Representation Of Life Research Articles

Revenue implications of celebrities on Broadway theatre

Live entertainment revenue management practices depend upon understanding the most salient drivers of shifts in demand. Motivated by the increasing usage of dynamic pricing on Broadway, we explore factors that impact revenue in live theatre. Based on a fixed effects model and a novel dataset of revenues and actor usage, we estimate the revenue impact that celebrity actors have on Broadway shows. We find that weeks that have a celebrity are associated with an increase in revenue of approximately $250 k. The two major acting awards—Tony and Academy (the Oscars)—were found to have a non-significant impact on weekly revenue. We discuss implications on Revenue Management practices.

Framing Shakespeare in New Digital Canons: Paratextual Conventions of RSC Live and NT Live

This article develops an analysis of the relationship between paratextual framing and institutional identity in the body of productions broadcast to cinemas by RSC Live and NT Live, proposing that paratexts are an integral yet consistently overlooked mediator of meaning in Shakespearean live theater broadcasts. Since the National Theatre’s broadcast of All’s Well that End’s Well in 2009 and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s debut live theater broadcast of Richard II in 2013, Shakespearean performance has dominated the UK’s event cinema market. This article examines the interpretive significance of paratextual conventions developed by these two companies in negotiating institutional identity and shaping narratives of Shakespeare’s cultural value. It brings these marginal materials to the center of critical analysis, proposing an original critical vocabulary by which to examine the diversity of the broadcast paratexts which have developed around, and been shaped by, Shakespearean performance in the medium. A sustained analysis of the frames of interpretation offered in Shakespearean broadcast performances exposes the interpretive labor these marginal materials regularly perform, highlighting the value of analyzing Shakespearean live theater broadcasts holistically.

Uncomfortable Bedfellows: Shakespeare and Global Studies

Shakespeare adaptations share an intimate relation with global studies, because Shakespeare – as a cultural institution – registers a broad spectrum of practices that generate productive dialogues with world cultures. Global studies enables us to examine deceivingly harmonious images of Shakespeare’s works. This paper examines culturally fluid, contemporary adaptations in relation to digital cultures. Mining rhizomatic and non-linear flows of tropes, my approach evaluates the connections among Saudi, Bollywood, and French New Wave films. The second part of this paper traces global Shakespeares during the outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020. While the global pandemic closed live theatre events and cinemas worldwide, it also ushered in a new phase of globalization fuelled by on-demand digital videos as at-home audiences took to streaming to engage with Shakespeare. In tandem with the spread of coronavirus, there is a global viral spread of Shakespeare that carries site-specific meanings with them in disembodied forms. Delineating the relations between Shakespeare and global studies in adaptations and in digital culture, this paper outlines the future challenges and opportunities for the fields.

Writing in the Green: Imperatives towards an Eco-n-temporary Theatre Canon

Abstract This article reflects on the sociopolitical, cultural, and health landscape(s) of our current moment in time, addressing how intersecting crises have delivered us to an unprecedented moment for drama, theatre, and performance. As communities across the world have had to dispense with staples of everyday life – attending live theatre performances being one of these –, so art, in all its forms, has never been more significant in its capacity to bring us together, even if modes of togetherness have shifted in their referentiality and locationality. As the article proposes, we need to take an intuitive approach to the appreciation of how our ecologies – in their broadest iteration – have been impacted and realigned by the COVID-19 pandemic in such ways that we can expect that our future scholarship(s) on plays, place, and landscape will and, indeed, ought to reflect this experience. Dialogues on theatre and environment, which are already intersectional, are now receiving yet another focusing lens through the pandemic.The article also suggests that our understandings of how our ecologies have been adapted invite a consideration of new modes of engaging with the environment in our discourses – and of the very term itself and what it might encompass – and new economies in calibrating our discourses to reflect our radically redistributed individual and collective experiences. The text offers examples of categories that emerge particularly strongly where spatial liminality is key; in so doing, it asserts that in-betweenness is a central element towards understanding our contemporary role and responsibilities: from collapsing binaries (environment/economy) to the unmoored experience of our times.

