Notes, Chapter 16

NOTES (I apparently did not post this, so here goes)

Chapter 16: Contemporary Trends

I.                    The Dawning of a New Century

a.       Worldwide issues affected theatre in the late 20^th century

                                                              i.      AIDS

                                                            ii.      Genocide

                                                          iii.      Religious conservatism

                                                           iv.      War on terror

II.                  Today’s Theater: Diversity and Eclecticism

a.       Diversity

                                                              i.      Many different forms of theatre available in multiple translations, and to multiple groups of people in different locations worldwide

b.      Eclecticism

                                                              i.      Contemporary theatre covers such a variety of topics and reminisces on so many different events of the past.

c.       Asian American Theatre

                                                              i.      Moved on in the late 20^th century from being cast solely as stereotypes

                                                            ii.      East West Players in L.A. founded in 1965, P.A.R.T. in 1977, Asian Exclusion Act in 1973

                                                          iii.      Groups focused on putting on plays that were from Asian heritage or written by Asian-Americans.

                                                           iv.      1980—Song for a Nisea Fisherman, 1988—M. Butterfly

d.      Hispanic Theatre

                                                              i.      Three Groups

1.       Chicano Theatre

2.       Cuban American Theatre

3.       Puerto Rican/Nuyorican Theatre

                                                            ii.      Some plays written in Spanish, though most are in English

                                                          iii.      Often grew out of the labor protests with Cesar Chavez, etc.

                                                           iv.      El Teatro Campesino, Teatro de la Gente, Teatro de la Esperanza

                                                             v.      Zoot Suit (1978), Roosters (1987)

                                                           vi.      Nilo Cruz won the Pultizer Prize for Anna in the Tropics.

e.      Native American Theatre

                                                              i.      American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1972 allowed for more religious dances/ceremonies

                                                            ii.      Led to an awareness and then emergence of “Native American Theatre”

                                                          iii.      Spiderwoman Theatre: Feminist AND Native American, longest running in North America, since 1975

                                                           iv.      Theater has separated from the historical and ceremonial significances.

                                                             v.      Playwrights: Diane Glancy, Bruce King, William F. Yellow Robe, Jr.

f.        Feminist Theatre

                                                              i.      Main goals to question gender roles and the place of women in society

                                                            ii.      Maria Irene Fornes: Fefu and Her Friends (1977)

                                                          iii.      Feminist theater companies have sometimes teamed up with gay theater groups (i.e., Belle Reprieve)

                                                           iv.      Rachel Crothers: earlier playwright who paved the way for feminist theater

g.       Gay and Lesbian Theatre

                                                              i.      Lesbian/Feminist Theatre sometimes interchangeable, but Gay theatre is its own movement.

                                                            ii.      First presentation of gay life through theatre was The Boys in the Band (1968) by Mart Crowley

1.       While celebrated for the milestone in gay theatre, this play is often criticized for painting a false and exaggerated view of gay life and people.

                                                          iii.       Angels in America, The Normal Heart, Take Me Out, The Ritz

h.      Performance Art

                                                              i.      Performance art is experimental theatre that initially incorporated elements of dance and the visual arts. Nowadays, most of the productions are based upon the vision of a single performer or director, and is often the form of an autobiographical monologue.

                                                            ii.      Example: Eric Bogosian (WUASTC)

i.        Postmodernism

                                                              i.      SEE---POSTMODERNISM---NOTES

j.        International Trends

                                                              i.      Previous notes apply mainly to USA, but theatre is flourishing in other areas of the world, including but not limited to:

1.       African Theatre/Drama

2.       Middle Eastern Drama

3.       Asian Theatre

a.       TADASHI SUZUKI

4.       Alternative European Theatre

III.                Today and Tomorrow: A Look Ahead

a.       Digital Theatre

b.      Theater has SHIFTED, not suffered.

c.       Lot of making the audience re-examine thoughts they have/had