Parlour Conflagrations: Science and Special Effects in Amateur Theatricals Guidebooks

Authors

  • Eileen Curley Marist College

Abstract

The article analyzes the special effects advice contained in nineteenth-century guidebooks for amateur theatricals. Most of the guidebooks include instructions for potentially explosive effects while simultaneously steering amateurs away from technologically complex productions. The article thus analyzes the guidebooks within commercial theatrical and popular science publishing traditions, arguing that the technological advice is included to appeal to a broader popular science readership as well as theatre patrons who are interested in the technology of the stage.

Author Biography

Eileen Curley, Marist College

Eileen Curley is an Associate Professor of English and Theatre at Marist College in Poughkeepsie NY. Her current research focuses on women who used amateur theatricals at the turn of the twentieth century to manipulate proscribed gender roles and gain public power through performance. Her research has appeared in the Journal of American Drama and Theatre, Theatre Symposium, Performing Arts Resources, and edited collections. At Marist, she teaches numerous dramatic literature, writing and theatre courses, where she also periodically designs scenery for campus productions. She has worked on more than fifty shows at academic and professional venues in New York, Iowa and Indiana, primarily as a designer or props master. She earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in Theatre History, Theory and Literature from Indiana University and a B.A. in Theatre from Grinnell College in Iowa.

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Published

2015-03-25

How to Cite

Curley, E. (2015). Parlour Conflagrations: Science and Special Effects in Amateur Theatricals Guidebooks. Popular Entertainment Studies, 6(1), 26–41. Retrieved from https://novaojs.newcastle.edu.au/kulumun/index.php/pes/article/view/151

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 1 (2015)

Section

Articles

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