Adaptations that Disinter and Disobey Shakespeare

Adaptations that Disinter and Disobey Shakespeare William Shakespeare is a staple in every literary curriculum; his works are constantly being adapted into books, cinema, live theatre and even memes. All of these various lenses and mediums serve to resurrect and modernize Shakespeare. However, the repeated “disinterring” of Shakespear is not simply an attempt at fidelity or reverence, but rather purposeful disobedience. In attempting to re-envision what makes a good adaptation, my video parallels what Shakespearean adaptations are to the original plays. The video is a series of images that provide movement and visualization to accompany the voiceover; it adapts my thoughts to the visual medium, rather than solely lying on auditory delivery. Adaptation is a way of having fun with the familiar and subverting the viewer’s expectations. It is about making something new out of the old, which uniquely represents the creator. Each format has its advantages and disadvantages, and I use mine to show how adaptation is a form of creative and subjective self-expression. Modern technology is one way we can engage with his works; it gives us a broader understanding of the discourse surrounding it. In my video, I imagine the discourse surrounding Shakespeare like a seed that grows into a tree: it has its roots in the far past, but its branches reach today. Shakespeare is still relevant, and it is this constant and ever-growing discourse that brings together different perspectives, cultures and traditions. Ultimately, to re-envision his work is to make the canon and literary tradition vital, dynamic and meaningful. Works Cited Dragon_fang. “Isolated Flute.” CanStockPhoto, https://www.canstockphoto.com/isolated-flute-2521314.html. Accessed November 18, 2021. “Garden meadow ground natural.” Svgsilh, https://svgsilh.com/image/303857.html. Accessed November 18, 2021. “Gravestone Drawing.” ClipArt Best, http://www.clipartbest.com/clipart-pc5XaKrdi. Accessed November 18, 2021. “Laying down skeleton clipart.” Clipart Library. http://clipart-library.com/clipart/2029478.htm. Accessed November 18, 2021. Milkovasa. “Viola on a white background.” Shutterstock, https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/viola-on-white-background-musical-instrument-163205225. Accessed November 18, 2021. Nikand4. “Clarinet isolated over white background.” Dreamstime, https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/clarinet-isolated.html. Accessed November 18, 2021. Paradies, Mark. “Red apple core on a white background.” TapRoot. 12 September 2019. https://www.taproot.com/live-your-core-values-exercise-to-increase-your-success/red-apple-core-on-a-white-background/. Accessed November 18, 2021. Tatniz. “Saxophone isolated under the white background stock photo.” iStock. 10 June 2019, https://www.istockphoto.com/search/2/image?phrase=saxophone+trumpet+blowing+ska. Accessed November 18, 2021. “Tree Clip Art -Clip Art Black and White Tree.” NicePNG, https://www.nicepng.com/ourpic/u2e6e6y3a9i1u2w7_tree-clip-art-clip-art-black-and-white/. Accessed November 18, 2021. Walterbioltta. “Trumpet on a white background shooting sideways.” iStock, https://www.istockphoto.com/photos/trumpet-white-background-no-people. Accessed November 18, 2021.

VR – The Digital Intersection of Video Games and Immersive Theatre

The coronavirus pandemic has been detrimental to live theatre everywhere; however, it has forced us to explore the possibilities within the digital landscape as in-person interactions continue to be limited. Virtual reality, or VR for short, has exploded in popularity due to its escapist and endless possibility, but it also demonstrates inherent elements of game design and theatricality in its applications and experiences – so to what extent do we see such elements and how do they apply? Using preliminary studies in video game and immersive theatre philosophy, interviews with professional artists in these fields, and my own experiments on the Oculus headset, we see connections of concepts such as presence, interactivity, and aesthetics being made in VR, as are similar terms found in theoretical discussions of gaming and immersivity. This connection also recognizes the logistical problems like accessibility and ethics, and though conversations are still developing on these subjects, we can consult with each industry to analyze and predict outcomes of different procedures. This intersectionality of technology and the arts is not new; however, it is underutilized – digital theatre presented a way for people to connect during the pandemic, but with VR, we are given the chance to interact more authentically in a shared, online space.

