Representation Of Experience Research Articles

Hamilton: An American Musical by Lin Manuel-Miranda

Reviewed by: Hamilton: An American Musical by Lin Manuel-Miranda Patricia Herrera HAMILTON: AN AMERICAN MUSICAL. Book, music, and lyrics by Lin Manuel-Miranda. Directed by Thomas Kail. Richard Rodgers Theatre, New York City. Disney Plus, streaming, July 4, 2020. Since its off-Broadway debut at the New York Public Theater in early 2015, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton has become a theatrical phenomenon of historic proportions, achieving staggering levels of critical and commercial success. I have had the great fortune of seeing Hamilton onstage a couple of times and have enjoyed this artistic masterpiece, but as I have written before, that pleasure comes with some caution and trepidation. By detaching from the narrative of slavery and disavowing Black bodies and their experiences, Hamilton brings the white body back to life, glossing over the racial terror saturating American history. While Disney’s early release of Hamilton is certainly beneficial in terms of accessibility, these shortcomings are far more pronounced. In the wake of 2020’s racial injustice protests and the coronavirus lockdowns, when gasps of grief and rage grew even louder, the show’s closing image of Eliza’s gasp took on a whole new meaning. Wrestling between pleasure and urgency, the craft of theatre remains as a source of “revolution and revelation” (as the Schuyler sisters desire). Under the direction of Thomas Kail, who also directed the stage version, the film is a firsthand look at the actual stage production at the Richard Rodgers Theatre. Rather than emulating the form and style of cinema, the film is an immersive live-captured version of a Broadway musical. Televiewers come close to experiencing what it feels like to be on the stage as a performer or in the theatre as an audience member from the comfort of their homes. While the film indeed offers a great approximation of theatre, the cinematic form, as is true for most live-recordings, can’t replace the liveness nor capture the give-and-take between actors and audience. What remains is a valuable historical document preserving the original cast on film and underscoring the collaboration of the creative team. Shot in three days in June of 2016, when the cast was performing the show to sold-out audiences on a nearly daily basis, Kail captures both the scope and intimacy of Hamilton. He employed nine cameras, some placed in the audience, others overhead, and another set in the rear of the stage. The wide shots allow for a fuller theatrical experience. The spare, evocative set design of David Korins and stunning choreography of Andy Blankenbuehler stand out as central elements of the musical. The large two-story wooden scaffold with coils of nautical ropes and pulleys hanging in front of the brick wall underscores America being built from its foundation and how Hamilton and other immigrants came by ship. The film accentuates even more the physicality of the ensemble. Actors move above the stage, descend onto the platform, and stand on a turn-table-floor, offering the musical more expressive complexity to the subtext. Alex Lacamoire’s score, blending the rhythms of hip-hop, rock, and Golden Age Broadway, heightens the audio experience. The film beautifully captures theatre-making at its best, particularly in the final duel scene. The scratchy-rewinding-of-time along with the countdown punctuates Hamilton’s death. Ariana DeBose theatrically heightens this moment when she grabs the invisible bullet that will kill the title character in mid-air and the ensemble freezes in a series of tableaux. As the turntable-floor rotates ever so slightly, the ensemble reenacts flashes of Hamilton’s life in slow-motion. The camera shifts from wide shots to close-ups capturing those moments sometimes not visible to the naked eye. Sitting in the far-off theatre seat, I missed the intensity of the spittle flying from King George III (Jonathan Groff). Now seeing his uptight posture up close against his spittle filled that moment with so much more humor. The wide shots and close up also helps capture the emotional intensity of the conclusion. Towards the end, Eliza speaking [End Page 83] Click for larger view View full resolution Lin-Manuel Miranda is Alexander Hamilton...

