A Day in
the Lives
Although, I have elsewhere in this blog, sort
to emphasize the continuing contributions, influences and commitments of
females to theatre, I think that sometimes a through line or overall sense of
these contributions can be lost. The history of female playwrights, directors,
practitioners, theatre designers, theatre managers and drama makers is long and
significant. Unfortunately, because of cultural mores, constraints and the overemphasis
given in written records to the exploits of males, it is sometimes more
difficult to easily measure and appreciate the exact commitments of female
practitioners and makers to theatre and drama.
One observation of mine from looking into this is that female dramaturgy is often collective or grows through the sharing of stories, ideas and supporting groups or communities. Learning by exploring my ignorance and the serious gaps in my knowledge is always an experience. So here is my attempt to provide a short overview.
One observation of mine from looking into this is that female dramaturgy is often collective or grows through the sharing of stories, ideas and supporting groups or communities. Learning by exploring my ignorance and the serious gaps in my knowledge is always an experience. So here is my attempt to provide a short overview.
In case
you don’t have time to read this entire post I suggest the following to start. I
really don’t believe in the canonization of the written text and the
performance of the popular play as being at the center of drama. The written
text does give some sense of permanence to a drama or text but I will try to
not make it my only priority. I also don’t really believe in Top 10, Top 40 or
Top 100 lists so I suggest a day in life or evolutionary journey approach. The
first part of this post is a short day in the life history of female
dramaturgy.
Since
drama involves stories, characters and form and since females in most cultures
were the cultural caretakers in most societies, I suggest starting your day at
sunrise with reading some creation stories. Imagine women as the cultural
caretakers of stories, songs and dances – a performance historical and cultural
record. African female creation stories particularly those of the Ananse tales
from the Akan peoples would be a good place to start. However, this clip of a
modern female African storyteller gives the sense of the power and the danger
that faced and still face females as the caretakers of story knowledge.
Stories
from Indigenous Australian traditions are also truly enlightening. Perhaps even
watch the Awakening Ceremony from the 2000 Sydney Olympics Opening Ceremony.
Native American stories work well especially
the myths of Iroquois is a great Native American creation feminine story. http://www.crystalinks.com/namcreationwomen.html
Next,
over a light Middle Eastern or Mediterranean breakfast. Read or look at Ancient
Egyptian drama or two. Imagine you are in Ancient Egypt at the Festival of
Osiris. Imagine the role of females in enacting out The
Lamentations of Isis and Nephthys. Here is a translation of the text:
As you finish your
leisurely breakfast imagine you are in Ancient Greece. Perhaps imagine yourself inside or outside the women’s
quarters (gynaikônitis) in a private house and read the works of the Ancient Greek female poet Sappho
(630BC – 570BC), who lived on the island of Lesbos. Her poems were probably performed in circles of all females around 600BC.
Then take
a quick look at the Nāṭya
Śāstra and read about the form, or look at the pictures or try out
some of the gestures and movement of this form developed in India around 500BC to
200BC and which as form still informs Indian drama, theatre, dance and films.
Here is a link to a website with some information, videos and pictures of the Nāṭya
Śāstra
Then move
to another location and imagine you are in 10th Century Germany in
Gandersheim Abbey in Lower Saxony in a community of unmarried daughters of high
nobility. Read at least one of the plays of Hrotsvitha of Gandersheim. She
wrote in Latin but here is an English translation of her plays.
In the same location, try to get a taste of the great German Benedictine abbess Saint Hildegard
of Bingen. Listen to or look at or read some of her Ordo Virtutum written in about 1151. Here is
a video-clip of a modern performance of the piece.
Now as the morning progresses imagine you are
in Italy around 1550 in Venice or Milana around the 1550’s and you see and hear in the
marketplace the improvised form of mask theatre called the Commedia dell arte
and you see women on stage and you see the comic scenes they have developed
The
following clip may give some sense of how female actresses performed scenes in
the original commedia dell arte plays:
As the sun is rising
higher, you may want to read part of (or all of) some of the writing of
Elizabeth Cary, the first female playwright to write original plays in English.
Her 1613 play The Tragedy of Mariam, the
Fair Queen of Jewry is a classic.