A Whole Carnal Stereophony: The Wooster Group Stages Brecht

A Whole Carnal Stereophony: The Wooster Group Stages Brecht

THE IMAGE OF THE VIZIER NIZAM AL-MALIK AL-TUSI AMONG HISTORIANS AND IN THE POETRY OF THE SELJUK ERA

The study deals with one of the historical Islamic figures who had a prominent presence in the theater of political, administrative, and social life in the battle of Al-Wazir Nizam al-Mulk al-tousi . The importance of the study and its goals stem from the popularity of his fame, his brilliance, the public’s love for him and their envy around him, and the large number of his enviers, his hatred and hatred for him. All this was a reason for the identification of this character, revealed his image and features, when he died and translated, and wrote about his circle, and what the poets of Seljuki, praise and lament, and from here stem the problem of the study by asking the question, "Do you match poets Was there an exaggeration among the poets, as is customary? All that was mentioned and narrated was a reason for the importance of the study and its objectives. Concerning the methodology of the study, I followed the descriptive and inferential . approach, from the historical novels about him, and from the collections of poets in his era. The study came in terms of its structure, divided into an introduction, two chapters with its demands, a conclusion, and a confirmation of the sources and references. Key words: Minister Nizam Al-Mulk, The Seljuk Era, Translations, Biographies, Historians, Poetry

Theatre as a Literary Lens of Life Occurrences: A Close of View the Alan Read’s Theatre and Everyday Life

This article examines theatre as a literary lens for viewing life events. The discussion is anchored on a close reading of Alan Read’s Theatre and Everyday Life. Drawing from Alan Read, the article also underscores some key considerations in a theatrical production of Bertolt Brecht’s Caucasian Chalk Circle and Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House as the theatre of everyday life. It is observed that Alan Read defines theatre as the actual production of the play on the stage. This requires a stage, actors, background, costumes, lighting, sound effects, and most importantly an audience. In fact, a space to perform, actors, and the audience are three of the most basic requirements of theatre. Theatre is a collective effort of the playwright, director, actors, technicians, and many other people. Here, there is no direct interaction between the audience and the playwright. Theatre can present another interpretation of the play. In Theatre and Everyday Life, Alan Read does not conform to the conventional theatre as echoed by the Brechtian and Ibsen theatrical experience. Further, Alan Read asserts that there is no split between the practice and theory of theatre, but a divide between the written and the unwritten. In this revealing book, he sets out to retrieve the theatre of spontaneity and tactics, which grows out of the experience of everyday life. It is a theatre that defines itself in terms of people and places rather than the idealised empty space of Avant-garde performance. Read’s Theatre and Everyday Life is a theatre that reflects on people’s daily engagements. Therefore, it examines the relationship between an ethics of performance, a politics of place, and a poetics of the urban environment. His theoretical approach is a persuasive demand for a critical theory of theatre, which is as mentally supple as theatre is physically versatile. In Alan Read’s view, the key difference between drama and theatre is that drama refers to a printed text of a play while theatre refers to the onstage production of the play. He further distinguishes theatre and drama in relation to the interpretation of the play. As explained above, the interpretation of the play presented by the onstage production might be different from the interpretation obtained by reading the drama. In a drama, there is a direct interaction between the audience and the creator. However, in theatre, directors, actors and designers play as intermediaries. In addition, Alan Read says that the theatre being is a physical entity, whereas the drama being drama is an abstract entity. Since theatre does not exist in a vacuum, it requires space for its performance. Both Brecht and Ibsen require theatre for them to undergo a transformation from drama to theatre. As they are in their form, Caucasian Chalk Circle and A Doll’s House can be termed as scripts until they are performed. Therefore, theatre provides an avenue for the scripts to be transformed into drama hence reflecting life, views which lay the basis of Alan Read’s Theatre and Everyday Life