САЙТ-СПЕЦИФИЧЕСКАЯ АРТ-ПРАКТИКА КАК АЛЬТЕРНАТИВНЫЙ ФОРМАТ ТЕАТРАЛЬНОГО ИСКУССТВА

The author of the article attempts to identify and distinguish traditional and alternative formats of theatre art established by the early 20s in the space of home theatre. The author considers the determinants of the emergence and spread of art practices in the domestic theatre art and refers them to the alternative formats of theatre art. The culture of complicity (participation), producer strategies of postdramatism and digitalization of daily occurrence are presented as fundamental grounds for the emergence of such a non-classical creative model as a site-specific art practice in the landscape of Russian theatre art of the XXIst century. The unstable dynamics of the attractiveness of the non-classical creative model in the Russian theatre space is caused by a number of reasons explicitly presented in the article. The accumulated home theatre experience is developing and being realized by the early 20s in traditional and alternative formats of theatre art, which simultaneously influence each other. The actualization of site-specific art practice is evaluated by the author as a positive phenomenon that allows to update and to expand the arsenal of producer strategies, to discover an innovative approach to creating an aesthetic event, to transform the audience participation within the framework of home theatre art and the culture of participation.

2001-2021, duas décadas da Brigada Nacional de Teatro do MST Patativa do Assaré: ressonâncias, desafios e interfaces com o trabalho teatral da Educação do Campo

O artigo analisa a experiência de duas décadas de atuação da Brigada Nacional de Teatro do MST em comunidades camponesas de diversos estados brasileiros, por meio das metodologias da observação participante, da revisão bibliográfica e da pesquisa qualitativa O trabalho evidencia as tradições do teatro político e popular que ensejam a experiência teatral do MST. Um dos resultados da pesquisa é destacar que a peculiar dinâmica de produção e circulação da Brigada teve desdobramentos em universidades públicas, nas Licenciaturas em Educação do Campo, demonstrando o potencial de construção de uma cultura política contra-hegemônica.
 Palavras-chave: teatro do oprimido, MST, cultura política, educação do campo.
 
 2001-2021, two decades of the National Theater Brigade of the MST Patativa do Assaré: resonances, challenges and interfaces with the theatrical work of Rural Education
 ABSTRACT. The article analyzes the experience of two decades of work by the MST National Theater Brigade in peasant communities in several Brazilian states, through the methodologies of participant observation, literature review and qualitative research. The work highlights the traditions of popular and political theater that give rise to the theatrical experience of the MST. One of the results of the research is to highlight that the peculiar dynamics of production and circulation of the Brigade had consequences in public universities, in the Degrees in Rural Education, demonstrating the potential for building a counter-hegemonic political culture.
 Keywords: theater of the oppressed, MST, political culture, rural education.
 
 2001-2021, dos décadas de la Brigada Nacional de Teatro del MST Patativa do Assaré: resonancias, desafíos e interfaces con el trabajo teatral de Educación del Campo
 RESUMEN. El artículo analiza la experiencia de dos décadas de trabajo de la Brigada Nacional de Teatro MST en comunidades campesinas de varios estados brasileños, a través de las metodologías de observación participante, revisión de literatura e investigación cualitativa. El trabajo destaca las tradiciones del teatro popular y político que dan origen a la experiencia teatral del MST. Uno de los resultados de la investigación es resaltar que la peculiar dinámica de producción y circulación de la Brigada tuvo consecuencias en las universidades públicas, en los Grados en Educación Rural, demostrando el potencial para construir una cultura política contra hegemónica.
 Palabras clave: teatro del oprimido, MST, cultura política, educación del campo.

Technological advancements in Indian cinema

Indian cinema has grown as a powerful medium of communication in India and all over the world. It has grown immensely technologically over a period of time. This technological advancement has changed the theatrical experience of masses moving towards digital from celluloid. There is a lot of confusion among the masses about the technological advancements that are taking place in the Indian cinema these days especially in literary form: conceptualization of celluloid & digital film making technologies. People are not aware of the basic facts of celluloid or single screen cinema and digital or electronic cinema. Many researches have been done about the marketing strategies of Indian cinema but technological facet is still untouched. To explore the technological up-gradation and changes in Indian cinema this researcher paper tries to summarize the basic traits of both the technologies which will help in knowing the technological advancements in a better and conceptual way.

Katarzis és fenséges: a színházi állam utópiája

In our study we propose a phenomenological interpretation of theatrical catharsis basing our analyses on the phenomenology of the sublime. In a first step we investigate the relation between hermeneutics and phenomenology in the description of theatrical experience. We then propose to enlarge the postdramatic and poststructuralist approaches of theatre, in which the criticism of language and drama plays a central role, through an analysis of affectivity. This step makes it possible to sketch out a phenomenological interpretation of catharsis in which this latter appears as an experience opening up on the archaic dimension of affectivity. These theoretical considerations are then applied in the analysis of Romeo Castellucci’s Orphée et Eurydice.

