Theatre, Dance & Performance Studies Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2760
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Item C. Voltaire(2004) Nagy, Zoltan; Bradley, Karen; Dance; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland“DADA speaks with you, it is everything, it envelops everything, and it belongs to every religion can be neither victory not defeat, it lives in space, and not in time…” Francis Picabia. C. Voltaire is a Dance-Theater piece inspirited by DADA.. The piece incorporates the ideas of DADA artists and C.G. Jung: Anima and Animus. Music: Japanese folk music and collage Performed at the Kogod Theater 2004 February 27&28Item BIRTHMARK(2004) Gongora, Anthony; Bradley, Karen; Dance; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.); Digital Repository at the University of MarylandBIRTHMARK is a choreographic journey, inspired by a personal confrontation with kaposi's sarcoma and the moment of realizing ultimate recovery. The dance is divided into six sections, beginning with my depression and fears at diagnosis of the extreme form of the herpes virus. The next sections travel through pondering "Why Me;" expanding my spiritualization and embracing my friends; finding respect for my body and the world around me; realizing the profound changes for and in me; and, finally, experiencing hope, euphoria, that I was now given a second chance. The fifty-minute dance production is successful not only because of my vision and choreography. The outstanding performance danced by my talented cast, the ideas for costume patterns and construction offered by my luminous costume designer, the concepts for lighting and props suggested by my eminent technical director, and the continuous encouragement of my advisor, contributed to the production's triumph.Item Through the Distance(2009) Ibarguen, Vannia Paola; Bradley, Karen K; Dance; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)What is the impact of distance on people's lives? Vannia Ibarguen examines how the established relationships among people change with distance and how humanity has created virtual extensions to continue in communication. Vannia portrays life as a set of departures, journeys and arrivals while exploring concepts like migration, separation and the use of technology. The show includes remote multi location performances developed in collaboration with dancers from California, South America and Europe.Item Search For My Familiar(2005) Graciani, Ruben; Rosen, Meriam; DanceTo gain a greater understanding of my aesthetic and voice, I am challenging myself to see Rub& in a different light, from a different perspective. The goal is to discover a different story to tell and to tell that story in a new way, my way. One way to describe myself is by illuminating the voices and spirits of those closest to my heart. Their stories and our interactions make up who I am. If you know those close to me, you know me. I choose to be known. My departure point for each of the pieces of choreography in my concert is that each dance has been inspired by a significant emotional experience or interaction. I am not telling specific stories of those interactions; instead, I am insinuating that by seeing the arc of emotions, you are seeing the arc of my life. This thesis concert is my autobiography.Item Scenic Design for Anna in the Tropics(2009) Wheatley, Deborah; Conway, Daniel; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this Thesis is to provide research, supporting paperwork and production photographs that represent the scenic design for Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz at the University of Maryland, Department of Theatre. This thesis contains the following documentation: research images which contribute to the intellectual design of the production and visually communicate to the director the ideas of texture, color, scale, and mood; photographs of the ¼"; scale model; a full set of draftings communicating to the technical director the look of each scenic element; a unit list which gives detailed information on each element of the scenic design; the props list which details the construction and purpose of each type of prop used in the production; and the props and paint research book which visually supports the information in the props and unit list. Archival production photographs are included to visually document the completed final design.Item Tie Shopping With My Father(2008) Iacono, Kathrine; Rosen, Meriam; Dance; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Tie Shopping with My Father is a five section dance thesis created to explore the sport of wrestling and how its influences on my life have affected my movement as a dancer. Researched for three years, the culmination of the project happened on September 25 and 26, 2008 and included five sections that explored loss, mannerisms of warm-up, relationships, biographical connection to the sport, and its spiritual implications. The results included a broadened sense of responsibility to provide honest, risk-taking art and a heightened knowledge of the sport of wrestling for the arts public.Item CODE: A CHOREOGRAPHED ILLUSTRATION OF RULES, BOUNDARIES, AND SOCIAL GUIDELINES THROUGH