MATC Graduate Student Outreach

[Penny Farfan]

Dear Colleagues,

As Graduate Student Outreach Co-ordinator for the Mid-America Theatre
Conference (MATC), I am writing to invite you to encourage graduate students
in your department to consider joining the organization.

The Mid-America Theatre Conference is held every March at a mid-western city
(eg. Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha, St. Louis, Kansas City), with panels in
the areas of Theatre History, Directing, Playwriting, and Pedagogy.
Graduate students are welcome to submit proposals to these forums or to the
Young Scholars Symposium.  All proposals are refereed.  Because of its small
size, MATC serves as an ideal setting for graduate students to begin to
share their work with and get feedback from established scholars.
Membership in MATC also includes a subscription to Theatre History Studies,
a leading journal in the field.

Please find below the Calls for Papers for the upcoming conference to be
held March 7-10, 2002 in St. Louis, Missouri.  I would appreciate if you
could pass this information on to interested graduate students.

Thanks for your co-operation.

Sincerely,

Penny Farfan
Graduate Student Outreach Co-ordinator, Mid-America Theatre Conference

University of Calgary
Department of Drama
2500 University Drive NW
Calgary
Alberta
Canada  T2N 1N4



THEATRE HISTORY SYMPOSIUM
THEATRE OF CHANGE/CHANGING THEATRE

We invite submissions that document attempts in theatre history to use the
power of theatre as an instrument of change. Such events may include but are
not limited to those that are political, social, cultural, or ethnic in
nature.

Papers may also document innovations in pedagogy and theatre practice,
especially in design and new technologies. We are interested in papers that
explore "visionaries" in the history, theory and practice of theatre.

Considerations of acts of misbehavior or transgression as relate to
marginalization in a given culture, practitioners willing to take risks in
order to realize and practice their art, and visionary inventors whose work
has influenced theatre practice are invited.

Please send abstracts to both of the addresses below by November 15, 2001.
Abstracts should be 150-200 words long and must include the applicant's
name, address, telephone number, and email address, as well as her/his
academic affiliation. Final papers should not exceed 9 pages or 2500 words.
Papers will be limited to oral presentations of fifteen to twenty minutes
maximum. Please include a request for any needed
audio-visual equipment in your proposal.

Send abstracts to:

Rhona Justice-Malloy, Department of Speech Communication and Dramatic Art,
333 Moore Hall, Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859; Fax:
989-774-2498; email: justi1 at cmich.edu

                                                           or

Robert Baker-White, Department of Art, Music & Theatre, Walsh Building,
Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. 20057; Phone: 202-687-6933 ; email:
reb9 at georgetown.edu



DIRECTING SYMPOSIUM
CLASSIC PLAYS IN A CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT

The MATC Directing Symposium is actively seeking papers and production
histories which document directors approaching classic plays in a
contemporary context.

Can the modern director capture the true essence and/or idea of a proven
classic while, simultaneously, infusing the play with a timely and/or
relevant perspective? Possible areas of focus could include: personal
experiences in contemporary interpretation of classic texts or themes;
trends in contemporary
adaptation; analysis of leading director-artists' reinterpretations of
classic plays; working methods for investigating classic texts with actors.
We are particularly interested in papers that explore and analyze how the
director's collaborative process with both actors and designers was
influenced in productions of this nature.

Please send an abstract of 150-250 words with a cover letter by November 30,
2001 NO LATE ABSTRACTS WILL BE ACCEPTED. Abstracts should include the
applicant's name, address, telephone number, email address, and any college
or university in which the applicant is affiliated. Final papers should not
exceed nine (9) pages or 2500 words. Papers will be limited to oral
presentations of fifteen to twenty minutes maximum. Please include a request
for any needed audio-visual equipment with your proposal.

Send the abstracts to:

Tom Mitchell, Department of Theatre, 4-122 Krannert Center, University of
Illinois at Urbana, Urbana, IL 61801-3741. Phone: 217-333-2893; Fax:
217-244-1861; email: tomitche at uiuc.edu

                                                           or

William Jenkins, Department of Theatre and Dance, Ball State University,
Muncie, IN 47306. Phone: 765-285-8745; email: wjenkins at gw.bsu.edu



PLAYWRITING SYMPOSIUM
THEATRE OF FACT:
WRITING, ANALYZING, AND TEACHING HISTORICALLY BASED SCRIPTS

The Symposium would like to consider the creative and analytical processes
of making a script based on fact and the pedagogical approaches to analyzing
and teaching fact-based scripts, with special attention paid to
fidelity/infidelity to history.