The Potentials and Challenges of Zoom Live Theatre during Coronavirus Lockdown: Pandemic Therapy and Corona Chicken (Part Two)

This study discusses the potentials and challenges of Zoom theatre performances during the lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. It examines the utilization and applicability of videoconferencing software Zoom, and other streaming software compatible with it, in creating a viable performance option for theatre practitioners and audiences during mandatory social distancing. Such software can be a strategy for social inclusion, alleviating the adverse effects of extended quarantine. The article also discusses the technical and performative aspects of Zoom theatre, pointing out its pros and cons. It uses a critical and analytical approach to performances of two Zoom plays, Pandemic Therapy and Corona Chicken (Part Two), revealing how the playwright, dramaturg, and actors manage to present a live theatrical experience capable of engaging audiences and promoting social interaction. Khaled Mostafa Karam is an Assistant Professor of English Literature at the Suez University in Egypt and a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Cognitive Science, Case Western Reserve University, USA. He has published eleven articles on the interdisciplinary field of cognitive science and drama. Galal Mohamed Naguib is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Suez University and author of several articles in the fields of demographic analysis and the sociology of art.

Play by A. Arbuzov Old-fashioned comedy in China: Theater and Critical Reception

The article discusses the issue of reception of Russian drama of the 20th century in China on the basis of the theatrical and critical reception of A. Arbuzovs play Old-Fashioned Comedy , which was repeatedly staged in theaters of the country at different cultural and historical stages and in recent years has again been in demand among theatrical figures and audiences. An analysis of the performances of a well-known text, reviews and readers' reactions to it make it possible not only to trace changes in the perception of the play in a foreign cultural space, but also to examine the social processes that cause such changes, as well as to touch upon the theatrical life itself and stage experiments in China. The conclusion is made that the universal human content of the playwright's plays, the timeless values that are affirmed in his work, and the inherent scenicity, the organic nature of the dramatic language help to successfully adapt the authors works not only to the modern Russian theater, but also for the foreign language ones. An example of a successful dialogue of cultures in the theatrical and dramatic sphere is the stage history of the play Old-Fashioned Comedy in China.

Miller’s Food for Thought at Food For Thought Productions: A Talk with Susan Charlotte, 15 July 2021

abstract This vignette of Arthur Miller’s engagement with an off-off-Broadway theater company toward the end of his life reveals both his love of live theater and his generosity.

New Theatre-Fans: Empirical Research Experience

Global changes and challenges of the 21st century have significantly changed both the conditions for the social functioning of art and its audience. This has shifted the focus of contemporary research interests from creating a socio-cultural portrait of the viewer to the area of comprehending new forms of cultural consumption, the origins and drivers of cultural activity. These aspects of the socio-cultural dynamics of the theater audiences are discussed in this paper, which continues the publication of the results of a large-scale sociological study of the audience of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater. Our interest is primarily due to the historically formed special perception of this theater by the public, which distinguishes the Moscow Art Theater from other theaters of the country. Basing on the empirical data of sociological polls of two types — in the theater auditorium and on the Internet — and using the methods of mathematical statistics, we identify those features that most characterize the modern theater audience and reflect fundamentally new trends in its cultural activity. We note the stratification of the theater audience on completely new qualitative grounds and the establishment of a new cultural phenomenon at the forefront of theatrical life — the online theater-fan. To answer the question about the existence of a certain “generic peculiarity” of the Moscow Art Theater audience, which in previous years embodied the legendary Moscow Art Theater tradition, we tried to identify the latent features of the audience that are not reducible to the traditional quantitative measurements of spectator activity. The findings of the study are unexpected. In some ways they disappoint, but at the same time they explain a lot in the current trends of cultural consumption. They supplement the theoretical landscape with empirical data on the qualitative and behavioral characteristics of the modern theater audience and its cultural activity, which is steadily drifting into the online space. Theoretically comprehending the results obtained we fit them into the broad context of international studies of cultural life. So, behind the particular features of specific audience groups, we can catch the manifestations of global cultural processes that determine the current sociodynamics of the audience of art.

