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Gender

Content here is about theatre works that explicitly address gender or about issues around gender in the field at large. Don’t miss MJ Kaufman’s series Gender Power and Politics or studies on who designs and directs in LORT theatres by pronoun and women’s leadership in LORT theatres. Many of these pieces also take an intersectional approach, such as “We Have Suffered Enough: The Cost of Performing Trauma for Women of Color” and “Let Them Speak: It’s Time to See More Works from Women Writers of Color on Stages Across America.”

The Latest

Beyond the 2 Percent—A Manifesto: Raising the Bar for Womxn Composers
Video
Beyond the 2 Percent—A Manifesto: Raising the Bar for Womxn Composers
Watch as the panel creates and signs a global manifesto demanding immediate change and decolonization in a still deeply entrenched patriarchal field.
Wednesday 7 February 2024
New York City
Who Designs and Directs in LORT Theatres by Pronoun, 2012-2020
Essay
Who Designs and Directs in LORT Theatres by Pronoun, 2012-2020
by Porsche McGovern
6 November 2023
More Cultivation, Less Crane Machine: Who Gets to Design in LORT Theatres
Essay
More Cultivation, Less Crane Machine: Who Gets to Design in LORT Theatres
by Porsche McGovern, Sherrice Mojgani
6 November 2023
Hierarchies of Power
Essay

Hierarchies of Power

Cisgender Playwrights and Trans Characters

28 September 2016

In this #IdentityWeek blog, playwright Basil Kreimendahl discusses the representation of trans characters on stage.

An Opposite is Made Visible by Another /الرجاء النزول لقراءة المقال باللغة العربية
Essay

An Opposite is Made Visible by Another / الرجاء النزول لقراءة المقال باللغة العربية

20 September 2016

A prominent theatre figure in Lebanon and the Arab region, Hanane Hajj Ali reflects in this piece on the personal and professional encounters that have made her the free woman she is today.

Kilroys in the Classroom
Essay

Kilroys in the Classroom

Activism, Databases, and the Life of the Artist

17 September 2016

Students at Ramapo College interview eight of the playwrights on the 2015 Kilroys list for a Contemporary Women Playwrights course.

Submitting Like A Man
Essay

Submitting Like A Man

I Ain’t Afraid of No Female Protagonists

17 September 2016

Mya Kagan writes about two experiences that drove home for her the importance of narratives with female protagonists.

Cover for Feminist Theatre and History.
Feminist Theatre
Essay

Feminist Theatre

What Does it Do and How Does it Do it?

14 September 2016

Holly Derr contemplates how a director can foster a feminist production.

Roe and the American Revolutions Cycle at OSF
Essay

Roe and the American Revolutions Cycle at OSF

Dramatic, Present, and Human

10 September 2016

In this cultural moment of divisiveness, how is one of the true stories of abortion theatricalized? Holly Derr considers Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s co-production of Roe by Lisa Loomer. 

Notes from the Skybridge Production of Romeo and Juliet
Essay

Notes from the Skybridge Production of Romeo and Juliet

9 September 2016

In this installment, Briandaniel Oglesby shares updates leading up to the performance of his students’ queer adaptation of Romeo & Juliet.

On Directing Andrea Dworkin's Aftermath
Essay

On Directing Andrea Dworkin's Aftermath

4 September 2016

Tracey Houston and Rob Langford, founders of Montréal company Waterworks, describe their experience working on the play Aftermath by Andrea Dworkin. Immediately following is a reflection by Helena Levitt who performed in Aftermath.

Missing Voices and Misogyny in Shakespeare Theatre Company’s All-Male Shrew
Essay

Missing Voices and Misogyny in Shakespeare Theatre Company’s All-Male Shrew

29 August 2016

Maegan Clearwood on the all-male production of Taming of the Shrew, directed by Ed Sylvanus Iskandar at the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, DC.

Changing the Script for Women Directors
Essay

Changing the Script for Women Directors

Diane Paulus and Liesl Tommy

24 August 2016

Carey Purcell talks to Diane Paulus and Liesl Tommy about all women creative teams.