“Waking Justice”: An @cto on Education

“Waking Justice”: An @cto on Education Daniel Morales Morales (bio) “Waking Justice” is inspired by the work of Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino as well as Augusto Boal work around Theatre of the Oppressed. Actos that are part of El Teatro Campesino, like the ones in Valdez’s Early Works: Actos, Bernabé and Pensamiento Serpentino (1990), are not only art but social activism, and a key tool to challenge the status quo and advocate for change. According to Valdez (1971), the acto has five goals: “inspire the audience to social action, illuminate specific points about social problems, satirize the opposition, show or hint at a solution, and express what people are thinking” (6). This @cto was created during a series of workshops with middle and high schoolers who were part of an after-school theater class that collaborated with undergraduates, a graduate student, and a faculty member in creating and performing art. I refer to this piece as an @cto instead of an acto since its multiple versions were created online after receiving feedback from the students who authored part of the script and those who performed the @ cto on stage. This collective aspect helped the intergenerational artists of this @cto create work that included multiple experiences in educational spaces. The Latinx Theatre Project The Latinx Theatre Project was a collaborative theater experience that brought together undergraduates in the Spanish and Portuguese Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and students involved in the First Generation Youth Program in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Dr. Kristie Soares, the instructor for the class, created a collaboration in the Fall of 2017 to immerse the undergraduates and the young performers in Latinx art pedagogies, divided into three units: Theatre of the Oppressed, the Nuyorican Poetry Movement, and El Teatro Campesino. The first third of the semester was spent mostly building community among the undergraduates and understanding the sociohistorical context of the Latinx community in western Massachusetts. During the second third of the semester, we started to collaborate with the young performers from First Generation. In the last third of the semester, we worked together with the youth as an ensemble to create and stage [End Page 232] performance pieces in the style of the Latinx art pedagogies that were centered in the partnership. For the whole semester, we not only trained to facilitate Latinx theater exercises as part of our social justice practice but also learned and practiced concrete skills in theater arts, such as writing, performing, and set design. For our final performance at Teatro Vida, in Springfield, we shared with the audience our Nuyorican-style spoken word collage, a rhythm poem combining Nuyorican poetry and Theatre of the Oppressed, a video of our creative process, and “Waking Justice,” our @cto written in the style of El Teatro Campesino. The first element used in our process of creation was Theatre of the Oppressed. Augusto Boal’s work offered us an embodiment of Freirean concepts that can be deployed in the classroom in a novel, engaging, and empowering way. Central to Boal’s ideas is what he terms a “spect-actor” (2002, 243), which means there is not a distinction between actors and spectators; we all have the ability to observe critically and act upon our analysis. As a result, the spectator becomes “spect-actor”—an element of the theatrical performance that both views and actively participates in and co-constructs the course of events, its actions, and outcomes. Boal’s concept of a spectactor is very closely related to Paulo Freire’s concept of “praxis”—the unification of theory and practice and “generative terms”—topics that participants generate which are used as centerpieces of student-centered curriculum (Freire 1970). Rather than talking about the issues affecting Latinx students in schools, the spectactors interacted and manipulated dramatized representations of codified generative themes. In the case of “Waking Justice,” the characters illuminated the disproportionate punishment of students of color in schools, the lack of caring from a predominantly white teacher population, and the focus on a Eurocentric curriculum and standardized testing. The solutions are for the audience to decide, but there is a clear indication for teachers to learn from students, to listen to them...

ЛИБРЕТТО С.П. ШЕВЫРЕВА ПО БАЛЛАДЕ В.А. ЖУКОВСКОГО (ОПЕРА А.Н. ВЕРСТОВСКОГО «ВАДИМ, ИЛИ ПРОБУЖДЕНИЕ ДВЕНАДЦАТИ СПЯЩИХ ДЕВ»)

The article focuses on the history of S.P. Shevyryov’s work on the libretto for A.N. Verstovsky’s opera Vadim, or The Awakening of the Twelve Sleeping Maidens, staged in Moscow in 1832. Shevyryov’s parody-polemic rendition of V.A. Zhukovsky’s ballad reflected his Italian theatrical experiences. The changes introduced by the librettist to the ballad plot were not accepted by Verstovsky, who rejected Shevyryov’s composition. The article reviews the sources on the texts from Shevyryov’s libretto, which has not been preserved in its entirety.

