workshop, develop, script, direct and produce my own commedia dell'arte. This proposal stems from my desire to explore improvisational comedy theoretically and practically. The genre of commedia dell'arte is not only timeless, but continues to further our ability to create characters and scenario for future projects as the root of improvisation. By coupling research on commedia components (character, lazzi and scenario) with the creation of an improvisational troupe, a commedia piece will be developed, documented and performed. The first part of my thesis will consist of research on the history of improvisational comedy. The earliest traces of improvisational comedy are seen in 800 B.C., when Susarion and his troupe of comedians of Icaria wandered throughout Greece. Many other comedic performance troupes were later formed, some expressing their comedies through acrobatics, like the schoenobates of Greece and funambuli of Rome. During the sixteenth century, improvisational comedy became a flourishing art form, known as the commedia dell'arte. It is the sixteenth-century commedia dell'arte form that will be my primary focus of research. A bibliography and outline will serve as the preliminary guidelines. The research should be in a coherent enough form to share with a cast by mid-January. The second part of my thesis will involve practical application of this research. By mid-January, I will have selected a troupe with which to workshop the commedia. The workshop will consist of adopting commedia stock characters for each troupe member and creating lazzi and scenario around these characters. Improvisational satire continues to be the most difficult theatrical form to master. Pierre Louis Duchartre in his book The Italian Comedy states: The success of the commedia dell'arte depended almost entirely on the acting rather than the scenarios. In the opinion of Gherardi and Riccoboni it was easier to train ten actors for the regular theatre than one for the extemporaneous stage. Moreover, a good improvisator had to practise a kind of self-abnegation and refrain from indulging in his own conceit or overplaying his part to the detriment of other roles. (Duchartre 30) The art of listening and sharing the stage as a performer is the basis of modern performance techniques and the primary skill of a great actor. The purpose for this workshop is not only to develop the commedia piece, but also to further the troupe's understanding of the commedia tradition as we continue our exploration. This will be a three- to four-week process. The end results of this workshop will be a scripted commedia that will be used for production and documentation of the process itself. By mid-March, the research, process of the workshop, and script will be documented in clear and concise terms for the purpose of this thesis. April will focus on production elements based on approval from the department on venue and budget details. The performance will take place in April or May. The final conclusions will be completed at the same time. This commedia will serve as a comprehensive experience in theatrical studies, culminating my academic and production work at University of Central Florida Conservatory Theatre. It will be an educational and collaborative effort for all involved, as well as enjoyable and entertaining for those who see it.

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On September 24, 2009, Theatre VCU opened its production of Psycho Beach Party, written by Charles Busch and directed by Steve Perigard. In our production, two male actors, Tommy Callan and Kyle Cornell, were cross-sex cast to play female characters, Chicklet and Marvel Ann respectively. In addition to serving as vocal coach for the production, I was to help Callan and Cornell vocally transform into female characters. I have documented our exploration of gender, specifically the vocal transformation from male to female, in Theatre VCU’s production of Psycho Beach Party. Neither actor had played a female character onstage before, and Kyle Cornell had only just begun his vocal training at VCU. Both actors successfully embraced feminine vocal and physical characteristics to the point where many audience members believed them to be female actors.

In this thesis, I intend to present an original costume design for John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. This production is the first full collaboration of its kind between Virginia Commonwealth University’s Theatre Department and Barksdale Theatre. This thesis will be a complete account of my entire design process from the design concept to the finished, realized production. I will be examining my design choices and finished production photos, including color photographs of my original renderings, fabric swatches and research. Throughout my thesis, I will be researching ways to accurately represent the millions of exploited itinerant farm laborers who survived the severe drought and economic depression of the early 1930s.

The purpose of this study was to implement Character Memory Exploration (a specific pathway towards character justification) within a BFA Acting II course. Primarily using given circumstances and magic if, Character Memory Exploration creates a rich and developed character history through a combination of visualization exercises, improvisation, and writing. The following summary will show individualized exercises and how to implement them, as well as their original purpose, placements, and pairings. This work also delves into student responses and my own successes and failures throughout the experience. The primary conclusion of this writing is that Character Memory Exploration leads to an actor having stronger relationships with props, set and scene partners, a better handle on a characters physical life, and a thinking actor who reacts in an honest and grounded manner on the stage.

Three years ago, Bonnie Gabel and I started an ensemble theatre company called Night Light Collective (NLC). Our company was inspired by the work of Anne Bogart and the Dah Theatre in Belgrade, Serbia. We used many of their techniques and exercises to develop a rehearsal process that would help our ensemble connect to each other as well as contribute to the artistic direction of our productions. In the fall of 2010, I directed Harold Pinter’s Betrayal. I used the rehearsal practices that we developed with NLC and created a few of my own. This thesis documents the evolution of various rehearsal techniques over the course of three Night Light Collective shows, and the application of those techniques to the Betrayal rehearsal process.

An essential tool in actor education, movement training is often viewed as esoteric and difficult to apply directly to an actor’s craft. It varies widely from institution to institution, and covers anything from stage combat to Alexander Technique. One never knows what they will encounter upon entering a movement class, and students frequently have difficulty connecting work done in the movement studio to work done in the acting studio. In order for movement training to become better integrated and more easily identifiable as a necessary part of actor training, it is important to get to the essential qualities that all movement training is designed to teach. In my thesis I will explore the tenets of Stanislavski and identify the core concepts of physical work that can be found in most movement disciplines. I will conclude with an exploration of my personal experience teaching movement for actors at the junior level.

Dance in most musical theatre is an assumed visual element and something that is often taken for granted in production. What is its purpose is the question being pondered in this paper. Since Agnes de Mille first presented her legendary dream ballet in Oklahoma! in 1943, theatrical dance has never been the same. She revolutionized the function of dance in theatre forever. No longer would dance merely be used as interludes or divertissements. Though a seemingly simple theatrical concept, to use movement and choreography to either further the plot or to communicate a character’s journey, it is not only much easier said than done, it is also less commonly occurring than one would imagine. Dance for dance’s sake is still prevalent and the theatre suffers because of it. My thesis will be a journey paper reflecting on my teaching perspective as it has developed and changed based on my two years at Virginia Commonwealth University. I will look at the specific productions and classes I have been involved in and how they have all contributed to and shaped my emerging pedagogical philosophy regarding dance, choreography, direction and teaching. I will explore and prove the importance and necessity of “storytelling through movement” as well as explore the need for a clearly communicated goal and unifying element in all theatrical productions.

The aim of this paper is to explore the philosophies, attitudes and beliefs that surround the teaching of breath. Voice and speech teachers want students and actors to be versatile; able to adjust to the demands of any role, and each student enters the classroom with a myriad of mental and physical breathing habits. Many voice and speech trainers, however, only address a limited number of breathing habits and primarily teach "deep breathing." Why has deep breathing dominated voice training, and how do we effectively teach breath for all students and all habits? I will examine six major voice practitioners: Arthur Lessac, Patsy Rodenburg, Kristin Linklater, Catherine Fitzmaurice, F.M. Alexander, and Jo Estill and their philosophies about breath. I will also investigate my own experiences with each practitioner, both in my own training, and in my teaching. I will conclude with my personal philosophy about breath; what an ideal breath is, and how to teach it.

This comparative study focuses on ritual aspects of Western and Asian performance. We may say that ritual in contemporary theater production has limitation to become realization. The limitation arises from contemporary period’s nature. We know that these days we do not have common or collective psyche. However, some theatre artists are trying to get back ritual function and process to recover real communion between spectator and performer throughout performance.