Theatre

Our monthly Theatre column is written by Robert W. Bethune of Ann Arbor, MI, who has been actively engaged in theatrical production, research, teaching, and criticism for about 25 years. Other publications he has written for include Asian Theater Journal, American Theatre, and Theater Journal. Robert has taught at SUNY, Stonybrook, NY, LIU, NY and Wayne State U. MI, and has been active as a scholar, specializing in the traditional theatres of Asia. His Research and Documentary videos are available at the Lincoln Center Library of the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center, NYC, NY and through the Asian Theater Film Lending Service at the University of Hawaii Department of Drama and Dance

Most Recent
Big Fish, Small Pond: the dilemma of the theatre professional

Archives:
Make money the old-fashioned way: earn it (Nov/ Dec 2011)
Paying attention to the physicality of performers (Sept/ Oct 2011)
Wonderful stuff. Not theater. How to tell the difference (July/ August 2011)
What the heck, I'm already here, how bad can it be?About a theater critic who travels beyond his town to look at plays. (May/ Jun 2011)
It Never Lets up, Does it? Economics of Theatre survival and what Actors can do (March/ April 2011)
The Mysteries of Theatre "But oh, that Tenth" (Jan/ Feb 2011)
Our Last, Best Hope (Nov/ Dec 2010)
When theater artists don't go to the theater (Sep/ Oct 2010)
A Need for an Old Theater (July/ August 2010)
Would we rather have Live or Memorex (May/ June 2010)
News from around the world leaves us wondering what is Truth (Mar/ Apr 2010)
The Simplest Moments are the Best: Christmas Pagentry & the ancient role of Theatre (Jan/ Feb 2010 )
Checklist for Directors (Nov/ Dec 2009 )
Nudity Laid Bare — & that about covers it! (Sept/ Oct 2009 )
Why Don't Just Shoot the Messenger? (Jul/Aug 2009 )
Why Don't we do it in the Round? (June 2009 )
Thoughts on Stage Nudity (May 2009 )
Self-censorship (Apr 2009 )
The Sickness of the Standing O (March 2009 )
Stiff Competition (Jan/Feb 2009)
Getting the Details Right (December 2008 )
What is this Theater Thing About? (November 2008 )
The Resolute Pretense (October 2008 )
Aeschylus and Klytaimnestra(Septrember 2008 )
Theater for Truthtellers (July/ August 2008)
We Could Use a Little More Imagination Around Here June 2008
Will Theatre Go the way of Vaudeville? May 2008
Should the Repertory company Come Back? April 2008
Local Audience Support for Local Professional Theatre March 2008
What Actors want from Directors January/February 2008
Honesty with the Audience December 2007
The Drum One Beats and the One who Beats the Drum November 2007.
Sometimes the Work Hurts October 2007
Home from Stratford and back to the real world September 2007
Fundamental Creativity for Theater Companies July/ August 2007
What goes on in the actorís brain? June 2007
Windy City and Wit, or, The Power of Thought May 2007
Performance, Memory and the Aging Actor April 2007
The Outraged Actor Needs to Grow Up March 2007
Copyright, Creative Control, and a Toe Permit January/February 2007
Casey at the Bat (December 2006)
When is an actor not an actor? (October 2006)
Building Your Audience (September 2006)
The Mask of the Playwright (July/August 2006)
An Art not made but Done (June 2006)
Talking Like Real People (May 2006)
Hatred, Loathing, Fear, Terror, and Getting Reviewed (April 2006)
Acting Stands on Three Legs (March 2006)
Theater on the Flat Floor Jan/Feb 2006)
What do we do about Costumes? (December 2005)
Action Words and Speech (November 2005)
Life and Death (October 2005)
Please Take Your Seats…in Red Bank, NJ (September 2005)
Ancient Wisdom (September 2005)
You Have to Know How it Feels (August, 2005)
Theater on the Brain (July, 2005)
Getting rid of park benches and getting back to them (June, 2005)
Is There Another Way? (May, 2005)
The Power of Language (April, 2005)
Comedy, Tragedy, Sex and Death - the Key to it All (March, 2005)
Parallel Imagination (Jan/Feb, 2005)
The Two Things That Have to Happen When You Translate Drama (Dec, 2004)
Audition Feedback (Nov, 2004)
The Artistic Risk of theNew Play (Oct, 2004)
Are New Plays Risky? (Sept, 2004)
The dysfunctional market (Aug, 2004)
Mooning - A Theatrical Art (Jul, 2004)
Brownian Motion (May, 2004)
Just An Action is Not Enough (Jun, 2004)
Evanescence (Apr, 2004)
Finding the Right Dialect (Mar, 2004)
Giving it What It Needs (Jan/Feb, 2004)
On Politics and Theatre (Dec, 2003)
Staging An Idea (Nov, 2003)
Authenticity Versus Reality (Oct, 2003)
Simple Rules for Playing Strindberg (Sept, 2003)
The Art of the Aside (Aug, 2003)
Wakey-Wakey! It's a Beautiful Day! (Jul, 2003)
Tragedy, Comedy, & Doors (Jun, 2003)
Video & Theatre (May, 2003)
Don't Tell the Actors What to Do! (April, 2003)
The Useless Knowledge of the Actor (March, 2003)
Is This How Adults Behave? (January/February, 2003)
Before the Fourth Wall (December, 2002)
We Are Not Above the World (November, 2002)
Can We Laugh at 9/11? (October, 2002)
Theatricality (September, 2002)
To Translate is to Betray? (August, 2002)
The Secret Mind of the Theatre Artist (July, 2002)
Prepare the Performer, Not the Performance (June, 2002)
Jes' sittin' on the ol' theater front porch (September, 1999)