L’unica risposta è la prossima domanda. L’esperienza teatrale e il suo mistero: conversazione fra Denis Diderot e Carmelo Rifici

This interview with Carmelo Rifici, Drama School Director of the Piccolo Teatro di Milano and award-winning theatrical director, discuss on the relationship between some thesis of theatrical aesthetics of the 18th century philosophe Denis Diderot, enclosed in their most complete way in the work Paradox of the actor, and the contemporary reflection on theatre, but also the practice of acting itself. How much does Diderot's thought still question and stimulate the debate on the experience of theatre in its various themes? Without neglecting the contents of this thought, on which 20th century theatre has been questioned a lot and which also emerge in all their facets and possible developments in the interview, during the interesting conversation with Rifici it appears that the true modernity of diderotian reflection and its still generating force today, lies in its asystematic character, in the search for paradox, for perennial question, as a fundamental element for preserving the theatre and its mystery. It is necessary asking others and themselves questions rather than defining solutions, to restore the theatrical experience, which is the experience of an event, in all its complexity, in diderotian theatrical theory as well as in modern acting practice.

Uma relação dialógica entre o universo literário e músico-teatral na obra de Cordel “Fogo Encantado”

A literatura de cordel, profundamente inserida no mundo da vida do homem nordestino, se constitui hoje em uma tradição cultural tão forte e arraigada que marca a sua identidade, de forma indelével. Historicamente considerada uma herança portuguesa o presente artigo é um estudo comparativo dialógico entre o cordel do Brasil e o cordel de Portugal e suas influências nos movimentos artísticos, tendo como objeto de pesquisa na cultura brasileira o grupo cordelista Cordel do Fogo Encantado, apresentando uma reflexão sobre a adaptação da cultura popular de nosso país a favor da cultura progressiva e a estética da oralidade como experiência da teatralidade aliada a uma musicalidade moldada por/para essa experiência teatral.

Perceived Effects of Improv on Psychological Wellbeing: A Qualitative Study

ABSTRACT Early studies suggest improvisational theater (when combined with psychotherapeutic elements) may be an effective tool for addressing mental health. Despite this preliminary evidence, and some experimental studies, there has been no in-depth empirical exploration of the experience of psychological processes influenced by improv without additional explicitly psychotherapeutic content. We interviewed participants (n = 9) with at least two years’ experience of improvised theater using a semi-structured interview schedule. Using thematic analysis, we generated 3 themes: Improv’s values and activities support growth in improvisers’ outlook; Improv contributes to a change in the nature of focus of attention; and The internal effects of improv have external consequences. We discuss how these findings suggest that improv may be beneficial for mental health, and that the processes identified in this study may play a part in treatments incorporating improv. The values, activities and relational aspects of improv and psychotherapy, in particular, are highlighted.

“Space Plague”: an investigation into immersive theatre and narrative transportation effects in informal pandemic science education

Stories are fundamental to human history, culture and development. Immersive theatre has created a landscape where participants have agency within stories, and within this landscape the concept of narrative transportation provides a framework where change within stories creates change in real life. “Space Plague” is a co-designed, fully immersive theatrical experience for young people and families about a fictional pandemic. It was developed using community-based participatory action research (CBPAR) employing a novel model for engaging underserved and under-represented audiences, “SCENE”. Results confirmed that indications of narrative transportation effects were achieved, demonstrating enhanced learning and understanding alongside changing attitudes and indicated positive change when negotiating the COVID-19 crisis.