As an appetizer just before lunch, try reading some of the work
of the great Aphra Behn. She wrote eighteen plays from 1670 to 1689. Here is a
link to her work, I suggest that you read The
Rover, Parts One (1677): https://www.gutenberg.org/files/21339/21339-h/21339-h.htm
Over a leisurely lunch, look or listen to some of the work of
the great Indian poet, courtesan, writer and performer Mah
Laqa Bai who was born in 1768 and
wrote and performed in Urdu, Arabic, Persian and Bhoipuri. Here is a short
video with some of her poetry giving some sense of her life and her work:
In the
middle of lunch, try to explore some of the work
of the prolific Restoration actress and playwright Elizabeth Inchbald. Here is A Lovers’ Vows (1799):
As you finish lunch, print off or download onto
your IPad or Kindle, one of the plays of the great Scottish
playwright Joanna Baillie. She wrote tragedies, comedies, farces, romantic
comedies, patriotic vitriols, gothic tragedies, musical dramas and melodramas. Try
her Gothic Drama De Monfort (1798)
Then as the shade of the afternoon starts to first appear, take
a walk and move onto exploring the work of Anna Cora Mowatt
Ritchie who is perhaps the first female North American playwright. Her 1845
play Fashion, or Life in New York is
a good place to start.
Stay with North
American female writers as the afternoon progresses. Although mostly known as
the novelist who wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin,
the American writer and playwright Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote a couple of
important plays including the 1855 play The
Christian Slave based on part of Uncle
Tom’s Cabin. Here is a link to the play:
As the sun goes lower in the sky, I would suggest that you read the work
of the American born Elizabeth Robins who is known for her acting,
playwrighting, writing and involvement in the suffragette movement in the
United Kingdom. Look
at her play Votes
for Women (1907) since it is thematically and stylistically
revolutionary. https://archive.org/stream/votesforwomenpla00robiuoft/votesforwomenpla00robiuoft_djvu.txt
As the moon gently rises, I think there is no better place to start than
to look at pictures from the mise en scenes
of the English theatre director, theatre producer, costume designer and one of
the pioneers of the suffragette movement Edith Ailsa Geraldine Craig. Look at
the paintings of Clare Atwood to get some sense of Edith Craig, her mother
Ellen Craig and the world of woman suffragettes in the early 20th
Century.
As your eyes adjust to the night light. Look at the
work of the American playwright and theatre director Rachel Crothers. Read her 1909 play A
Man’s World and get the sense of her great contribution to drama.
As the stars first rise in the evening, please look at either
a script from or a video of the performances of the great Italian actor,
playwright and militant leftwing politician Franca Rame who was also the wife and professional
partner of Dario Fo and whose work spans 60
years and advances theatre and females in theatre in so many ways. Here is a
2013 performance of her scene A Woman
Alone from Female Parts.
Look at the moon
and open some of the work of the Mexican playwright Ximena Escalante. Her work
is truly international and uses archetypal characters. Look at these clips from
two productions of her plays and see if you can get her work in translation.
Sit back and look at the whole night
sky and open and read some of the work of
Caryl Churchill, one of the greatest
and most prolific playwrights to write in the English language female or male.
Her work Cloud 9 or Top Girls are good places to start.
Here is speech from Cloud 9:
And another from Top Girls:
As the evening progresses look at the
work of the Japanese/American female playwright Naomi Iizuka. Try to read one of her plays but perhaps as an introduction to
her work look at this trailer for a college production of her 2006 play Anon (ymous).
As the night grows older and stiller, read one of
the plays of Australia Indigenous playwright and Muruwari women Jane Harrison. I suggest starting with Stolen (1998).
Here is a video-clip of Jane Harrison talking about how she came
to write Stolen:
Here is a link to download the play:
There is no better way to end the evening than by reading or
viewing the work of the great female playwright and director Mary Zimmerman
born in 1960. Here is an extract from her 2005 play Arabian Nights.
Here is a
link to buying the play on Kindle:
Here is a
clip from a production of the play:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxiaGSa8kb4
Here is an interesting article on females in theatre specifically in Shakespeare's plays and Shakespeare's time:
https://www.whatsonstage.com/london-theatre/news/women-in-theatre-eight-facts_45974.html
Here is an interesting article on females in theatre specifically in Shakespeare's plays and Shakespeare's time:
https://www.whatsonstage.com/london-theatre/news/women-in-theatre-eight-facts_45974.html
And now, when you have time, the next posts will explore the
long, rich and partially hidden history of the dramaturgy of women in theatre
and drama.