Trifles

Trifles

Merry Wives

Reviewed by: Merry Wives Ali Madani Merry Wives Presented by The Public Theater at the Delacorte Theater, New York City, NY. 6 July–18 September 2021. Directed by Saheem Ali. Adapted by Jocelyn Bioh. Costume design by Dede Ayite. Scenic design by Beowulf Boritt. Lighting Design by Jiyoun Chang. Sound design by Kai Harada and Palmer Hefferan. Original music by Michael Thurber. Original drum compositions Farai Malianga. Fight direction by Rocío Mendez. Choreography by Darrell Grand Moultrie. Hair, wigs, and makeup design by Cookie Jordan. Production stage manager Narda E. Alcorn. Stage Manager Benjamin E. C. Pfister. Sound system design by Jessic Paz. With Abena (Anne Page), Gbenga Akin-nagbe (Mister Nduka Ford), Pascale Armand (Madam Ekua Page), MaYaa Boateng (Fenton/Simple), Phillip James Brannon (Pastor Evans), Joshua Echebiri (Slender/Pistol), Angela Grovey (Mama Quickly), Jacob Ming-Trent (Falstaff), Susan Kelechi Watson (Madam Nkechi Ford), Julian Rozzell, Jr. (Shallow), Kyle Scatliffe (Mister Kwame Page), David Ryan Smith (Doctor Caius), and others. “The Public Theater,” promotional material announced, “is theater of, by, and for all people.” On public transit to the Delacorte Theater I encountered a man walking the subway A-train selling tasers and stunguns, [End Page 152] another entering in a hospital gown, and a third wearing a track suit, reading Karl Marx’s Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844, and smirking (he wasn’t wearing a mask despite official mandates). Are these minor spectacles relevant or merely remarkable? After some eighteen months of drastically reduced time witnessing the New York City public, it can be difficult to distinguish. The Public Theater’s staging of Merry Wives (July–September 2021) was the first production of Shakespeare at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park since the 2019 performances of Much Ado about Nothing and Coriolanus. Like much of the theater planned for 2020, The Public’s production of Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery’s musical adaptation of As You Like It, scheduled to return to the Delacorte during the first summer of COVID-19, was cancelled in deference to public health, and their planned production of Richard II became a radio play. Merry Wives was my first experience of live in-person theater in the pandemic era. This production would also have been my first opportunity since March 2020 to participate in a crowd, were it not for the mass demonstrations against anti-Blackness and police brutality that had spurred a sequestered public to collective action. In New York City those mass demonstrations were followed promptly by mass arrests, further police brutality, and swarms of nocturnal police helicopters hovering just overhead. The effect of the City’s militarized response was to deny rest to those who most needed it, to dissuade the public from further action. It was out of this dizzying urban scene that Jocelyn Bioh’s adaptation of Merry Wives appeared. A celebration of Black joy, The Public’s performance of Shakespeare’s city comedy was keyed to the time and location of its staging. Beowulf Boritt’s fabricated block of contemporary Harlem, complete with Citi Bikes and a Black Lives Matter mural, served as backdrop to the action of the play’s West African-descended characters. Directed by Saheem Ali, Merry Wives radiated joy and “Black Aliveness,” a term I borrow from Kevin Quashie’s recent monograph of the same name. To imagine Black being in reprieve from the threat of anti-Black violence, as this performance managed with exuberance and style, participates in the worldmaking of Blackness as capacious and relational. The production insisted on the relational nature of the theater, organizing seating based on vaccination status, ability, and seniority. Those audience members at greatest risk from COVID-19 were seated in a section preserving physical distance and requiring masks. I and my viewing companion, a friend visiting from out of town whom I had not seen in two years, sat in the “full capacity” zone designated for the vaccinated. Before the performance began, ushers invited audience members in the [End Page 153] vaccinated section to remove masks. (Performances were cancelled the following week due to a production member’s positive COVID-19 test.) On this night, Bioh and Ali invited to the stage Helen...

