Strange bedfellows? Visual media use and intermediality in Shakespeare productions

Foster, Shari Lynn (2013). Strange bedfellows? Visual media use and intermediality in Shakespeare productions. University of Birmingham. M.Litt.

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Abstract

Drawing on archive material, reviews and personal observation, this thesis examines the use of visual media in stage productions of Shakespeare’s plays. Utilizing examples from the period between 1905 and 2011, the thesis focuses on intermedial productions, explores the media use in Shakespeare productions, and asks why certain Shakespeare plays seem to be more adaptable to the inclusion of visual media. The opening chapters consider the characteristics and evolution of theatre, the incorporation of media to represent a changing view of time space, the societal shifts affecting the theatre art and the audience, and Klaus Bruhn Jensen’s three level definition of intermediality which provides a framework for the categorizing the media usage within Shakespeare productions. Subsequent chapters consider Jensen’s three levels of intermediality and relate it to the use of media elements within professional stage productions of Shakespeare plays, concluding by revisiting the question of media incorporation in productions of Shakespeare’s plays and consider the possible intermedial future of theatre and Shakespeare production.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Masters by Research > M.Litt.)

Award Type:

Masters by Research > M.Litt.

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