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Decker Dissertation 6.22.13.pdf (516.59 KB)

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Theatrical Spectatorship in the United States and Soviet Union, 1921-1936: A Cognitive Approach to Comedy, Identity, and Nation

Decker, Pamela
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1371461287

Abstract Details

2013, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Theatre.
Comedy is uniquely suited to reveal a specific culture’s values and identities; we understand who we are by what and whom we laugh at. This dissertation explores how comic spectatorship reflects modern national identity in four theatre productions from the twentieth century’s two rising superpowers: from the Soviet Union, Evgeny Vakhtangov’s production of Princess Turandot (1922) and Vsevolod Meyerhold’s production of The Bedbug (1929); from the United States, Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle’s Broadway production of Shuffle Along (1921) and Orson Welles’ Federal Theatre Project production of Horse Eats Hat (1936). I undertake a historical and cognitive analysis of each production, revealing that spectatorship plays a participatory role in the creation of live theatre, which in turn illuminates moments of emergent national identities. By investigating these productions for their impact on spectatorship rather than the literary merit of the dramatic text, I examine what the spectator’s role in theatre can reveal about the construction of national identity, and what cognitive studies can tell us about the spectator’s participation in live theatre performance. Theatre scholarship often marginalizes the contribution of the spectator; this dissertation privileges the body as the first filter of meaning and offers new insights into how spectators contribute and shape live theatre, as opposed to being passive observers of an already-completed production. Taking account of historical circumstances, I apply theories of empathy, social affect, and group identification to each production, questioning how spectators helped create and gave meaning to these shows, along with the attitudes and identities that might have arisen from them. In my analysis, I expect to uncover moments in each nation’s history where comic spectatorship reveals an emergent national identity—either collectively uniting in a moment of cultural or political promise, or splintering under social and economic distress. Furthermore, an interdisciplinary approach to the analysis of theatre production—one grounded in cognitive science, culture, and politics—provides a new perspective on the study of spectatorship in theatre history.
Lesley Ferris (Advisor)
232 p.
African American Studies; Russian History; Slavic Studies; Theater; Theater History

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Decker, P. (2013). Theatrical Spectatorship in the United States and Soviet Union, 1921-1936: A Cognitive Approach to Comedy, Identity, and Nation [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1371461287

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Decker, Pamela. Theatrical Spectatorship in the United States and Soviet Union, 1921-1936: A Cognitive Approach to Comedy, Identity, and Nation. 2013. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1371461287.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Decker, Pamela. "Theatrical Spectatorship in the United States and Soviet Union, 1921-1936: A Cognitive Approach to Comedy, Identity, and Nation." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1371461287

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1371461287
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.