The Comedy of Errors

Reviewed by: The Comedy of Errors Barbara Ann Lukacs The Comedy of Errors Presented by The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey at their Outdoor Stage located in the Greek Theatre at St. Elizabeth University, Convent Station, NJ. 8 July–1 August 2021. Directed by Brian B. Crowe. Scenic Design by Baron Pugh. Costume Design by Paul Canada. Lighting Design by Jason Flamos. Sound Design by Andrew Yoder. Production Stage Manager Emma Lindemood. With Jeffrey Marc Alkins (Antipholus of Ephesus/Antipholus of Syracuse), Marcella Cox (Courtesan/The Abbess), Dino Curia (Egeon/Balthasar/Pinch’s Assistant), Kirby Davis (2nd Merchant/Pinch’s Assistant/Officer), Ellie Gossage (Adriana), Karl Hawkins (Officer/Executioner), Isaac Hickox-Young (Duke Solinus/Pinch’s Assistant/Citizen), Anthony Paglia [End Page 175] (1st Merchant/Pinch’s Assistant/Citizen), Rupert Spraul (Angelo/Dr. Pinch), Billie Wyatt (Dromio of Ephesus/Dromio of Syracuse), and Katja Yacker (Luciana). After seventeen long months of government-mandated restrictions on large gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic, outdoor theater productions were allowed to reopen in New Jersey in the summer of 2021. Director Brian Crowe wisely selected The Comedy of Errors to welcome audiences back to the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey’s Outdoor Stage at the Greek Theatre on the campus of St. Elizabeth University in Convent Station, New Jersey. With the theme of reuniting people after a long separation, this play was the perfect offering to all who missed attending in-person performances, and who yearned for that magical connection between actors and audience that can only occur within a live theater setting. The performance was an evening of fun and laughter for both actors and audience, delivered at what was for all but the last scene a rapid-fire pace and culminating in a shared sense of joy, so that, for two brief hours, the world seemed to be as it had been before the pandemic. The set was minimal, consisting of a back wall painted in varying shades of light blue with touches of pink and white to resemble the sky with a few clouds. At the center of this wall were double doors that formed the entrance to the abbey. On the wall to either side of these doors hung large, parchment-like sheets proclaiming that anyone who came to Ephesus from Syracuse would be killed if he could not produce the necessary money to redeem his freedom. Near either end of the wall, openings provided entrances and exits for the characters. Eight free-standing, single-width doors painted in various shades of blue with white molding were spaced across the stage in a straight line. Except for the door that served as the entry to Antipholus of Ephesus’s house, none of the other doors opened. The doors that could not open served mostly as props around which the characters would run and behind which they would hide. Antipholus of Ephesus’s door was split horizontally into separate top and bottom halves (a “half-door”), with a small peephole opening in the center of its top half. These openings were exploited for comedic effect, serving as the portals through which the heated exchange of words and of other less civil expressions of sentiment between the Dromios was conducted (3.1). There was no stage furniture but for a chair on which Luciana, reading a book, sat at one point. [End Page 176] A challenge for any outdoor production is how to deal with intrusions coming from the surroundings. In this instance, these interruptions came from the overhead noise of airplanes, including small corporate jets, taking off or landing at a nearby airport. These occurrences were handled by one of the actors yelling “Airplane!” at which point stagehands would emerge from the wings bearing signs that stated, “Flying Machine Interval,” and the actors would break into a line dance to waltz music, with the audience spontaneously clapping in time to the music. Once the noise abated, the action of the play resumed. Crowe chose to use the same actors for each of the respective pairs of twins: Jeffrey Marc Alkins to portray the Antipholuses, and Billie Wyatt, a female actor, to portray the Dromios. For all but the final...

