The Sociology of the Theatre, Part Three: Performance

Abstract

In the first part of this series, published in NTQ17. Maria Shevtsova discussed the misconceptions and misplacements of emphases which have pervaded sociological approaches to theatre, and proposed her own methodology of study. In Part Two, published in NTQ18. she examined in fuller detail two aspects of her taxonomy which had an existing sociological literature—looking first at dramatic theory, as perceived by its sociological interpreters, and then considering approaches to dramatic texts and genres. From the assessment of the relatively new discipline of theatre anthropology which concluded Part Two. she now turns to examine sociological approaches to the act of performance itself, analyzing in particular the various attempts by semioticians to provide an appropriately comprehensive vocabulary for its description, and measuring these against the pioneering work of Mikhail Bakhtin. She concludes her study with some practical examples of productions which illuminate the sociology of performance. Maria Shevtsova trained in Paris before spending three years at the University of Connecticut. She has previously contributed toModern Drama, Theatre International, andTheatre Papers, as well as to the originalTheatre Quarterlyand other journals.

‘Like Skydiving without a Parachute’: How Class Origin Shapes Occupational Trajectories in British Acting

“…For example, acting is characterised by precisely the forms of uncertainty – around professional training, access to work and demands of supplementary employment – identified by Hesmondhalgh and Baker (2010) in their wider study of work in film and television. It also reflects the wider CCIs in terms of gender inequality, with demand for labour heavily skewed towards men ( Dean, 2005 , 2012 ; Menger, 1999 ; Shevtsova, 2009 ).…”

Class and Performance in the Age of Global Capitalism

“…'Problems and Perspectives' analyses five main blocs of problems based on alleged misunderstandings that have hampered sociological approaches to theatre and offers a 'proposed schema' incorporating a non-exhaustive compilation of fourteen different areas of enquiry, from 'Theoretical Bases' to 'Merging Theatrical Genres'. 29 Where Shevtsova indicates the possibilities of a sociological analysis of performance, it is disappointing to note that in the decades subsequent to her enhancement of Gurvitch's approach, little has been done to engage with the issues she raises, least of all the matter of class and performance. 28 'Performance' concludes the triptych with some practical examples of productions that highlight Shevtsova's framework for a sociology of theatre.…”

Picturing Nineteenth-Century Female Theatre Managers: the Iconology of Eliza Vestris and Sara Lane

“…36 In this light, Vestris's choice of extrava ganza (an alternative description for burletta) is significant for, as Fletcher argues, one of its features was that it 'could utilize physical display in a way which tended to reduce the female to a collection of body parts and bordered on the pornographic'. 37 It is likely that Vestris chose as the signature pieces of her new theatrical endeavour productions that would require her to wear revealing costumes, correctly anticipating that images of these would circulate and provide publicity.…”