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The Utility of The Bhava-Rasa Theory in Contemporary Musical Theatre

Iyer, Shyama
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9629-8646
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1651849830528926

Abstract Details

2022, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, Theatre.
The Bhava-Rasa Theory appears in the Gupta period (250-543 CE), a time when standardization of Sanskrit and scores of new literature propelled the progress of Indian drama. The theory, which addresses the emotions of the performer and performance spectator, served as a tool to create and evaluate performance in the Gupta Empire. I argue that this ancient theory can benefit contemporary musical theatre artists. I use historiographic methods to examine the Bhava-Rasa Theory in the Natyashastra (Treatise on Drama) and over thirty other Sanskrit texts. My research results in an improved version of "The Bhava-Rasa Technique" a dramaturgical technique first proposed by Dr. Joshua M. Leukhardt that actors/directors/designers may use to examine the emotional intent of their work. I provide a better translation of Bhava-Rasa terminology, discuss visual, corporeal, linguistic, and musical Bhava within dramatic contexts, and better elucidate the benefits of this process for contemporary theatre-makers. To demonstrate the utility of the Bhava-Rasa Theory through praxis, I use the Bhava-Rasa Technique to analyze the Sanskrit plays Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Sakuntala) and Mricchakatika (The Little Clay Cart). I then apply the same technique to two Broadway musicals—Wicked and Caroline, or Change. In the final chapters, I present my newly written musical titled The Bhava Cycle, and discuss its creation and staging processes. This thesis marries the ancient East with the contemporary West to provide a new method of harnessing emotion in drama and advocate for its essentiality in theatre across culture and time.
Dr. Stratos Constantinidis (Advisor)
Dr. Mandy Fox (Committee Member)
Dr. Shilarna Stokes (Committee Member)
163 p.
Theater
Sanskrit Drama; Theatre; Performance Studies; Musical Theatre

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Iyer, S. (2022). The Utility of The Bhava-Rasa Theory in Contemporary Musical Theatre [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1651849830528926

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Iyer, Shyama. The Utility of The Bhava-Rasa Theory in Contemporary Musical Theatre. 2022. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1651849830528926.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Iyer, Shyama. "The Utility of The Bhava-Rasa Theory in Contemporary Musical Theatre." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2022. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1651849830528926

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1651849830528926
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.