Toward a Dramaturgical Sensibility: Landscape and Journey with DD Kugler, Mark Lamos, and Michael Lupu
Toward a Dramaturgical Sensibility begins with a moment in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra in which Cleopatra says to Antony, “Not know me yet?” With these words Cleopatra poses a simple but fundamental human problem: What can we know? She and Anthony have known each other for years, at times gloriously — emotionally, mentally, and in the archaic sense of the word, physically — but still the challenge of knowing hangs in the air. Cleopatra’s question reminds us that knowledge is not simple: that it is as likely to create yearning as satisfaction; that it is not confined to any one part of the self; that it is far from intellect alone. It reminds us — as do most great plays — that life is part wonder, part terror.
Available on Amazon.
Coming Home Again: American Family Drama and the Figure of the Prodigal
Coming Home Again explores the representation of the family in American drama, in particular, on various uses and conventions of the figure of the prodigal husband or son. It considers the lineage and function of this figure from the writings of Augustine, medieval iconography, Renaissance prodigal son plays, and temperance melodramas to such contemporary manifestations as television talk shows, the Recovery Movement, and plays by contemporary writers including Spalding Gray, Ntozake Shange, and Cherrie Moraga.
Available on Amazon.
Dramaturgy in American Theater: A Source Book with Susan Jonas and Michael Lupu
“This comprehensive work is truly the first textbook in the field of dramaturgy. Most of the material – much of it by leaders in all areas of the theater – was commissioned for this collection, rather than being reprinted. Its currency and importance cannot be overestimated. A review of the history of dramaturgy as a profession, together with its European antecedents, gives students a sense of historical context. Selections from respected and recognized names in theater provoke student interest and communicate the benefits of those experts’ experiences.” From the Publisher.
Available on Amazon.
Essays and Editing
Co-Editor, LMDA Dramaturgy Bibliography, 1997-2021.
Foreword. Dramaturgy in the Making: A User’s Guide for Theatre Practitioners by Katalin Trencsényi. London: Methuen, 2015.
“Canadian Road Trip: An Oblique State of Mind.” Canadian Theatre Review: Creative Research and New Play Development 119 (Summer, 2004), Brian Quirt and DD Kugler, Eds.
“Dramaturgy and Silence,” Theatre Topics: Dramaturgy Special Issue 13.1 (2003): 25-33.
Editor and contributor, LMDA Review. Fall 1998 to spring 2001: six issues.
“Rehearsing Dramaturgy: Time Is Passing.” Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism 13.1 (1998): 103-12.
“Rehearsing Dramaturgy: Olivia’s Moment.” Theatre Topics 9.2 (1999): 197-202.
Co-Editor with Susan Jonas and Michael Lupu. Dramaturgy in American Theater: A Source Book. Ft. Worth: Harcourt Brace, 1997.
“Foucault on Discourse; O’Neill as Discourse.” Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism 13.1 (1998): 103-12.
Articles on “dramaturgy,” the “dramaturg,” and “theatricality,” Encyclopedia of English Studies. Jefferson City, MO: Scholastic Press, 1994.
Articles on the teaching of Sophocles, Yeats, and Eliot. Oregon English, 1980, 1982.
Inquiries: Contact G. Proehl.
Geoff Proehl, Writer, Pacific Northwest 