Plunkett Course Blog

A mishmash of ideas throughout Studies in Drama- Queer Performance.

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Intellectual Sketchbook 13

This week we watched Orange is the New Black.  I watched the show pretty religiously when it first came out.  It's kind of refreshing to see a show with mostly women.  Not that the portrayals are necessarily true to life, but I like seeing what women think is funny and how women view the world.  We get enough portrayals of males.  There are no surprises there, so it is nice to see the other side.  That isn't to say that women and men necessarily see the world differently, but without a doubt the way we are raised has something to do with how we'd script a show.  The show was created by Jenji Kohan, the creator of Weeds.  She adapted the show from a non-fiction book by Piper Kerman.  Piper Kerman really did spend a year in a minimum security women's prison.  From what I've read the show departs from the truth at some parts, but some of the show was actually quite accurate according to the real Piper Kerman.  In an interview with NPR, when discussing being cellmates with her former girlfriend, Piper said, "Truth is much stranger than fiction when it comes to the criminal justice system. Actually being able to confront her brought me to the point of recognition that my situation was my own responsibility and my own fault. She offered me an 'opportunity,' but I chose to take it. She didn't hold a gun to my head; she didn't make me do anything. She asked me and I said yes. I think that if I had not been brought face-to-face with her I would never have gotten quite to the point of taking full responsibility for my actions."  I think it's interesting that in that one little quote we see a lesbian relationship normalized.  She doesn't talk about her former lover any different then I might talk about one of mine.  Without a doubt Orange is the New Black has increased the visibility of lesbians within our culture and probably helped lesbian relationships seem more normal within our culture.  

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Orange is the New Black star, Taylor Schilling on nude scenes, lesbianism and Laura Prepon

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Natasha Lyonne on Playing the Role of a Lesbian

on Orange is the New Black

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Taco fest, swirrrrrl, swirrrrl and Voldemort.

Intellectual Sketchbook 13

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Intellectual Sketchbook 14

This week we had our student presentations for our final projects.  My group did our presentation on the Gay Witch Hunt episode of The Office.  In the episode a character outs another character publicly.  We showed a clip from the episode, then queered the episode and did our own performance.  Afterwards we had a discussion with the class.  It was nice to hear some of the students respond to our discussion questions.  Our questions dealt with someone exposing something about you, against your will.  Nikolena shared a story that was very similar to the episode of The Office we explored.  She said her boss outed her at a dinner with co-workers.  That right there goes to show you that communication issues make the best scripts.  I was happy to know that the material we presented was relatable.  

The most interesting of the presentations for me personally besides my own, was the group that made a jeopardy game and talk show.  I had a lot of fun playing with the class.  I also liked what Jill's group did with the pictures and having the class perform queer interpretations of the photo.  I think that was a really fun workshop.  The other group had drinks which was nice, and they did a great job performing.  

I found this week to be very entertaining, and I was proud of my classmates for their work.  We really had a broad range of unique projects.  None of them were so similar that it became boring.  Everyone was unique in that class and it contributed to some wild discussions.   I think it was the perfect way to end a super interesting class.  

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Queer Class for the Straight Ass: A Final Reflection on Studies in Drama, Queer Peromance

I remember the first day of class. I walked in having no idea which area of theatre we would be focusing on. I'm sure there was some notification that it was Studies in Drama: Queer Performance, but I must have missed all those notifications. It was only a few seconds after taking my seat that I figured out we would be focusing on queer performance. Even then, I had no idea what that meant. I had heard of queer theatre, but I really didn't know anything about it. So there I sat, a self-identified white straight male, in a class that was about something a world apart from my own perspective. I learned a long time ago to hold no judgment for things and people I'm unfamiliar with. So, I listened, I read, I shared, and I learned. To my surprise I found myself not only interested in the material but encouraged by the spirit of resilience and determination that is rampant in queer theatre and other forms of queer performance. Not only that, but I also had a whole lot of fun making an ass of myself with and in front of others.

In the course description on the syllabus, several questions are listed as the main points of investigation for the course. The first question is: What does it mean to undertake queer performance? After hours of class discussions I'm not sure there is any particularly accurate way to answer that question. Queer performance can mean a lot of things. So to answer this question we must be intentionally broad. I would say that to undertake queer performance, means to express resistive ideas, feelings, and emotions that challenge cultural norms, in front of an audience. The last part of that sentence may be the most important. The audience of a queer performance is the place where change can take place.

The second question is: How is the notion of queerness connected to sexuality, and in what ways can the definition of queerness be usefully extended? The notion of queerness is certainly tied to sexuality. I'd be willing to bet if you asked the average person on the street what it means to be queer, their answer would involve homosexuality. I wouldn't necessarily say there is anything wrong with this. The majority of queer performance that we have covered in this course has revolved around dis-identification with heteronormative values. At the same time, queerness is beginning to mean something else in our culture. Go browse OkCupid profiles and you'll find that many people now self-identify as queer regardless of their sexual orientation. The truth is most people find some part of the cultural hegemony off-putting. We all are a little bit queer. So queer performance can and is being usefully extended to include other people that dis-identify with cultural norms. One example I can think of is the television show/podcast, Comedy Bang! Bang! Or any other alternative comedy performance. I see elements of queer performance littered throughout these programs in the form of surrealist humor, campy rehashing, and complex character work.

