Theatre History

Producer Tobi Kyeremateng and poet/writer Roger Robinson talk about Black writers in the UK, creative citizenship, activism in the arts, and more.

Amy Steiger reflects on some of the classic acting texts—which are overwhelmingly written by cis white men and use colonialist, binary, and patriarchal language and narratives—and how teachers should be approaching them today.

Tara Brooke Watkins discusses how Oklahoma! has shaped the state’s cultural identity, the Tulsa Race Massacre, and Spinning Plates’s production of the musical with an all-black cast.

Todd London celebrates one of the most prolific and prominent Latino playwrights in America, Octavio Solis.

Roxanna Myhrum looks at the history of the iconic puppet show Punch and Judy and Sarah Nolen’s feminist adaptation of it, Judy Save the Day.

Holly L. Derr looks at the history of the Method, where it deviates from Stanislavsky’s System, and the connection between the Method and the behavior called out by #MeToo.

Herbert Siguenza, co-founder of the Latino performance troupe Culture Clash, talks about his unconventional writing path, his time working with the collective, and finding his unique voice.

Anne Hamburger, founder of En Garde Arts, talks about the beginnings of her company, and, with it, the beginnings of site-specific theatre in New York City.

Mischeck Mzumara looks at the fearful realities of political involvement in Malawian theatre throughout history.

Mihaela Drăgan looks at the way Roma are and have been portrayed in theatre in Romania and how Romani artists are working to reclaim their stories.

Ākea Kahikina traces the geneology of hana keaka (Hawaiian theatre), and muses on the future of the theatrical form.

Kiki Rivera talks about the importance of telling stories from underrepresented communities in Hawai‘i’s theatrical landscape.

Kau‘i Kaina writes about combining her love of theatre with her desire to be part of the Hawaiian language and cultural revitalization. 

Kaliko Baker looks at how hanakeaka—Hawaiian medium theatre—has had a huge impact in the Hawaiian language revitalization movement.

Andres Osorio reflects on the fact that as a student of playwriting, he was never once assigned a play by a Latinx writer.

Professor Matthew McMahan talks about the importance of understanding comedy’s theatrical history: how it has evolved, what it says about a society, and why the genre shouldn’t be forgotten in the American theatre.

Gaven Trinidad examines the recent exhibition Dance We Must: Treasures from Jacob’s Pillow and wrestles with cultural appropriation vs. cultural appreciation when it comes to costume design throughout history.