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The Living Hashtag Play: A Modernized Living Newspaper with Theatre of the Oppressed Approaches to Play Development
Title
The Living Hashtag Play: A Modernized Living Newspaper with Theatre of the Oppressed Approaches to Play Development.
Creator
Corsi, Elizabeth, Boyd, Belinda, McDonald, Holly, Brown, James, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
In a time where the majority of our news sources and justice movements are received, hashtagged, mobilized, and scrutinized through technology and social media, this thesis embarks to resurrect a once short lived concept of introducing theatre as an informative and educational news source. ?The Hashtag Play ?will be an experiment to create a modern living newspaper play that will utilize techniques and approaches found in Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed Pedagogy to devise meaningful...
Show moreIn a time where the majority of our news sources and justice movements are received, hashtagged, mobilized, and scrutinized through technology and social media, this thesis embarks to resurrect a once short lived concept of introducing theatre as an informative and educational news source. ?The Hashtag Play ?will be an experiment to create a modern living newspaper play that will utilize techniques and approaches found in Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed Pedagogy to devise meaningful and impactful art determined to educate, inform, and challenge artists and audiences while fostering a sense of community. For the purpose of this thesis, I will be focusing on the issues of sexual violence in America, investigating such cases as People of the State of California v. Brock Allen Turner, ?and the prosecutions of Harvey Weinstein and David Daniels. These cases, among many, have ignited the movements of #MeToo, #TimesUp, and #Let's Be Clear, which have affected men and women within local communities across the U.S.The goal of the project is to create a piece that improves upon the original Federal Theatre Project's Living Newspaper while creating an impactful tool to be utilized in the field of theatre for social change. The play will explore both sides of each trial to expand audience perspective, while attempting to define the blurred lines that surround the complexities and narratives of sexual assault, harassment, and consent. The project implores the questioning of rape culture, how it is defined and if it truly exists in our social climate. The process ventures to identify systematic flaws and social contributors while seeking solutions for social and justice change. It will scrutinize over the presence and purpose of sexual violence within art, while questioning if it is viable to separate art from the artist, or forgive the art and condemn its creator. It will grapple with the challenge of remaining neutral for the sake of education and news delivery. Most importantly, it will be inclusive to all voices, challenging us to use passion and discussion, instead of argument and aggression. To effect a change, the work must first set to identify, clarify, and challenge our former notions to create improved ones that encourage thoughtful and proactive actions.
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Date Issued
2019
Identifier
CFE0007795, ucf:52337
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007795
The Actor Process: Playing Multiple Characters
Title
The Actor Process: Playing Multiple Characters.
Creator
Brown, Danielle, Boyd, Belinda, Shafer, John, McDonald, Holly, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
This study examines the process used while preparing for the role of Daughter in Jim Helsinger's adaptation of A Christmas Carol: Being a Ghost Story of Christmas, performed at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater (OST). Within the framework of the play, Daughter is a character who is transformed into multiple roles. Her characters include Charity Collector, Belle, Martha Cratchit, Miner, Fred's Wife and Quarreler #1.Presented with the challenge of playing multiple roles in the same production, I...
Show moreThis study examines the process used while preparing for the role of Daughter in Jim Helsinger's adaptation of A Christmas Carol: Being a Ghost Story of Christmas, performed at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater (OST). Within the framework of the play, Daughter is a character who is transformed into multiple roles. Her characters include Charity Collector, Belle, Martha Cratchit, Miner, Fred's Wife and Quarreler #1.Presented with the challenge of playing multiple roles in the same production, I sought efficient and straightforward character development and analysis methods to strengthen my performance. Using Uta Hagen's nine questions as a scaffold, I composed a distinguishing analysis for each of my characters while utilizing skills cultivated in my MFA program at the University of Central Florida. I created an actor process motivated by the examination of my identity and circumstances at this point in my life. It is supported by a rehearsal and performance journal detailing my journey, followed by analysis.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006270, ucf:51034
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006270
Giving Theatrical Life
Title
Giving Theatrical Life.
Creator
Darrington, Quentin, Boyd, Belinda, Shafer, John, McDonald, Holly, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
An experience, early in my life, at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center opened my eyes to the transformative power of Theatre - it would shape my ambitions for performance, inform the choices I made about my acting career, and impel my passions. That single moment had a profound and lasting effect on my soul, one that would ultimately point me to the purpose of (")me;(") but what exactly was it? What transaction occurred between the performers on stage, and myself, and others in attendance...