What is a fact-based playscript? What are the perceptions of such a script
from the playwright's, director's, and/or audience's perspectives? How does
a Playwright write about "historical events" that are obscure, debatable,
and/or inconclusive? Who has the right to tell any particular history? How
is a playwright
held accountable for her/his fact-based script? Are not all scripts
fact-based? Where is the line drawn between fidelity to history and creative
interpretation?  What is a playwright's, teacher's, or dramaturg's
responsibility in working on a play based on fact? What is a playwright's
responsibility to those s/he is writing about? How does dramatic structure
affect the meaning of the actual versus conceited events? How does the
playwright know if s/he has found the truth? How does the playwright decide
what is the best way to tell the truth? Is it ethical to alter the truth for
the sake of dramatic effect? How does the writer of a fact-based playscript
anticipate the director's and actors' interpretations?

The Symposium is also interested in the playwright's relationship with the
civic community. How can issue-oriented plays become magnets for attracting
members of the community together to examine problems? How can new, socially
relevant plays create community awareness on a larger scale? What
strategies can a playwright employ to become an interactive player with
business and civic leaders? What are the implications for theatre groups who
accept funding from corporations? What is the impact of grant money on
subject, theme, and the freedom to create?

The Playwriting is looking for papers, panels, workshops, or combinations of
the aforementioned presentations. The time limit for individual papers is
fifteen (15) minutes. Complete panels should not exceed seventy-five (75)
minutes in length--including question and answer period. It may be possible
to schedule a double session for a workshop.

CALL FOR PLAYSCRIPTS:

Playwrights of short (thirty [30] pages or less), fact-based playscripts are
encouraged to submit a script for consideration for a staged reading. The
playwright should select actors, rehearse, and be prepared to present
her/his script with the selected actors. The reading and script will then be
discussed in a public forum
("Verisimilitude or Fact: The Realities of Scripting History) designed to
illuminate the process of researching, writing, analyzing, and responding to
a fact-based script. Scripts must be accompanied by an explanation of no
more than fifty (50) words of how they are "fact-based," that is, it must be
demonstrated that they are based on any historical events (personal or
otherwise). Scripts not selected will not be critiqued nor will they be
returned.

Send proposals by November 15, 2001 to either of the symposium chairs:

Joel Murray, Dept. of Theatre Arts, University of Texas at El Paso, 500 W.
University Ave., El Paso, TX 79968-0549; Phone: 915-747-5146; email:
jmurray at utep.edu

or

Leslie Sloan Orr, Theatre Dept., Illinois State University, 15 Centennial
East, Campus Box 5700, Normal, IL 61790-5700; Phone: 309-438-2896; FAX:
309-438-5806; email: lsorr at ilstu.edu



PEDAGOGY SYMPOSIUM
THEATRE EDUCATION IN UNIVERSITY THEATRE DEPARTMENTS IN THE MIDWEST

This newest of Mid-America Theatre Conference symposia would like to
consider the importance of and the place of theatre education in university
theatre departments in the Midwest. Those institutions which have theatre
education programs are urged to share their philosophies, curricula,
successes and challenges. Those universities who may be currently developing
theatre education programs are encouraged to reflect on the impetus for the
development of their programs, goals for the future, etc. Also welcome will
be papers which question or support the place of theatre education in
university departments and schools of theatre. Abstracts should be 150-250
words long. Please include applicant name, address, telephone number, email
address, and college/university affiliation. Final papers need not exceed
nine (9) pages or 2500 words. Papers will be limited to oral presentations
of fifteen to twenty minutes maximum.

Deadline for submission is November 15, 2001.

Send proposals to either of the program chairs:

Cyndee Brown, School of Theatre, Campus Box 5700, Illinois State University,
Normal, IL 61790-5700; Phone: 309-438-5692; FAX: 309-438-5806.

                                                           or

Sandra Zielinski, School of Theatre, Campus Box 5700, Illinois State
University, Normal, IL 61790-5700; Phone: 309-438-7093; FAX: 309-438-5806;
email: skzieli at ilstu.edu


YOUNG SCHOLARS SYMPOSIUM
TWO DEBUT PANELS: ONE GRADUATE AND ONE UNDERGRADUATE

Undergraduate and Graduate students are invited to submit papers on any
topic in American theatre history for the Young Scholars Symposia, two debut
panels of the Mid-America Theatre Conference. The theme for this year's
theatre history symposium is "Theatre and the Community of Strangers" and
the issues associated with the dynamic of solidarity and the theatre's role
in the creation of community. Papers for the two Young Scholars Symposia are
welcome on any aspect of this broad mandate, or on any other topic in
American theatre history.

Students whose papers are selected will receive free conference
registration, free admission to the conference luncheons, a one-year
membership in MATC, and a cash prize of $50. Undergraduate winners will also
be paired with a conference mentor.

Papers should be 7-10 pages in length (1750-2500 words). Deadline is
December 15, 2001. Send paper along with the nomination letter to:

Kathleen McLennan, Department of Theatre Arts, University of North Dakota,
P.O. Box 8136, Grand Forks, ND 58202-8136; Phone: ; email:
kmclennan at prairie.nodak.edu