Tragedy in the Time of Plague

Tragedy in the Time of Plague1 Oliver Taplin (bio) Like a salt-encrusted shipwrecked sailor who after swimming and swimming at last crawls ashore glad to have survived danger, I look back on the two years of the rough waves of Covid-19. Constant restraints and few recompenses. Far from least of the deprivations was the total closure of theatres. For me this has, though, brought a refreshed awareness of the sensualities of live theatre, the innumerable minute impacts of the physicalities of performance, the somatic responses of the audience, and our shared raptness. Of course, the livestreamed plays and recordings were far better than nothing—some were brilliant and memorable—but it was and is nonsense to claim that they were just a good as live performance, let alone that they could even supplant the experience. I have just sat through nearly four hours of Ivo van Hove's grueling sequence of episodes from six Greek tragedies, The Age of Rage.2 The blazing flames, the smells, the solidity of metal, the heft and footfalls of the vigorous choral dances choreographed by Wim Vandekeybus… These had to be experienced "in the flesh" (marvelous phrase!). And the caught breath, uneasy tension, along with the intent silence of the large audience was very much part of the actual performance. It also renewed the question: why do we subject ourselves to such things? The more narrow and academic question that first broke through my initial pandemic-induced lethargy was one which, so far as I am aware, has hardly ever been raised. When Athens suffered its terrible plague between 430 and 426 bce, did theatrical performances go on all the same? Even if it is really the case that there was little or no notion of contagion,3 were the huge gatherings not curtailed or postponed during this terrible time? And if the tragedies did continue to be played and watched, what was it that was so important about them even in time of plague? [End Page 31] First some very briefly sketched background. Most of this will be well-known to most readers of Arion, but some settings need to be in place before the core question comes into focus. During the 440s and 430s the city-state of Athens had enjoyed a golden age of increasing prosperity and power, at the same time flourishing as a cultural magnet for ideas and the creative arts, including the great "local" genres of tragedy and comedy. In 431, under the influence of their charismatic leader Pericles, they embarked on war with the great rival power of Sparta—the so-called "Peloponnesian War." Even though the Spartans were able to invade and seriously damage the surrounding countryside of Attica, there was within the safety of the walls a mood of long-term optimism. Then in early summer of 430 the totally unpredictable plague struck the crowded and war-disrupted city. It lasted for two years and then recurred in the winter of 427–6 for a further year. The symptoms were horrific—far, far worse than our coronavirus. The fever burnt so terribly that sufferers could not bear to have any clothing on them and would throw themselves into cisterns in agonies of thirst. After about a week the disease moved into the bowels and victims were fatally weakened. The death-rate was terrifyingly high: it is calculated that the plague killed about 25% of the entire population. Pericles himself succumbed in the second year. We know about this plague from the personal and authoritative account by the pioneering historian Thucydides (2.47–54). He was there and fell ill himself, but survived, observing that those who had had the plague did not contract it a second time. He gives a long and gruesome account of the sequence of symptoms. There have been many theories about what disease this was, but it may well be that it was a pathogen that no longer exists.4 There are, nonetheless, some striking analogies with our recent experiences. Thucydides relates that the disease was said to have originated far away, in Africa, and that it came to Athens through the trading port of Piraeus. There...

Virtual Dream Reality Check: A Case of Interactive Digital Theatre from the Royal Shakespeare Company

The proliferation of digital theatre signals a new era of theatrical experiences. The Royal Shakespeare Company's (RSC) Dream is a recent example of how theatre companies are integrating cutting-edge technology to revolutionise their performances. Emerging from the Audience of the Future (AF) program, Dream combined gaming and theatre technology to create a virtual world for audiences to inhabit and explore digitally. The production incorporated motion-capture technology and Virtual Reality (VR) headsets, allowing seven actors to perform live from a purpose-built studio while audiences simultaneously accessed their performance from a compatible device via a bespoke website (https://dream.online). The resulting experience combined live and virtual performance elements to connect global audiences.This venture into technologically enhanced theatre, however, raises questions about the potential implications of audience engagement with digital productions. In this paper, we question how RSC's Dream combined both live and virtual theatre experiences to offer a more interactive viewing experience. We argue that while Dream signalled an exciting step in the development of digital theatre, the interactive features revealed some discrepancies between RSC's goals and the degree of involvement delivered. We thus contend that for theatre organisations to incorporate digital technologies, they must tend to the nuances of technological interventions and weave them seamlessly with theatrical elements to retain the fidelity of the theatre experience.

