El presente trabajo de investigación abarca el tema de la complementación en el guion, actuación y dirección de arte para la creación del personaje de Kevin Wendell Crumb. Esto se debe a que muchas veces, no se toman en cuenta estos elementos para crear determinados personajes en las películas. / The present research work covers the subject of complementation in the script, acting and art direction for the creation of the character of Kevin Wendell Crumb. This is because many times, these elements are not taken into account to create certain characters in the films. / Trabajo de investigación

The primary purpose of this study was to use some of the action methods of playback theatre to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge through the experience of building community. The impact of action methods on group dynamics and the relationship among methods, individual perceptions, and the acquisition of knowledge were analyzed. The researcher suggested that playback theatre action methods provided a climate in which groups can improve the quality of their interactions. The Hill Interaction Matrix (HIM) formed the basis for the study's analysis of interactions. Since the researcher concluded there were significantly more interactions coded in the "power quadrant" after training, the researcher assumed that playback theatre action methods are a catalyst for keeping the focus on persons in the group, encouraging risk-taking behaviors, and producing constructive feedback between members. Based on session summaries, individual interviews, and an analysis of the Group Environment Scale (GES), the training group became more cohesive, became more expressive, promoted independence, encouraged self-discovery, and adapted in innovative ways. The experience of an interconnected community created a space where positive growth could occur. The researcher concluded that the process of community building is intricately connected with a person's ability to make meaning out of experiences. Participants in the study noted several processes by which they acquired new knowledge: (a) knowledge through internal processes, (b) knowledge through modeling, (c) knowledge through experiences, (d) knowledge through acknowledgment and application. Acknowledging and applying knowledge were behaviors identified as risk-taking, communication and active listening, acceptance of diverse cultures and opinions, and building community relations. The study suggested further research in the effects of these methods compared to other learning methods, the effects of these methods on other types of groups, the effects of the leader's relationship to the group, and the long-term effects on group dynamics.

The purpose of this study is to follow the acting career of Dean Jagger through a list of theatrical productions, motion pictures, radio and television appearances. The study will also include a brief biography of his life and personal philosophies which contribute to the success of the actor and the person. The study will follow an appraisal of personal interviews with Mr. Jagger and his wife, information gained from the "Dean Jagger Collection" located at Brigham Young University Manuscrips Library, and critical review and interviews with his fellow actors.

Society is relying more and more on computer-generated information due to the online abilities provided by current information and telecommunication technologies in a variety of ways such as social networks, learning systems, shopping, quality-of-life improvements. Multimodal Learning Analytics (MMLA) is a method in learning analytics research that makes it possible to capture large amounts of data on human activity. This study aims to provide a deeper understanding of physical movement challenges for training performers in open-ended, practice based learning settings. Moreover, it discusses how multi-modal analytics systems can provide support for performers. This study identifies ten important requirements that a prototype should have in order to fulfill the performer’s needs. These requirements are implemented in a low fidelity prototype that provides modeling movement followed by Laban Movement Analysis theory, capture user data with MMLA tools, and provide personalized feedback. The results indicated there is a potential within the usage of a multi-modal system to support and improve the motor skill learning process through personalized help and feedback.

The musical Bernarda Alba tells the story of a woman who is confined within the heavily patriarchal and Catholic society that was 1930s Spain. Because of this, I thought it the perfect arena to explore power dynamics on stage. My thesis will explore status, hierarchies, relationships, and identity via the stolid matriarchal character Bernarda Alba. Through analyzing the playwright's words, fleshing out the character, and exploring the character's relationships with others in rehearsal, I have studied how to activate status on stage. There are many sociology theories and psychological studies that can be applied to theatre-making in order to create fleshed out relationships, characters, and worlds. I have taken these theories into practice, as I battled with my own hierarchies in real life, and I let art and life do what they do best: imitate each other. I will analyze and play with the physical movement and posture of the character, the vocal choices in the delivery of the scripted words, and the psychological choices in the form of subtext and unspoken thought. There is an abundance of agency one holds when creating status and identity for a character, and I break down the different facets to explore. More importantly, outside of the stage, if we realize that status is more intricate and flexible than we think it is, then we as individuals can unlock invaluable freedoms that can unchain us from daily oppression.

Cross-dressing is a recurrent theme in Shakespeare's comedies, and the theatrical trend of gender bending casting has added an extra layer of complexity to performing his work. How does the gender of the actor affect the performance of a role in Shakespeare? How does it affect the perception of the role, and how can an actor utilize that perception to connect more fully with the audience? How does the female perspective illuminate hitherto unexplored elements of Shakespeare's text and characters? I was inspired by Orlando Shakes' all male production of Twelfth Night to research gender theory in relation to classical texts. I was largely inspired by Judith Butler's theories of gender performance, and herein use feminist and gender theory as a lens to view Shakespeare's work. I put on my own production of an All-Female Twelfth Night in which I played Viola. This thesis is an exploration of my process as a scholar, actor, and activist in the context of that production. It follows the journey from page to praxis, as I attempt to apply academic theories to live theatre. It is my intent that this will serve as a possible roadmap for future gender bending in Shakespeare productions, and to empower female theatre makers in that process.