OS PRIMEIROS PROCESSOS CRIATIVOS DE BOB WILSON E SUAS RELAÇÕES COM UMA INFÂNCIA LIVRE

O presente ensaio busca refletir como os trabalhos iniciais de Bob Wilson relacionam-se com a ideia de uma infância livre e criadora – contrapondo-se àquela que é cerceada, guiada, induzida ou silenciada pela figura de um adulto, como pontua Hannah Arendt (2003). Para tanto, buscou-se uma intersecção de algumas reflexões sobre a infância presentes em Marina Machado (2010a; 2010b; 2013; 2014; 2016), Manuel Sarmento (2002; 2008), Hannah Arendt (2003) e Jorge Larossa (1988), dentre outros, com as primeiras experiências teatrais de Wilson, no início de 1970. Palavras-chavesBob Wilson. Teatro. Infância. Criança. Poéticas de Criação.

Nomadic Performativity as an Aesthetic Alternative to Communal Acts of Resistance: Dreis Verhoeven’s ‘No Man’s Land’, Brett Bailey’s ‘Sanctuary’ & Akira Takayama’s ‘Piraeus/Heterotopia’ as Case Studies

The present paper is mainly concerned with the question of “how can a performative situation be established and negotiated outside the walls of a theatre?” To this cause, this study argues for the potential of the ever-expanding notion of Nomadic Performativity, its new artistic disciplines and sporadic insights through a selected milieu of recent non-representational performative ambulatory performances: Dries Verhoeven’s No Man's Land (2014), Brett Bailey’s Sanctuary (2017), and Akira Takayama’s Piraeus / Heterotopia (2017). Framing the way each nomadic performance establishes its performative strategy, the study draws on Gilles Deleuze's and Felix Guattari's 'Spatial Nomadic' theory as a methodological tool to investigate whether the productions at hand can truly essay a new way of 'thinking through practice' , and can sincerely provide an alternative mode of political debate and communal resistance to exclusionary practices and nationalist prejudices of the nation – states against migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. The study reaches the conclusion that the case studies under question disintegrate the notion of space as the physical framework for holding the theatrical experience; illustrate the interconnectedness between the sphere of 'practice' and the sphere of 'thinking'; act as dramaturgical enquiries, reflective practices, ongoing assessments, and genuine articulations of one's relationship to place; and provide a qualitative shift of consciousness that attunes to the mobile spirit of the age.

"I Know That It's Something That's Creating a Bond": Fathers' Experiences of Participating in Baby Theater With Their Infants in South Africa.

In many African countries, particularly those with largely patriarchal societies like South Africa, promoting father-child interaction can pose a challenge. An informative medium that could potentially encourage active participation in pleasurable interactions between fathers and babies may prove to be an important way in which to stimulate fathers' awareness of their infants' abilities. A Cape Town based theater company created the first ever South African baby play for care-givers and their babies between the ages of 2 weeks to 12 months. The play is performed in a contained, relaxing space and offers carers and babies time to relate to each other in a pleasurable atmosphere, while specially trained actors model sensitive and responsive interactions. Baby Theater could be a way to encourage fathers' involvement with their infants, however, no research is currently available documenting fathers' perceptions about Baby Theater experience.Aim: To explore fathers' experience of participating in Baby Theater.Method: This qualitative study involved six fathers who, with their infants, participated in the Baby Theater production. A week later the fathers were divided into two focus groups to give them the opportunity to discuss their thoughts about the experience and to reflect on whether it had any subsequent impact on their interactions with their babies. The audiotaped, transcribed material was thematically analyzed using an interpretative phenomenological approach.Results: The fathers described the experience as educative and enjoyable. They reported that the program had a positive impact on the way they interacted with their infants and also positively influenced their relationship with them. Additionally, they reported feeling more confident about coping with their babies on their own, and appreciated the connection with the other fathers in the group. Cultural, societal, and gender issues were also considered.Conclusions: The subjective experience of the fathers was positive. Further research is needed to assess the lasting effects of the Baby Theater experience.

Developing Performative Competence and Teacher Artistry: A Pedagogical Imperative in the Multicultural Classroom

Author(s): Bellezza, Annamaria | Abstract: Teaching performatively is an art that must be honed and developed through sustained practice. In this paper, I explore the theoretical considerations of a performative-humanistic approach to second language acquisition and the practical applications for a performance-based pedagogy, which is meant to offer readers an occasion to reflect on what it means to prepare students to become reflective and critical performers on the world stage. Particular attention is placed on the unique roles teachers play, and the responsibilities inherent in those roles. The paper is also an invitation to revisit existing approaches and practices through a performative lens engaging in a dynamic interdisciplinary dialogue, reflecting on the aesthetic dimension of language learning, and exploring the potential of the theatrical experience in the construction of a Self able to represent, perceive, create, and reflect.