Театральная жизнь уралмашевцев на страницах заводской газеты в период с 1934 по 1939 год

The article examines the theatrical life on the territory of the urban microdistrict Uralmash in Yekaterinburg, formerly known as Sverdlovsk. The Uralmash residential area was built in the period of the 30s of the 20th century, simultaneously with the Ural Heavy Machinery Plant "UZTM", a brand of the Soviet industry. The study provides an anthropological description of Uralmash in the 30s as a new type of settlement – "soc.the city". The analysis of theatrical events spanning from 1934 to 1939 in the conditions of constructing a social city reflects the growing interest of researchers to the processes of cultural construction during the first fiveyear plans and to the policy of the Soviet state aimed at formulating a new cultural standard. The purpose of the article is to characterize the theatrical life of the working district during the period of cultural construction. The research objectives are the following: to systematize and chronologically restore information about the theatrical events of the period of the 30s of the 20th century in Uralmash. The method of investigating the processes associated with the theatrical life of Uralmash is the analysis of 1934-1939 publications from the large-circulation newspaper "For Heavy Engineering". The article includes authentic texts from the factory edition. The materials of the newspaper "For Heavy Engineering" are conditionally divided into several blocks–"visiting performances", "tours", "amateur art", "organizational work", "reviews (including impressions and gratitude from the audience)", "performance announcements", "information about theater figures of the capital, republican and Sverdlovsk theaters"--and arranged chronologically . Theatrical life in the period from 1934 to 1939 at Uralmash was diverse, interesting and eventful. The strategy of building a cultural policy in the "sotsgorod" Uralmash was aimed at ensuring the accessibility of theatrical art by all categories of citizens. Theaters, as social institutions, built their activities and repertoire policy, correlating them with the slogan of that time – "Art should belong to the people." The factory's multi-edition "For Heavy Engineering" played a significant role in this process. Being the only mass media, the newspaper formed the theatrical culture of Uralmash residents. The newspaper provided coverage of events related to theatrical activity in all their aspects. The analysis makes it possible to restore the undeservedly forgotten history of cultural formation processes during the emergence of the Soviet society

Nukha’s Theatrical Life in the 30s–40s of the 20th Century (Challenges, Progress, Problems)

The theatre in Nukha was founded by the amateur theatre troupe who staged the comedy “Haji Kara” by Mirza Fatali Akhundzade, a prominent playwright of the Azerbaijani literature in the 19th century. The path opened by the theatre amateurs was later expanded, and it led to getting a state status of the Nukha Theatre in 1936. The path of the Nukha Theatre had not been smooth enough, and as it is mentioned in the article, the Nukha Theatre had to be closed in 1949 due to a lack of financial support by the government and a lack of actors. In the 70s of the 20th century, the theatre life in Nukha was revived by a group of students of the Azerbaijan Institute of Culture and Arts sent to Sheki to work, and the theatre stepped to its new successful stage of its history. The activity of the Nukha Theatre in the 30s–40s was out of research and became a history in archive documents till the writing of this article. Indeed, limited information about the development of the Nukha Theatre was given by theatre researchers in the direction of research of the Azerbaijani Theatre, but the path of development of theatre had not been studied in the specific direction. This article is a part of the first step in this direction. The topicality of the article is a systematic and historical — chronological study of the Nukha Theatre, which was the integral part of the Azerbaijani Theatre in the 30s–40s of the 20th century, for the first time in a wide range. The scientific novelty of the topic is related to introducing the path of development of the Nukha Theatre in the 30s–40s of the 20th century to readers broadly.