The Women’s Leadership Conference at American Conservatory Theater and The Wellesley Centers for Women
Video

The Women’s Leadership Conference at American Conservatory Theater and The Wellesley Centers for Women

Monday 22 August 2016
San Fransisco, CA, United States

American Conservatory Theater and The Wellesley Centers for Women presented the opening session of the Women’s Leadership Conference livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from San Francisco on Monday 22 August at 10 a.m.-12 p.m. PDT (San Francisco) / 12 p.m.-2 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 1 p.m.-3 p.m. EDT (New York) / 17:00-19:00 GMT / 6 p.m.-8 p.m. BST (London). Follow @ACTSanFrancisco@HowlRoundTV and share your thoughts using #ACTWLC and #howlround.

Women’s Leadership
Essay

Women’s Leadership

Research Results and Recommendations

21 August 2016

The American Conservatory Theater with Wellesley Centers for Women present findings on a three-year study on the gender equity of leadership opportunities in the nonprofit American theater.

The Women of Summer
Essay

The Women of Summer

7 August 2016

Carey Purcell looks at female artistic leadership of summer companies at New York Stage and Film, the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, and Williamstown Theatre Festival.

Feminism and Femininity in Broadway’s Waitress
Essay

Feminism and Femininity in Broadway’s Waitress

2 August 2016

Danielle Feder responds to the critical reception of the Broadway show Waitress.

What Is a Feminist Play, Anyway?
Essay

What Is a Feminist Play, Anyway?

Getting Specific

1 August 2016

Playwright Catherine Castellani kicks off a series investigating what makes a work of theatre feminist. 

Submitting Like A Man
Essay

Submitting Like A Man

Happy Manniversary to Me

30 July 2016

Mya Kagan examines how taking on the persona of Max has impacted the way she communicates. 

Taking Responsibility for the Plot
Essay

Taking Responsibility for the Plot

27 July 2016

P. Carl on transitioning, frames of whiteness, and taking control of the plot.

On the Normalization of Queer-themed Theatre
Essay

On the Normalization of Queer-themed Theatre

21 July 2016

Playwright John J. Caswell, Jr. meditates on the trajectory of queer theatre, and the tendency to normalize the form.

Do Playwrights Share the Blame for Abuse?
Essay

Do Playwrights Share the Blame for Abuse?

19 July 2016

Neal Reynolds discusses how a play's subject matter may increase the potential for an abusive production process.

Don’t Blame Pregnancy for Shuffle Along Closing
Essay

Don’t Blame Pregnancy for Shuffle Along Closing

18 July 2016

Catherine M. Young reflects on the closing of the musical Shuffle Along. 

The Monologue Parity Project
Essay

The Monologue Parity Project

How and Why I Decided to Tackle the Issue of Parity in Modern Theatre

16 July 2016

Madeline Easley describes how an assignment inspired her to create a platform where people can share stories and write monologues.

Blasting The Bachelors
Essay

Blasting The Bachelors

Feminism and Cole Theatre’s Latest Production

12 July 2016

Andrew Bailes on the critical reception of The Bachelors, written by Caroline V. McGraw and directed by Erica Weiss in Chicago, Illinois. 

The World Premiere of Oreo, Carrot, Danger; A Play of Rituals
Video

The World Premiere of Oreo, Carrot, Danger; A Play of Rituals

Friday 8 July at 2016
San Francisco, CA, United States

FaultLine Theater in San Francisco presented the world premiere of Oreo, Carrot, Danger; a play of rituals, by Nayia Kuvetakis, livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at HowlRound.TV on Friday 8 July at 7:30 p.m. PDT (San Francisco) / 9:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 10:30 p.m. EDT (New York) / 23:30 GMT (London). Follow @howlroundtv and #howlround in Twitter for updates.  

Finding Our Way in a World of Gender Fluidity
Essay

Finding Our Way in a World of Gender Fluidity

8 July 2016

Artistic Director Brianna Smith discusses gender fluidity and advocates the need for creating more opportunities transgender, gender-queer, androgynous, and other non-binary actors.

Gender Responsive Casting
Essay

Gender Responsive Casting

29 June 2016

Meg Greene explores the casting process as a socially responsible practice that considers and values gender identity.