Show moreAn experience, early in my life, at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center opened my eyes to the transformative power of Theatre - it would shape my ambitions for performance, inform the choices I made about my acting career, and impel my passions. That single moment had a profound and lasting effect on my soul, one that would ultimately point me to the purpose of (")me;(") but what exactly was it? What transaction occurred between the performers on stage, and myself, and others in attendance that evening?My life as an actor has been an incredible journey of growth. Over forty-six U.S. states, and abroad, I have performed in Broadway musicals, stage plays, concerts, recordings, cabarets, as part of political campaigns and sporting events, and in universities, schools, and churches. Acting has fundamentally changed the way I see people, and challenges the way I learn, express and see myself. As my imagination, creativity, and craft has grown, I remain profoundly impacted by my experience in Tampa, and I have often wondered exactly what happened that evening? Did it have anything to do with the synesthetic elements of the performance (-) the lights, sounds, or scenery? Was it specifically the music, the voices, the amazing singers? Perhaps it was the daring acting and story. Did it depend on particular foreknowledge or familiarity of skill, or craft? Was it something that happened by chance, or by design? Was it because of me? Or did it, somehow, override everything I was at the time? Was it something intangible that is present at some, or all, theatrical events that enlivened the experience? This paper seeks to provide answers to some of these questions. My process in seeking answers will be to chronicle my own life experience as a person/artist. Having begun a script a couple of years ago, I decided to return to solo performance as a means to help me determine what made the experience I related so memorable. The attempt is to write and perform a solo performance piece that chronicles the foundation of this incredible journey of growth, while shedding light on the initial Tampa experience. My intention is to gain an understanding about something I believe contributes to (")theatrical spirituality.(") I believe that the unique blending of the script and the interpretation of these words through acting can impart life. The combined force of the power of story and the spoken word can cause something tangible, something good, meaningful and of intrinsic worth to happen in an individual or audience as a result of a performance. It is my belief that the formation, articulation and expression of that understanding represents, in part, my acting philosophy (-) what I do and why I do it. In a broader and more important sense, however, it also represents my understanding of who I am and why I am.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006094, ucf:51194
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006094
An Examination of the actor's approach to playwriting: Are playwrights able to write about what is unfamiliar to them?
Title
An Examination of the actor's approach to playwriting: Are playwrights able to write about what is unfamiliar to them?.
Creator
Zaniboni, Kayla, Perry, Charles, Ingram, Katherine, McDonald, Holly, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
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...
Show morePlaywrights 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.
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Date Issued
2013
Identifier
CFE0004776, ucf:49787
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004776
Almost Mirror Image: Exploring The Similarities And Dissimilarities Of Identical Twins In Theatrical Solo Performance
Title
Almost Mirror Image: Exploring The Similarities And Dissimilarities Of Identical Twins In Theatrical Solo Performance.
Creator
Mignacca, Elizabeth, Boyd, Belinda, Ingram, Kate, McDonald, Holly, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Almost Mirror Image: Exploring the Similarities and Dissimilarities of Identical Twins in Theatrical Solo Performance Is an exploration of the psyche of identical twins within the context of devised solo performance. The author, an identical twin herself, has long been interested in twins' ability to cultivate both highly independent personalities as well as intensely co-dependent tendencies during development. What can twins tell us about the way we create close relationships and how is...
Show moreAlmost Mirror Image: Exploring the Similarities and Dissimilarities of Identical Twins in Theatrical Solo Performance Is an exploration of the psyche of identical twins within the context of devised solo performance. The author, an identical twin herself, has long been interested in twins' ability to cultivate both highly independent personalities as well as intensely co-dependent tendencies during development. What can twins tell us about the way we create close relationships and how is their upbringing radically different from the majority of the world that is born alone? Equally intrigued by society's growing technological dependence, the author would like to delve into how the science and development of twins appears counterintuitive to the intra-personal technological world they grow up in by using personal, autobiographic solo performance as her research platform. The data collected from research sources such as Jo Bonney's Extreme Exposure and Michael Kearns' The Solo Performer's Journey, will provide fodder for the thesis document and the author's devised solo piece, entitled Teach me how to be Lonely. While devising her own solo performance, the author will compare and contrast her process with that of a few select solo performers such as Anna Deavere Smith and Rachel Rosenthal. The author will delve into various styles of solo work creation, including the testimony plays of Smith and the autobiographical style of Rosenthal, in order to view her own work with a self-reflective and identity-driven lens. Overall, the author hopes to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of her own experience as an identical twin through the facilitation of her solo work as well as explore how the creation of solo performance can offer artists in the 21st century more freedom of expression and identity than the performance of a standard play.
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Date Issued
2015
Identifier
CFE0005668, ucf:50184
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005668
Creating Art That Truly Reflects the Community: An Exploration Into Facilitation of Devised, Community-Engaged Performance
Title
Creating Art That Truly Reflects the Community: An Exploration Into Facilitation of Devised, Community-Engaged Performance.
Creator
Grile, Courtney, Weaver, Earl, Brown, James, McDonald, Holly, Kovac, Kim, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
One purpose of community-engaged work is to build and reflect the community; to allow their voice to be heard. This research explores the relationship between the professional artist facilitator and participants in a community-engaged setting while applying devised theatre practices. The facilitating artist brings to the group their expertise in playmaking and storytelling. The research centers on how a facilitating artist might approach devising a community-engaged performance project with...
Show moreOne purpose of community-engaged work is to build and reflect the community; to allow their voice to be heard. This research explores the relationship between the professional artist facilitator and participants in a community-engaged setting while applying devised theatre practices. The facilitating artist brings to the group their expertise in playmaking and storytelling. The research centers on how a facilitating artist might approach devising a community-engaged performance project with awareness of his/her ability to influence the group. How can the facilitator channel their influence to provide productive guidance for the collective creativity in order to honor the community's intent and minimize the distortion created by the facilitator's perspective? Are there guidelines that can be established in order to ensure that the community's voice is undiluted? I begin by engaging in dialogue with established current practitioners in the field and examining literature published on the subject with this goal in mind. From this research a roadmap of perils and pitfalls, signs to look for that indicate tension or discomfort within the group, and techniques and tips for productively refocusing the group's work have been created. The objective of the research is to formulate a philosophy on facilitation that aligns with my artistic mission and values, ensuring the work truly builds and reflects the communities from which it is produced.
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Date Issued
2013
Identifier
CFE0005095, ucf:50737
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005095