Abstract
This paper examines how three main groups of kabuki plays, the dance-drama, historical drama, and domestic drama make up the majority of kabuki theater and how they are adapted either from puppet theater, from kyogen dramas, or plays written specifically for kabuki. It looks at how Tokyo's Shochiku Company is one theatrical group that has made an impact on American theater by presenting kabuki in the heart of the U.S., in Texas.

From the Paper
"Kabuki has its origin in Japan's Edo period. The form can be traced back to performances by female shrine dancer Okuni in a dry riverbed in 1603. The dances performed by Okuni and her fellow female dancers combined religious dances and folk dance. Okuni's performances became highly popular, and many troupes soon imitated the style. Performances became increasingly risqu and boisterous, and women were banned from performing in 1629. In 1652, a brawl between two samurai competing for the attentions of a young male actor spurred authorities to ban young men under the age of 14 from appearing in kabuki (Spencer)."

Tags:art, drama, acting, far, east, tradition, shochuki

Abstract
Seven page look at two American plays: Tennessee Williams' "Suddenly Last Summer" and Eugene O'Neill's "Desire Under Elms" examples of Realism in Drama.

Tags:realism, american, theater

Abstract
This paper examines and analyzes Hispanic American theater and drama in the United States today. Prominent theater groups and artists are discussed, and the paper concludes with a discussion of the history and future of Hispanic American Theater.

Tags:hispanic, american, theater

Abstract
This paper uses three works of literature as a means of exploring how each work responds to racism and prejudice in American society: 1) James Baldwin's poem "Harlem," 2) Randall Dudley's poem "Ballad of Birmingham," and 3) Lorraine Hansberry's drama "A Raisin in the Sun."

From the Paper
"Discrimination is the unfair treatment of a person or group of people based on prejudice. In American history African Americans were subjected to great oppression and discrimination. The injustices visited upon Blacks came to a head during the.... s and ....s leading to the passage of the Civil Rights Act. Prior to this oppression violence and discrimination were routine for Blacks in American society. This history of discrimination is captured in a variety of works of art including Langston Hughes' poem 'Harlem', Dudley Randall's ..."

Tags:violence, oppression, prejudice, marginalization, dreams, opportunities, American Dream

Abstract
This paper examines the evolution of the hero as a response to the changing virtues of the American people. The paper explains that throughout the history of drama in the United States of America, the playwrights have used the heroes in their plays to reflect the ideal that people hoped to live up to. The paper looks at how the hero is the playwright's best interpretation of what the definition of virtue is to the people of his time. The paper points out that Royall Tyler shows a very clear cut definition of a hero during a time when a clear cut definition is needed in an effort to define the nation. The paper further looks at how Tyler takes what he assumes are all the most virtuous traits a man can possess and uses them to create his heroic characters. The paper also discusses how Boucicault writes during a less concrete time and that the ideals that were solid for decades come under fire as the country begins to split itself in two.

From the Paper
"The Contrast by Royall Tyler displays the social and economic ideals of the time. This play was written during a period of transition for the United States of America. They had just gained their freedom from the British after years of fighting the Revolutionary War, and the people of America were learning how to govern themselves while trying to sort out the immense debt they incurred during the war. The patriotic people of the United States valued their freedom and independence but were indebted to many countries in Europe for their support during the war with Britain. The Americans also had to develop their own government that would grant them personal liberties but still provide a framework for a functional country."

Tags:civil, war, great, depression, freedom, independence

Abstract
The research paper analyzes the contents, theme and identifies the purpose and the history behind a good few plays by the African-American playwright Derek Walcott and six more plays by other playwrights including Luis F., Gonzalez Cruz, Ann Waggoner Aken, Teresa Cajiao Salas and Margarita Vargas. The paper also brings out the similarities between the plays selected for discussion and the modern world drama.