DANCE, FILM, AND VISUAL ART(2006) Belk, Autumn; Rosen, Meriam; Dance; University of Maryland; Digital Repository at the University of MarylandCode is an exploration of life's boundaries and the laws, guidelines, and customs that construct these barriers. Governments impose restrictions on the members of its community; these members then enforce additional limits through formalities, etiquette, and other social codes. Technology is constantly raising its own limits; however, technological devices still cannot achieve all that the mind can fathom. The programming code controlling these devices also presents boundaries of its own. A sample of life's rules is illustrated through a formal concert, which incorporates live dance and prerecorded film components, and through a limited edition book of artwork related to the components of this concert. Each of six choreographed works presents one or more of the binding codes that shape our lives. This written documentation explores how these works function within four categories of codes: externally enforced boundaries, social structures within relationships, limits of technology, and the absence of rules.Item CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY-BASED PERFORMANCE PRACTICES IN CONTEMPORARY NORTH AMERICA(2009) Messer, Kristen Anne; Hildy, Franklin J; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation project examines contemporary North American conservative Christian performance practices. The study is in part ethnographic, taking into account the local context of these performances and attempting to situate their practices and techniques in relation to previous practices of religious performance, as well as within the field of community-based performance. Through contextualizing the performances discussed as part of ongoing theatrical/aesthetic conversations, interviewing participants, examining local and national press coverage, and in reading these events as locally rooted community-based performances, I explore why and how, when community-based and identity performance is often associated with the left and liberal concerns, it is thriving in communities that could, arguably, be understood as right and/or conservative. This study investigates how the elision of social and spiritual identity within the space of performance speaks to complex interactions between "American" identity and "American" spirituality.Item Where Colors Blend Into Sounds(2009) Kassabova, Tzveta; Rosen, Meriam; Dance; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Tzveta Kassabova creates an interactive environment for the audience, with dancers acting as guides through experiences of taste, touch and other sensations. The work plays with perceptions and shifting realities as it incorporates different approaches to scale and proximity. Corridors, entryways, and rooms are strung together, leading the audience into a maze of unexpected situations that are designed to evoke sensory memories and associations.Item Sawing the Air Thus: American Sign Language Translations of Shakespeare and the Echoes of Rhetorical Gesture(2009) Snyder, Lindsey Diane; Hildy, Franklin J; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) signed in1990 states that "no individual may be discriminated against on the basis of disability." The creation of anti-discrimination laws did not, however, legislate community understanding and equality of access. Focusing on access for the Deaf community to Shakespeare in performance, I am interested in developing both a theoretical and practical document. This document will explore the seemingly disparate fields of Performance theory, Shakespeare studies, Sign language studies, and Deaf studies in order to formalize a structure for interpreting text to create a communal experience for both Deaf and Hearing audiences. The virtuosity of Shakespeare makes his stories universal, enabling them to be translated into countless languages. Signed languages, as a part of the translation studies of Shakespeare, are often considered insignificant to the field because the interpretation into ASL is as temporal as a performance or is perceived by some to be limited to a small community of understanding. By formalizing a process of translation that uses elements of both ASL and gesture, not only does this research provide a structure for creating formal ASL translations, but reexamines the importance of rhetorical gesture in Shakespeare studies. I begin by providing an overview of my methodology and interdisciplinary approach to gesture, ASL, Shakespeare and performance theory. Next, I examine a historical and theoretical framework for gesture in both the D/deaf and performance communities. I go on to discuss the use of gesture (rhetorical, performance, and sign language) in production through an analysis of sketches, charts, and embedded video. Finally, I document my experiences as an interpreter in an original staging practices environment. This documentation illustrates the uses of the previously discussed elements converging in practice. This dissertation will serve as a first step towards practitioners, academics, and interpreters working together to fully interpret Shakespeare's texts and redefine the concept of access.