So much to say...

...and it's been so long! My apologies faithful readers for leaving you so long in the dark :) This month has been incredibly full - both with joy and loss. My grandmother passed away unexpectedly at the end of September, and between the beginning of October and the middle of November Sam and I have 4 weddings of friends, plus a baby shower for his sister Briony (yay, we're going to be an aunt and uncle in December!), not to mention a play opening (tonight!) and various conferences throughout the state (the latter has been mainly Sam's terrain). Add papers, presentations, and an incredible amount of reading for classes (for me) into the mix...which has left little time for blogging. And then trying to sort through my thoughts for something coherent to say! There have been days and weeks I've been so tired that I have done some tremendously silly things such as:
A) Go to get my curling iron, plug it in, attempt to turn it on, only to realize it's actually my hairdryer
B) Knock things over at random at every possible opportunity
C) Forget at least one critical item (i.e. wallet, cell phone, readings for class, etc.) every time I leave the house.
D) Wake up at 5:00 am, my head spinning with my assignments for the day and still somewhat in dreamland

In fact, I'm starting to nod off now, so forgive me if I'm less than brilliant :) However, in starting on research for my grad seminar paper on American Indian participation in the performances of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in America and Europe in the late 1800s, I was leafing through my undergrad theater history textbook, and low and behold, came across a succinct definition of theater historiography. I thought I'd share it, in case my attempts to explain it thus far have not made complete sense. Perhaps it will give you a slightly better idea of what the heck I'm doing! I hope to add new definitions as my understanding grows, but this seems to be a good primer. Enjoy!

"How theater history is studied and analyzed, a discipline known as theater historiography, has become a particular concern of some scholars in recent years. Many contemporary historians argue that there have been fallacies in the traditional representation of history which need to be rectified. They argue that such historical errors are a result of flawed methodologies or flawed approaches. They particularly disagree with attempts to create a linear presentation which focuses on cause and effect."

The text goes on to explain some specific approaches under the umbrella of historiography:

Revisionist historians - "stress that history has usually been told from the point of view of a social elite; they also suggest that significant 'mainstream' phenomena have been ignored because historians focus on what is revolutionary."

Feminist historians - "argue that the place of women in theater history has not been carefully explored."

Deconstructionists - "argue that history is written and taught by people in power and therefore needs to be analyzed in terms of who is empowered by history and who is not...[they] oppose the concept of linear development; instead, they often see history as a series of ruptures. They argue against the traditional evolutionary or cause-and-effect approach to historical events."

Multicultural historians - "focus on groups which have been underrepresented in the course of history."

Semioticians - "argue that theater historians should focus on the response of the audiences to the various elements of a production which function as signs and thus have inherent meaning for the viewer...Semioticians also ask what various elements signify to the audience (such as lobby spaces)."

~ From Living Theater: A History, by Edwin Wilson and Alvin Goldfarb, 1994, pgs 14-15 (I'll save the super- academic citing style for my research papers...)