Date of Award

2001

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts in Theatre

Department

Theatre

First Advisor

Bryan C. Reeder

Second Advisor

Ann Canale

Third Advisor

Rob Scoggins

Abstract

William Shakespeare wrote plays for the masses -- the aristocrats as well as the common people. While his dramas, tragedies, and comedies were controversial, sometimes bawdy, and always physical, in the twentieth century, secondary school educators have come to think of Shakespeare's plays as literature for academic study. Middle schools rarely cover any Shakespearean plays in the classroom. Students traditionally start to study Shakespearean scripts in high school. In high school, freshman usually read Romeo and Juliet; sophomores read Julius Caesar, Macbeth, or Hamlet. Most secondary curriculums do not include a Shakespearean comedy.

While it is true that occasionally a high school produces a Shakespearean play, middle school directors shy away from his work. Perhaps directors and teachers fear the language, the length, or the literary complexity. However, if these plays were originally written and produced for common, uneducated audiences, why are they considered off limits for educated middle school students?

This thesis addresses whether Shakespearean plays, specifically A Midsummer Night's Dream, can be a productive, enjoyable part of a middle school student's education. The thesis will be five chapters long. The first chapter will discuss several productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream. The chapter will address various directors' adaptations: scripts, sets, and costumes. Chapter Two will analyze the script. The third chapter will be an original version of A Midsummer Night's Dream written specifically for middle school students. Chapter Four will review information gathered before, during, and after Francis Howell Middle School's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Chapter Five will review whether this production was a productive, enjoyable part of the middle school actors', crew's, and audiences' education.

Download

Share

COinS