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Doctoral Degrees (Art History)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10413/13446

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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (Art History) by Subject "South Africa."

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    Developing a methodology for creative interpretation of traditional dramatic texts in post-apartheid theatre: a case study of Shakespearean interpretation at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
    (2021) Ngcongo-James, Nellie Nicola.; Pratt, Deirdre.; Young-Jahangeer, Miranda.
    While student demographics in higher education have changed to reflect South Africa’s multicultural society, many universities are still offering traditional Drama curricula with colonial-based content. This thesis focuses on developing a methodology for the creative interpretation of traditional Shakespearean texts in the post-apartheid theatre and educational space. Shakespeare is still the most read and most often produced playwright in the world, but the thesis argues that if his texts are to be taught, this cannot be in an ahistorical or political vacuum, and the focus should be on performance. From within a constructivist approach, a case study methodology was used to explore combining Text Study with workshop theatre to facilitate the interpretation of traditional texts, as well as integrating discrete syllabus items into a holistic teaching and learning process. Digital technology was used as an innovative part of the proposed teaching and learning methodology, as the current student body are now the ‘virtual generation’. Constructivist pedagogy, together with postcolonial and decolonial theories, provided the theoretical framework for the study. The empirical work was in the form of a case study, comprising teaching the Text Study module and developing a production as part of the process, and was carried out as an extra-curricular research project with students of the Drama Education Department at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The socio-political-economic context was post-apartheid South Africa, with the student group being predominantly African, and the majority, isiZulu-speaking, who were for the most part, economically - and educationally - disadvantaged. At the time the empirical work was carried out, the Drama Education Department curriculum at UKZN was heavily loaded with the study of classical texts, in particular, Shakespearean plays. The results suggested that the methodology developed not only resulted in an enthusiastic response from student participants, but also led to a more scholarly approach to the actual texts. It also gave the participants, who were student teachers, insights into ways in which Drama Education could be dealt with in their own teaching practice. The product of the research was a model of teaching methodology for creative interpretation of Western traditional dramatic texts in Africa contexts. This pedagogical approach has the potential to form the core of an agential curriculum transformation process in Drama Education, as well as ultimately contributing to the decolonising of not only Shakespeare, but university disciplines emerging out of the Liberal Arts.
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    Unlocking the past: encountering history through museum theatre, as explored in the KwaMuhle Museum, Durban.
    (2021) Jenkins, Stephanie.; Young-Jahangeer, Miranda.
    This thesis explores the use of museum theatre as a means to teach, learn about and interrogate past narratives through the use of performance in places of historical significance. The research is situated within the discipline of drama and performance studies, and focuses specifically on performing history in museums. The study adopts a case study approach, using a self-written and directed museum theatre production Beer Halls, Pass Laws and Just Cause in the KwaMuhle Museum (the former Native Administration Department) in Durban, South Africa. Through the creation and staging of the museum theatre production specifically aimed at Grade 11 learners who are taking the subject of History, the performance adopts an experiential learning approach that engages the senses, minds, bodies and emotions of the attendants. The play feeds into and out of the Term 4 Grade 11 Curriculum and Policy Statement (CAPS) History syllabus, mainly through re-enacted verbatim accounts, in which the learners are encouraged to participate. The performance and study aim to move beyond book learning, through adopting critical pedagogical theorical frameworks, that encourage critical thinking and active engagement (a combination of mental, physical and emotional learning) of the learners with the actorguides, the performed narratives, the museum site and their fellow attendants. In addition, arts-based methods, including the use of objects, poetry and drawing, are employed as one form of data analysis, in addition to focus groups and interviews, to reflect, express and share what was experienced by the learners, teachers and members of the public in the performance. Through the inclusion of performance in historical spaces, the past can be brought into the present to encourage dialogic learning where different narratives are brought into contact with one another through site-specific work.