Scenarios from the margin: Narratives of adolescents and adults about their theatre experience in contexts of social exclusion in Santiago, Chile

This article problematizes the notion of ‘transformation’ in socially engaged theatre practice. A more nuanced understanding of the impact of theatre practice in marginal contexts is constructed from narrative analysis of the theatre workshop experiences of adolescents in a rights reparation program and men serving long prison sentences. In these contexts of double exclusion (poverty combined with the condition of being prisoners and homeless or violated adolescents), the participants’ long-term remembrances make constant reference to the theatre experience having signified a transit from one space or place to another. The theatre space was identified as a place of discovery, a place of validation and a place of relocation. Their theatre experience drew meaning from its implicit contrast to their everyday reality. It was a place they decided to make their own, because within it they truly experienced feelings of wellbeing not present in the marginal spaces they were inhabiting.

TÖRTÉNETIETLEN VÍZIÓ A TÖRTÉNELEMRŐL PETŐFI SÁNDOR: TIGRIS ÉS HIÉNA

Petőfi egyetlen befejezett drámája nem tartozik a szerző népszerű és gyakran emlegetett művei közé. Nem is vált az életmű integráns részévé az értelmezése: Horváth János nagymonográfiájában is alig néhány elmarasztaló szó jut ennek a darabnak, amelyek inkább az írói kudarcot akarják érthetővé tenni. Horváth szavai – bármennyire igazak is – alapvetően az olvasmányként értett színművek kritériumai felől vannak megfogalmazva, s nem a dráma színpadi létmódja felől. Pedig attól, hogy egy darab ilyen típusú szövegalkotással jellemezhető, még lehet működőképes alapanyaga egy előadásnak. Kétségtelen, drámája nélkülözte azt a kreatív színpadi recepciót, amely igazolhatta volna ennek a nyilván formabontó formanyelvnek a létjogosultságát. Ám ez nem jelenti azt, hogy Petőfinek ezen műnemben tett írói kirándulásait ne kellene komolyan venni. S hogy elfelejthetnők Petőfi gyakorlati színházi tapasztalatainak a számontartását a darab elemzésekor.

Saint-Saëns and Sophocles

Saint-Saëns's incidental music for Sophocles’ Antigone (Comédie-Française, 1893, trans. Meurice and Vacquerie) gives witness both to his engagement with culture classique and an experimental orientation in the context of fin-de-siècle music theatre. This essay situates Saint-Saëns's highly idiosyncratic score within the frame of late nineteenth-century research into ancient Greek music by François-Auguste Gevaert and Louis-Albert Bourgault-Ducoudray. It documents how Saint-Saëns aimed to participate in the creation of an authentic experience of ancient Greek theatre, one enhanced by the initiative of the Comédie-Française to stage its production at the open air Théâtre d'Orange in southern France. The article also shows the limitations of authenticity resulting from the nature of the translation as well as from Saint-Saëns's own compositional instincts.

Faculty development review: Improving learning in the operating theatre.

Undergraduate medical students' time is precious, and with increasingly limited exposure to surgery, learning at every opportunity needs to be facilitated. The operating theatre is a unique classroom and factors related to this environment could impact on learning opportunities. We aim to help surgical faculty overcome these barriers and develop the operating theatre's potential as a learning environment. Reports in the literature frequently mention the emotional aspects of attending theatre and trying to fit in with the surgical team, and often report negative feelings such as feeling unwelcome. Students also report feeling confused about what they should be hoping to learn from their theatre experience, and what their role is in theatre. We suggest ways in which surgical faculty can help the student fit into the theatre environment and hope that this will improve undergraduate surgical education and enthusiasm for surgery.

Camilla Stevens, Aquí and Allá: Transnational Dominican Theater and Performance

Camilla Stevens’s book Aqui and Allá: Transnational Dominican Theater and Performance focuses on the transnational experience of Dominican theatre and performance artists both on the island and in the United States. Stevens analyses how theatre becomes the ideal space from which to understand the precise dilemmas faced by Dominicans on and off the island.