Researching the Actor's Process Through Performance

Abstract

Researching the Actor's Process through Performance by Kenneth ChangFor my thesis, I exercised the holistic practice as research approach. As a Master's candidate, with an emphasis in acting, I documented various approaches to the actor's process. Since theater is the only art medium to happen in time and space, the ephemeral nature of acting demands that the live performances become the thesis; therefore, my performances are the final products of my research.In total, beginning in June 2013 to May 2014, I secured and accumulated six different roles. The spectrum of each of the six roles range in vastness and dynamism: a highly stylized play which was a part of the 2013 Santa Cruz Fringe Festival; a play at El Teatro Campesino that deals with an often neglected part of California history; an adaptation of three ancient love stories from the Middle East with the incorporation of puppetry, song, dance, and live music; a highly theatrical, and children-friendly Shakespearean touring troupe presenting a extremely concise version of one of the world's most well-known plays; a darker, feminist play based on the infamous 1927 murder trial of Ruth Snyder; and a world premiere image theatre play about the entirety of humanity. Each of these performances demands a different and unique approach from the actor.What you have in front of you are artifacts from each of these performances. These artifacts depict a multitude of methods to track the actor's process. In this plethora of artifacts we have:1. Fully detailed character analysis of Action2. Task break down cues list of Valley of the Heart3. Journal of the rehearsal process of Mughal Miniature4. Physical Score and Set, Props, and Costume Breakdown for Machinal5. Scansion and Performance journal of Shakespeare's Hamlet6. Publicity and Press of LoveDream