Upsurges of the Real: a performance research blog

. . . notes, musings, questions, and insights about Canadian theatre and realness

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Tag Archives: theatre

Where is real?

July 16, 2018by queensjenn Leave a comment

As part of an opening exercise in a recent dramatic theory class, my students were asked to respond with coloured Sharpies to a variety of prompts scattered on chart paper […]

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The Uncanny and the Real

May 16, 2016by queensjenn Leave a comment

In her book Culture and the Real, Catherine Belsey suggests that the source of uncanny unease in horror films is the incursion of patently non-real/supernatural objects into the real world. […]

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What we already knew about the invisible gorilla

December 11, 2013by queensjenn Leave a comment

From the inception of this project about Theatre of the Real, it has been clear to me that audience perception/experience is central to this phenomenon. Of course, the perception by […]

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6 Questions to ask a piece of “real” theatre

November 30, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

… (seems unfair to call it a “play”…) 1. How do I (as an audience member) understand the real elements as real? What scenographic cues am I given to counteract […]

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Documentary theatre then and now

September 20, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

It would be impossible to discuss reality-based theatre in Canada (what I am starting to call “documentary theatre”) without acknowledging the scholarship of Alan Filewod. His 1987 book Collective Encounters: […]

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McDonald’s Canadian Olympic Ad

August 2, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

OK. I wasn’t planning on posting a blog today but… I am working on a summary of this research project for the SSHRC Insight Grant. (The Notice of Intent is […]

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Applying Cognitive Science to Performance part 3

August 1, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

Some cognitive image schemas originate in sensory experience in the world. An example of a sensorimotor inflected schema is simple verticality. As humans, we are creatures with a definite up […]

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Is theatre real?

July 9, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

I finally got my hands on a copy of Authenticity: Brands, Fakes, Spin and the Lust for Real Life by David Boyle from Robarts Library through interlibrary loan. (Thank you […]

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The Polonius Test

June 21, 2012by queensjenn 4 Comments

To evaluate the authenticity of your business offering, James Gilmore and B. Joseph Pine, authors of Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want  (mentioned in the previous post), suggest taking the Polonius […]

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What Wittgenstein’s Duck/Rabbit has to do with theatrical duality

June 11, 2012by queensjenn Leave a comment

On the recommendation of my colleague Grahame Renyk, I finally got around to reading “Infiction and Outfiction: The Role of Fiction in Theatrical Performance” by David Z. Saltz. (Full citation […]

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About the author:

Jenn Stephenson is Professor of Drama and Music in the Dan School at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada.

300 Tapes acting actual animals antigone artificial audience audience perception audiences authentic authenticity autobiography Bert O. States Canadian celebrities character children cognitive science communion consumers containers conventions DIY documentary dramaturgy expectation experience fake fiction fictional framing Hamlet hypermediacy hyperreal image schema image schemas immediacy immersive theatre infiction knowledge liars live Liz Tomlin metatheatre mobilization museums non-acting non-actor non-actors non-expert non-experts objects participation perception performance performers postdramatic poststructuralism props real reality reality-based theatre research Rhonda Blair ridout site-specific social media stage fright still life theatre theatricality trust utopia verbatim witness

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Preamble

I started this blog back in 2012 as a way to think out loud and in public about my research into theatres of the real. Thus the blog title which pays homage to Bert O. States. In May 2019, those ideas which were seedlings here are being published as Insecurity: Perils and Products of Theatres of the Real, weighing in at nearly 300 pages, from University of Toronto Press. But the research goes on, and the out loud thinking goes on. The topic has changed slightly and the new key word is "PARTICIPATION." I'm thinking about those performances where audiences are co-creators.

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What’s Jenn tweeting about?

  • RT @QUartsci: Reminder that this Saturday is Fall Preview. Prospective students, see why Queen's might be the right place for you! Tour the… 3 months ago
  • RT @VPDeanTierney: Happy Academics Week! Catch up and keep up with academic workshops and supports from @queensusass. Improve your writing,… 3 months ago
  • Looking forward to it! @QUartsci will be there to talk about our programs. From creative arts to humanities to soci… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 4 months ago
  • RT @DrMeghanNorris: This week at PsycNight: How to study and prep for midterms (eek, yes, already!). A collaboration with @QueensPsyc and @… 4 months ago
  • RT @VPDeanTierney: Parents, Families, and Supporters of incoming students: Please join me online on August 24 at 7 pm ET for tips on suppor… 5 months ago
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