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Theatre History

There’s so much to be learned from history, and theatre is no exception. If you’re looking to dive into theatre’s past, the Theatre History Podcast is the perfect place to start.

The Latest

Black Patience: Performance, Civil Rights, and the Unfinished Project of Emancipation
Video
Black Patience: Performance, Civil Rights, and the Unfinished Project of Emancipation
A talk with Dr. Julius Fleming on his latest book, followed by a discussion with Hillary Miller
Monday 11 March 2024
Opening the Channel with Masi Asare
Podcast
Opening the Channel with Masi Asare
by Masi Asare, Leticia Ridley, Jordan Ealey
28 February 2024
Towards a Sustainable Theatre Model
Essay
Towards a Sustainable Theatre Model
by Scott Walters, Munroe Shearer
27 February 2024
Theatre History Podcast # 18
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 18

Dr. Charlotte Canning on Internationalism and US Theatre

16 January 2017

Michael Lueger interviews Dr. Charlotte Canning on her new book and US theatre artists in the mid-twentieth century who shared their work abroad.

Elyse Dodgson on Sarah Kane
Essay

Elyse Dodgson on Sarah Kane

“She Was a Pure Writer”

11 January 2017

Interview with Elyse Dodgson, the International Director at the Royal Court Theatre, at the Stanislavsky Electrotheatre in Moscow about her work and relationship with playwright Sarah Kane.

Theatre History Podcast # 17
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 17

Dr. Anita Gonzalez Introduces Listeners to 19thcenturyacts.com

9 January 2017

Michael Lueger talks with Dr. Anita Gonzalez about a website that reconstructs historical performances.

Symposium: Heiner Müller’s Discovery of America
Video

Symposium: Heiner Müller’s Discovery of America

Monday 19 December 2016
New York City, NY, United States

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center in New York City presented the symposium Heiner Müller’s Discovery of America livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 19 December. In Twitter, follow @howlroundtv and @segalcenter, and use #howlround to share your thoughts.

Theatre History Podcast # 16
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 16

Exploring the Surprising—and Disturbing—Origins of “Jingle Bells” with Kyna Hamill

19 December 2016

Michael Lueger talks with Dr. Kyna Hamill about her research into the background of the holiday carol "Jingle Bells."

A Celebration of Life for Zelda Fichandler, Arena Stage, October 24, 2016
Essay

A Celebration of Life for Zelda Fichandler, Arena Stage, October 24, 2016

18 December 2016

Remarks by Laura Penn, Teresa Eyring, and Tazewell Thompson at A Celebration of Life for Zelda Fichandler hosted by Arena Stage and the Fichandler family at the Mead Center for American Theater October 24, 2016.

The Fatherkillers
Video

The Fatherkillers

A Debate with Five Polish Women Theatre Directors

Friday 16 December 2016
Paris, France

The Adam Mickiewicz Institute (Poland), Alternatives théâtrales: La revue du théâtre contemporain (Belgium), and Galerie Hus (France) presented The Fatherkillers—a debate with five Polish women theatre directors. Friday 16 December 2016. In Twitter, follow @HowlRoundTV and use #howlround.

A performance of WarSawSirenaF451 at Project Curie City-experimental incubator of art from Warsaw
Video

A performance of WarSawSirenaF451 at Project Curie City-experimental incubator of art from Warsaw

Thursday 15 December 2016
Paris, France

Project Curie City presented a performance of WarSawSirenaF451—scenes by Warsaw women—livestreamed from Paris, France on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 15 December. In Twitter, follow @HowlRoundTV and use #howlround

Theatre History Podcast # 15
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 15

Fiona Coffey on Women in Northern Irish Theatre During The Troubles

12 December 2016

Michael Lueger talks with Fiona Coffey about women theatre artists in Northern Ireland

“For the Love of Originality"
Essay

“For the Love of Originality"

NYMF’s Discussion on Inventing New Stories in Musical Theatre

12 December 2016

Donald Sanborn, III reports on the New York Musical Festival, discussing the landscape of original musicals.