Abstract
This paper examines the nature of American literature. The paper explains that American literature, like many other nationalistic literary bodies has had an evolution that marks changing attitudes with regard to what is to be included in the voice of literature. The paper then looks at how the representation of both women and African-American writers is not the only body of inclusion, as contemporary movements have made significant strides toward the inclusion of almost every immigrant group into the canon of American literature and into the body of publishing in general in history and contemporary works. The paper also points out that the defining characteristics of what qualifies as American Literature is simply that it is a written form, poetry, prose or drama that conveys any point of view of the American experience of growth and change. The writer states that frequently some of the most fundamentally expressive forms of American literature are immigrant literature that explores the real and fictional development of the self, from an immigrant outsider to someone who feels as if they are an American, regardless of the outside view of themselves as a foreigner. The paper concludes that American literature should continue to be inclusive and representative of personal nationalistic growth, as a standard bearer for other forms of nationalistic literature.

From the Paper
"In all representations of immigrant literature there is a clear sense that at almost any given time in America there was a dominant or subjugated immigrant group that was struggling to be accepted by those who had immigrated one, two or three generations before them. America is a nation of immigrants and American literature is finally beginning to express this, without as much of the exclusionary literary academic influences. The transition of an immigrant into and "American" in the self is frequently one of the most important and influential expression of literature, from Latino American literature, to Asian American immigrant expressions."

Tags:immigrant, expression, influences, nationalistic

Abstract
This paper first describes Caryl Churchill's satirical play "Cloud Nine", which comments on colonial and gender oppression in an African country, during the nineteenth century that is ruled by Britain. The paper then relates the story of "M. Butterfly", by the first Asian-American playwright to win universal success, David Henry Hwang. This story is about a French male diplomat and a Chinese actor/opera singer, who masqueraded as a woman. These plays, the paper concludes, opened doors for other playwrights, such as Tony Kushner in his play "Angels in America: Millenium", to explore the world of homosexuality especially in reference to AIDS.

From the Paper
"Hwang wasn't too far off in his depiction of Song or in his idea that gender is wholly a product of socialization that is open to interpretation. In her book, "Paradoxes of Gender", Judith Lorber talks about the xanith form, an accepted third gender in Oman, an Islamic, gender-segregated society. The xanith are male homosexual prostitutes that dress in masculine clothes (however in pastel colors, rather than white worn by men). Their mannerisms are female. They are usually married to women and in their household they perform the duties of the man and the wife."

Tags:colonial, award, theatrical techniques, identity, community

Abstract
This paper looks at how the film "The Madness of King George", released in 1994 and directed by Nicholas Hytner, is a comedy/drama built around a dark episode in the long reign of King George III. The paper discusses some of the movie's themes and, in particular, how the film provides a glimpse of a king struggling to come to terms with the loss of the American colonies and its political aftermath.

Outline:
Effectiveness and Realism
Relevance
Theme

From the Paper
"The prevailing theory is that King George actually suffered from an episodic, inherited disorder known as porphyria (but there is speculation that manic depression may also have been a factor), and the film suggests that the King's condition was exacerbated (if not triggered) by the stress of losing the war against the emerging nation. Did the American Revolution drive the King insane? Probably not, since the onset of symptoms associated with porphyria generally manifest between the ages of ten and thirty, although the stress of the political climate certainly would not have contributed to his recovery. Besides, there is evidence that the King did eventually make peace with the unavoidable outcome, even though for months following the defeat he referred to it with great sadness and resentment."

Tags:King, George, III, colonies

Abstract
This paper looks at the various themes in the plays of such playwrights as Eugene O'Neill, Thornton Wilder, Tennessee Williams, and Arthur Miller. Themes of power, conflict, dehumanization, the immortal value of life, addressing and accepting reality, and the American dream are all touched upon in this paper.

From the Paper
"Eugene O'Neill's play, "The Emperor Jones (1921)," is the horrifying story of Rufus Jones, the monarch of a West Indian island, presented in a single act of eight scenes of violence and disturbing images. O'Neill's sense of tragedy comes out undiluted in this surreal and nightmarish study of Jones' character in a mighty struggle and tension between black Christianity and black paganism (IMBD). Jones is an unforgettable character in his powerfulness and fatalness, made most evident by the support of language, sound and other stage effects, such as the dreadful drumming sounds and the Emperor's hallucinations. This psychological drama delves into the nature of power, the inevitable pull of history and in the belief in the supernatural as these were experienced in the first two decades of the last century."

Tags:the, hairy, ape, yank, our, town, grover's, corner, time, cat, on, a, hot, tin, roof, death, of, a, salesman