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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
Pulp Ibsen
Essay

Pulp Ibsen

What’s Your Fantasy?

9 September 2015

In the second installment of his series, Jake Rosenberg traces elements of the Fantasy genre throughout theatre history and proposes more content for adults.

The American Musical in Black and White
Essay

The American Musical in Black and White

How race relations in the United States directly affected the development of musical theatre

5 September 2015

A brief history of the American musical through America’a racial history, from blackface and minstrel shows, to vaudeville and the Golden Age.

Pulp Ibsen
Essay

Pulp Ibsen

Vive Le Genre!

26 August 2015

In the first installment of his series, Jake Rosenberg calls for a genre theatre that embraces the fantastic and counters Realism.

History of Revivals
Essay

History of Revivals

12 August 2015

In the first installment of his series “Strange Eventful History,” Michael Lueger traces the history of theatre revivals in relation to revivals of film franchises.

The Reduta Theatre
Essay

The Reduta Theatre

Grotowski’s Forgotten Model

7 August 2015

Scholar Cole Matson explores the influence of the Reduta Theatre in Poland on Jerzy Grotowski and the Polish experimental theatre tradition.

What is Media Design?
Essay

What is Media Design?

5 August 2015

In the first installment of his series on media design, Daniel Fine defines media design and traces the history of design and technology in theatre.

Does Size Matter?
Essay

Does Size Matter?

25 January 2015

Seth Rozin says let large theatres do what they do best—be large—and encourage playwrights to cultivate relationships with mid-size and small theatres.

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50 Years: An Abridged History of Actors Theatre of Louisville at the Humana Festival
Video

50 Years: An Abridged History of Actors Theatre of Louisville at the Humana Festival

Sunday 23 March 2014
Louisville, KY, United States

Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville presented the conversation 50 Years: An Abridged History of Actors Theatre of Louisville livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 23 March at 9 a.m. PDT/ 11 a.m. CDT/ 12 noon EDT/ 16:00 GMT.

 

Photo from The House of Connelly.
The Group Theatre, Revisited
Essay

The Group Theatre, Revisited

6 February 2014

Jonathan Mandell writes about the NYC-based ReGroup Theater, and their exploration of the Group Theatre, founded by Harold Clurman, Cheryl Crawford and Lee Strasberg

Photo of a broken plate.
Antipermanence
Essay

Antipermanence

An Argument for Increased Infrastructural Ephemerality in America’s Nonprofit Theaters

26 January 2014

In her essay, Annah Feinberg investigates infrastructural ephemerality in America's nonprofit theatre.

Three people on a panel.
Homer’s Trojan War on Boston Stages
Essay

Homer’s Trojan War on Boston Stages

4 August 2013

Kyna Hamill investigates the implications of addressing war on stage and shares a brief overview of Theatre of War.

A portrait of Zelda Fichandler.
Address to the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society in Celebration of the Third Annual Zelda Fichandler Award
Essay

Address to the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society in Celebration of the Third Annual Zelda Fichandler Award

14 November 2011

Theatre should stop serving the function of making money, for which it has never been and never will be suited, and start serving the revelation and shaping of the process of living, for which it is uniquely suited, for which it, indeed, exists.

Four actors onstage in a play.
How Going Local Can Revitalize American Theatre
Essay

How Going Local Can Revitalize American Theatre

24 August 2011

Marshall Botvinick traces the history of theatre’s connection to community and advocates that theatre artists and companies to go local.

Translating Laughter
Essay

Translating Laughter

A Cabaret from the Terezín Ghetto

6 April 2011

Lisa Peschel considers her experience adapting a comedic play written by survivors of the Holocaust and the way in which its humor translates to audiences today.

daytime rooftop view of the city of cluj, romania
Exploring the Multiple Identities of Cluj
Series

Exploring the Multiple Identities of Cluj

This city series explores the strong history, diversity, and theatrical heritage of Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

a graphic of William Shakespeare with headphones and a microphone; the theatre history podcast logo
Theatre History Podcast
Series

Theatre History Podcast

This podcast aims to introduce listeners to the artists, scholars, and archivists who are working to bring the history of performance to life.

Strange Eventful History by Michael Lueger
Series

Strange Eventful History by Michael Lueger

Michael Lueger dissects different topics from theatrical history.

Pulp Ibsen
Series

Pulp Ibsen

Often deemed unable to compete with the “serious” storytelling capabilities of Realism, this series discusses the rich history of genre theatre.