Theatre History Podcast # 14
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 14

David Mandelbaum Talks About New Yiddish Rep’s Revival of God of Vengeance

5 December 2016

Michael Lueger talks with David Mandelbaum about a new production of Sholem Asch’s God of Vengeance.

Honoring Luis Valdez
Essay

Honoring Luis Valdez

2 December 2016

Jose Delgado celebrates Luis Valdez being awarded the National Medal of Arts and reflects on the work they've done together.

They Won’t Remember You
Essay

They Won’t Remember You

Shuffle Along, Revivals, and Reconstructing the Theatrical Past

16 November 2016

Alison Durkee considers the preservation of the theatrical past in a number of ‘reconstructed’ performances or resurrections of ‘lost’ works, such the 2016 production of Shuffle Along, or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed.

Tough and Tender
Essay

Tough and Tender

Lessons from Zelda

15 November 2016

HowlRound Associate Producer Ramona Ostrowski on attending the Remembering Zelda events at Arena Stage and how Zelda Fichandler’s example and words are a balm and a spark to her own work as a theatre practitioner.

Theatre History Podcast # 12
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 12

Music Theory and Musicals with Adam Roberts

15 November 2016

Michael Lueger talks with Adam Roberts about using music theory to better understand the nuances of musical theatre.

Hamilton and 1776 Gave Us America, Just When We Needed It Most
Essay

Hamilton and 1776 Gave Us America, Just When We Needed It Most

12 November 2016

Joel Fishbane examines the politics and patriotism of two hit musicals that deal with early American history.

Edward Albee’s Kindest Character
Essay

Edward Albee’s Kindest Character

11 November 2016

Playwright Jacob Juntunen remembers Edward Albee’s generosity toward other playwrights.

“Pushing Buttons, Pushing Boundaries”
Essay

“Pushing Buttons, Pushing Boundaries”

A Roundtable of Latinx Theatre Scholars

1 November 2016

Carla Della Gatta reports on the second Latina/o Studies Association Conference, sharing insight on conversations on Latinx theatre history and practices within US scholarship.

Theatre & Performance in 1970s NYC: Hillary Miller’s Drop Dead
Video

Theatre & Performance in 1970s NYC: Hillary Miller’s Drop Dead

Monday 31 October 2016
New York City, NY, United States

Martin E. Segal Theatre Center in New York City presented the panel discussion Theatre & Performance in 1970s NYC: Hillary Miller’s Drop Dead livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV at howlround.tv Monday 31 October at 6:30 p.m. EDT (New York) / 3:30 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles) / 5:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 10:30 p.m. GMT/UTC (London) / 23:30 CET (Berlin). Share your thoughts in Twitter with #howlround, and follow @HowlRoundTV for updates.

Theatre History Podcast # 11
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 11

“You Don’t Read Latino”: Discussing the History of Latinx Casting with Brian Eugenio Herrera

31 October 2016

Michael Lueger talks with Brian Herrera about contemporary and historical conversations around casting Latinx characters and actors.

Inside the Culture Wars Maelstrom of the 1990s
Essay

Inside the Culture Wars Maelstrom of the 1990s

30 October 2016

John R. Killacky discusses his time as curator of Performing Arts at Walker Art Center, and the controversy caused by featured works.

Theatre History Podcast # 8
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 8

Fifty Years and Counting: Talking About Chicano Theatre and Political Activism with Jorge Huerta

10 October 2016

Michael Lueger talks with scholar and activist Jorge Huerta.

History Repeats Itself
Essay

History Repeats Itself

Hallie Flanagan in the Twenty-first Century

4 October 2016

Amy Brady interviews Michael Arve about Dangerous Theatre, a piece he’s directing based on Hallie Flanagan’s 1938 testimony to the Special Committee to Investigate Un-American Activities.

Theatre History Podcast # 7
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 7

Getting (Politically) Radical with Amy Brady

3 October 2016

Michael Lueger kicks off a month of interviews about political theatre by talking with Amy Brady about the Federal Theatre Project.

Lorraine Hansberry
Essay

Lorraine Hansberry

Artist, Public Intellectual, Activist, Writer

30 September 2016

In this final #IdentityWeek blog, Julie McGarvie writes about pioneering playwright Lorraine Hansberry.