I propose to study the role of Professor Muller in The Visit as my thesis role because of the challenge that it presents, not only as a translated work, but also because of the character shift for me - Professor Muller is a 72 year old man and has now been changed to a woman in her thirties. Professor Muller is the only person to stand up to the antagonist, Claire. The confrontation between Claire and Muller takes on a certain tone when it is between a woman and a man, and has a completely different outlook when it becomes woman vs. woman. The director has taken this play and set it in an abstract time and setting, loosely basing it in a post WW2 era in perhaps Switzerland, or even Germany, although the location will never be actually specified by the director. It is merely a suggestion of where we should begin the process of characterization. The town gives off an appearance of desolation, but we must retain the knowledge of better times. This challenge of not having specifics almost grinds at me to place specifics on the character, but I will attempt to refrain from this. This role will not only challenge my training here in movement, voice and character analysis, but will allow me to pursue a new kind of development in character, one that does not have to be mapped out. This character can be created only through the other characters on the stage. There are no clues in the script, really, because of extensive cuttings and re-workings through this translation. The Professor is defined by relationships, not by words, and this new process excites me. After the show has closed, I would like to explore the play in its entirety and look to see if I have remained true to the author's work while working in a new concept from the director. I think it is possible to still hold to the origins and maintain the message of the play even through such large changes. This is going to be one of the most challenging roles that I have faced. I think that at the same time that I am going to apply my training, I also need to let it go and explore her through my body, my heart. At home, outside the theatre, I can go through the analytical parts - the "who am I" and "where do I come from" questions. My journals will be exceptionally useful for this knowledge. However, in rehearsals, I want to "let it all go" and "fly by the seat of my pants" to uncover answers that might be lost to me if I use only my brain. This is my biggest weakness as an actor - allowing my brain to take over. The problem with over-analyzing is that I look to deeply into the words and the script for the clues that my body may already be telling me, or I miss an impulse to act on a feeling because I am to caught up reading into everything. I need to read, and then play, not read and concentrate. We are doing a "play" after all, not a "work". It is my hope that I can allow myself to play more, and thereby overcome this weakness.

For my MFA internship requirement, I currently serve as an acting intern at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater in Partnership with UCF. I was cast as Lavinia in OST’s spring production of Titus Andronicus, and I will use this as my thesis role. It will be the very last show of my MFA career, and it will provide an exceptional opportunity for me to utilize all the skills learned during my three years of MFA classes and training. Jim Helsinger, Artistic Director at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater and Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Central Florida, will direct the production. I intend to approach this role in a manner very similar to my MFA coursework: through vocal work, physical work, and research. Lavinia is a Shakespearean character; Shakespeare is immediately associated with language. However, Lavinia is interesting because the role’s vocal work will require both verbal and non-verbal experimentation. I will be able to utilize the various language tools and techniques I have learned in my MFA voice classes to approach Shakespeare’s text; but Lavinia has her tongue cut off halfway through the show, so I anticipate additional vocal, non-verbal contributions to make the role unique. Physicality will also play a large part of my acting work in this particular role, more so, perhaps, than in a typical Shakespearean ingénue. Because Lavinia is verbally silenced, her body must also speak. No approach to a Shakespeare role would be complete without character work, and research will play a large part of this role in particular. Mr. Helsinger encourages his interns to watch other productions of the same character and to perform visual research from which to pick iv and choose. I also plan to do research on violence against women and its significance in both the play and real life in order to better inform my vocal and physical choices. By delving into this role, I plan to explore several questions. What exactly makes up the voice, as heard or interpreted by an audience, of a Shakespearean character? How has my graduate study prepared me for this role? What techniques work for my own personal process as an actor? How do the voice, mind, and body combine to inform a character’s arc, and which of these will prove most powerful to an audience’s understanding of that character’s journey? Is it possible to retain the audience’s attention in a Shakespearean, text-oriented, production without using words? I hope to answer these questions through the process of combining, in one character, all of the aspects of my MFA journey.

Playwrights write about what is familiar to them. Their inspiration comes from their childhood, past relationships, and their personal view of the world. But could a playwright write about something to which they have no personal connection? Using the book Triggered: A Memoir of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, I will write a one act play about mental illness. I have no personal experience or personal connection to mental illness, but I will approach the process the same way as an actor does a character. I will go into the writing process as an actor, completing character analyses for the characters and using the information found within the book. I will direct a reading of my play with the goals of educating the audience about mental illness, evoking empathy for the characters within the piece, and proving that a playwright can write about something that is foreign to them, much like an actor can portray a character that is remarkably different from themselves.

In the fall of 2007, I was cast in the University of Central Florida's production of The Piano Lesson. My thesis will examine my performance in the role of Grace, as well as understudying the role of Berniece under the direction of Professor Belinda Boyd. In addition to the performance components, my thesis materials will include historical and cultural character research and a reflective journal documenting my rehearsal and production process. My character research and journal will address questions about the characters "choices" and the relationship of their environment to views of personal responsibility and obligations in the play. I will examine the characters' relationships and situations in the play, investigating some of the decisions that these characters make in response to their cultural and social landscapes. The second part of my thesis will include research on three additional female characters from August Wilson's dramatic canon: Aunt Ester Tyler from Gem of the Ocean, Ma Rainey from Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, and Rose from Fences, which will inform my character explorations of Grace and Berniece, and the choices that I make during the rehearsal process in developing their journeys. By reading other plays by Wilson, I endeavor to deepen my understanding of the struggles of African-American women in the twentieth century, and explore how the social and economic status of black women was affected by America's changing political and social climate over several decades. In addition, I will document how my visceral experience of performing the roles of Grace and Berniece relates to my intellectual process of exploring the journeys of Aunt Ester Tyler, Ma Rainey, and Rose.