Theatre, Dance & Performance Studies Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2760
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Item A Tradeshow Design for Nintendo of America(2007-08-30) Zoll, Laurence; Conway, Daniel; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Designing trade show exhibits for large corporations is a viable career path for students of theatrical design. There are distinct similarities and differences between design for theatre and industry, and by creating a theoretical design for the Nintendo Corporation I compare and contrast the differences between the two. Designing for a tradeshow incorporates some factors that theatrical designers must consider differently than they would for a normal stage production, and once a designer can understand these as well as the fact that he is designing not necessarily art for art's sake, but art for a bottom line they can fully embrace the corporate model. The act of design is inherently artistic, and I have found through my design for Nintendo, that art can still have beauty, integrity and purpose while serving the practical needs of a profit driven company.Item THE ARTIFICE OF ETERNITY: A STUDY OF LITURGICAL AND THEATRICAL PRACTICES IN BYZANTIUM(2006-07-23) White, Andrew Walker; Hildy, Franklin J.; Majeska, George P.; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study attempts to fill a substantial gap in our knowledge of theatre history by focusing on the Orthodox ritual aesthetic and its relationship with traditional theatrical practice in the Eastern Roman Empire - also known as Byzantium. Through a review of spatial practices, performance aesthetics and musical practice, and culminating in a case study of the Medieval Office of the Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, this dissertation attempts to demonstrate how the Orthodox Church responded to the theatre, and determine whether the theatre influenced the development of its ritual aesthetic. Because of the well-documented rapprochement between church and theatre in the west, this study also tries to determine whether there was a similar reconciliation in the Orthodox east. From the Early Byzantine period onward, conduct of the Orthodox Liturgy was rooted in a ritual aesthetic that avoided direct imitation or representation. This Orthodox ritual aesthetic influenced every aspect of the Liturgy, from iconography to chant to liturgical dance, and involved a rejection of practices that, in the Church's view, would draw too much attention to the material or artistic aspects of ritual. Theatrical modes of representation were consistently avoided and condemned as anathema. Even in the Middle Ages, when Catholics began to imitate Jesus at the altar and perform representations of biblical episodes using actors, realistic settings and special effects, Orthodox hierarchs continued to reject theatrical modes of performance. One possible exception to this rule is a Late Byzantine rite identified by western scholars as a "liturgical drama" - the Office of the Three Children. But a detailed reconstruction of its performance elements reveals that it was quite different in its aesthetics from Medieval Catholic practice. Some of the Office's instructions, however, lend themselves to a theatrical interpretation; and the instability of the Office's manuscript tradition, as seen in five extant versions, reveals strong disagreements about whether and how to include many of its key visual and musical elements.Item A Scenic Design for John Caird and Paul Gordon's "Jane Eyre: A Musical Drama"(2006-05-02) Peters, Tanna Marie; Conway, Daniel; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this thesis is to document and analyze the process of the scenic design for John Caird and Paul Gordon's "Jane Eyre: A Musical Drama" as it was produced at the University of Maryland in October of 2005. The role of the scenic designer is to support the director's conceptual approach to a production via the scenic elements in collaboration with the design and production teams. Chapter 1 is an analysis of the script through a discussion of the original author of Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brônte; the adaptation in musical form; and the imagery and symbolism inherent in the text. Chapter 2 details the visual research process and creation of the design in conjunction with the director, lighting designer, and costume designer. Chapter 3 follows the process of the set construction and creation of the design. Chapter 4 provides a critical analysis of the scenic design process and creation in reference to the scenic design. Finally, the appendices provide visual documentation of the design process from research to realization of the final production.Item A Costume Design for John Caird and Paul Gordon's "Jane Eyre: A Musical Drama"(2006-05-02) Lucka, Kristina; Huang, Helen Q; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This thesis provides a written analysis of the artistic and academic process of the costume design for University of Maryland Department of Theatre's 2005 production of John Caird and Paul Gordon's Jane Eyre, A Musical Drama. Chapter I provides a brief analysis of Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre and how Caird and Gordon adapted this book into a musical drama. Chapter II describes the visual research, design approach and collaboration with the other designers and the director. Chapter III describes the realization of the design from costume shop, through costume fittings, to technical and dress rehearsals. Chapter IV comments on the self-assessment of the design from research to realization, discussing the successes, the problems and solutions, and the learning experiences that occurred during the production process. The appendices include visual research, costume renderings, production photos, and supporting paperwork.Item A Costume Design for Bill Irwin's "Scapin"(2004-08-12) Sivigny, Debra Kim; Huang, Helen Q; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this thesis is to document and analyze the process of the costume design for Bill Irwin's SCAPIN as it was produced at the University of Maryland's Department of Theatre in November of 2003. The role of the costume designer is to support the conceptual vision of a director alongside a design and production team. Presented in Chapter 1 of the thesis contains information regarding the three creators: Moliere, Bill Irwin, and Mark O'Donnell, pertaining to the text and production of SCAPIN. Chapter 2 discusses the visual research for the production, in conjunction with scenic and lighting designers. Chapter 3 covers the execution of the design through each step of its realization. Chapter 4 completes the thesis with an analysis of the process and production in regards to the costume design. The appendices document the major visual sources used and illustrate the phases of the design.