The third question is: What are the creative potentials of “queering” a text or performance? The creative potentials of “queering” a text or performance are innumerable. One can queer a performance by changing character traits like sexuality, gender, age, occupation etc. One can also queer a performance by introducing new elements, characters, and conflicts. As we saw in class through workshops, when you get a group of people together and ask them to queer a specific text, the results can go in any direction. Every person has a unique perspective on what the norm is, and how it could be different. I think this is the almost universal appeal of queer performance. It allows one to see inside a person's mind, without the deceptive restrictions of cultural expectations. It allows us to see someone's personal truth.

The last questions are: What is the relationship between art and activism? Is queer performance necessarily activist? According to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary, activism is defined as, “A doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action especially in support of or opposition to one side of a controversial issue.” I would say that most art is activism because it automatically causes action in the mind. Who can look at a painting without considering its purpose? Who can watch an entire performance and not think once about why these people are doing things in front of a group of people? Now does a painting necessarily ask us to go left or right on an issue? No, and that's why some art does not fit the definition of activism. I believe queer performance is and will always be activist. Exposing a subversive opinion, idea, or emotion on stage definitely forces people to talk about and potentially change their own opinions.

I would say that this semester has been a transformative experience. I now feel I can provide an educated answer to each question that is listed at the beginning of the syllabus. I now feel respect and admiration for the progenitors of queer performance. People who at first glance might seem very different from me, but really the differences end at their sexuality and the way others view us. I also feel it is important to mention that the workshops in this course functioned as a great tool for opening up some interesting, fun, and strange discussions. That overall lead to a interesting, fun, strange, and informative class. I truly enjoyed the diversity of opinions that were expressed as a result of the classrooms relaxed atmosphere. You really get to know someone when you hear their weird. In the words of a guy I saw dressed as a farmer at a rave, “We're all weirdos!”

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Intellectual Sketchbook 4

For this week we read the play As Is by William M. Hoffman.  In the play, written in the 80's, an HIV positive gay man is joined by his ex-lover in his hour of need.  This is our first version of the AIDS play.  AIDS plays refer to the phenomenon in which a series of productions during the 80's used stage performance in order to confront the public's understanding and sympathy of the burgeoning AIDS crisis.

What makes the AIDS play queer is that it starts from a place of dis-identification with mainstream culture and values.  Although today this work might seem commonplace, in the 80's these plays were cutting edge.  Especially considering the political climate of the 80's and the Reagan revolution.  I believe that what fits the definition of queer is dependent on what the culture at large believes in a given time period.  In this time period, AIDS plays did not fit into mainstream theatre.  That might seem strange considering they fall after the socially liberal awakenings of the 1960's, but consider that thousands of years before the 1960's different sexual orientations were perfectly acceptable in certain parts of the world.  These things have cycles it would seem.  

This makes me wonder about the future of queer performance and where it sits today.  How will queer performances be defined in the future?  Will we ever go backwards in our acceptance of different types of people?  This potentially means the AIDS play could become queer again, maybe even generations from now.  

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5 Questions I’ve Never Been Asked: William M. Hoffman

Intellectual Sketchbook 4

This is an interview with the writer of As Is, William M. Hoffman.  

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Intellectual Sketchbook 4

I believe this is a scene from a 1988 television version of the play As Is written by William M. Hoffman.   

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Week of 2/18/14

This week we started with reading a play by Charles Busch titled, Psycho Beach Party.  This was our introduction to Camp productions.  I have heard the term "camp" come up in class and previously to describe a genre of queer performances but I had no idea what it meant.  Apparently the idea is to borrow content and style from other cultural materials and reshape regurgitate it into something entirely different.  I found the play somewhat hard to follow because it reads and feels like the dialogue is fast paced and involved many characters.  I like the idea however or reshaping previous material and making something new.  In this way it seems Busch intended to satirize existing cultural notions of gender norms and expose the audience to the silliness of it all.  I also enjoyed the exploration of a character with split personalities.  I wonder what the purpose of Chicklet's self-confusion is; perhaps it is to consider how even one person can perform the traditional traits of multiple genders.  Upon further research I discovered that the play had been made into a movie recently and I think that would be a very interesting and strange movie to watch. 

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One of my friends brought up a question that I find interesting. Do most people think of Queer as a gender classification or a sexual orientation? Or perhaps something else entirely... I'm not asking what its denotation is, I'm asking what its connotation is.

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Initial Reactions to Charles Ludlam

This week we read about Charles Ludlam and his Ridiculous Theatre.  It's interesting that such an important figure in theatre was initially ridiculed by his own mentors.  At first I felt that Charles wrote and spoke like a pseudo-intellectual, but as I kept reading some of what he was saying did seem kind of profound.  For example when he said, "If a man can put on makeup, false eyelashes, and mascara, all the artifices of being a woman, then obviously all those things are not part of being a woman."  I had never thought about that.  The idea that these artificial and superficial things had become synonymous with being a woman, when in fact they are arbitrary.   

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Vaginal Davis at ephemeropterae 2013

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Transgender Visibility Timeline

GLAAD created an infographic that captures the past 60 years of transgender issues in honor of Transgender Awareness Week and Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Transgender Visibility Timeline….it hasn’t been that far into history that the transgender experience has been acknowledge/addressed. Something to think about.