Are you teaching... Feminist Theatre?

Looking for engaging new resources to teach feminist theatre?

We've assembled a collection of audio-visual and written materials for you and your students to explore. From dynamic full-length productions, to insightful interviews with leading theatremakers and academics, here's how Digital Theatre+ could enrich your theatre program...

Not familiar with feminist theatre? Watch this discussion on what makes theatre 'feminist' in 'Making Feminist Theatre and Making Theatre Feminist', an on-demand webinar in collaboration with ATHE.

"Last semester, a student was in tears at the end of the brilliant staging of A Doll's House. She marvelled at the power of the performance, and vowed to 'see something like that in person'. The best we can hope for in education is to ignite curiosity and foster lifelong learning. Digital Theatre+ is a vital tool in achieving both."

– Elizabeth, English Instructor at Northeastern Technical College

Carrie Cracknell's A Doll's House

A revelatory revival of Ibsen's classic three-act play, Carrie Cracknell's 2012 production of A Doll's House was captured live at London's Young Vic. It received widespread critical and public acclaim, including an Olivier nomination for Hattie Morahan as Nora.

This discussion of feminism is enriched by Ibsen’s own feelings. In 1898, the Norwegian Association for Women’s Rights held a banquet in his honour, at which he declared that he “must decline the honour of being said to have worked for the Women’s Rights Movement”, adding that he was “not very sure what Women’s Rights really are”.

These contexts, along with performance history and textual analysis, are discussed against Stephens’s translation in Catherine Love’s extended essay A Critical Introduction to A Doll's House on DT+.

Supporting studies of the 2012 production is a DT+ series of interviews with Carrie Cracknell, Quinny Sacks (Choreographer), Ian MacNeil (Set Designer), and more.

Here, Cracknell discusses her approach to research and rehearsal, and shares insights into a climactic moment in the play: Nora’s performance of the tarantella:

“I felt very strongly that the tarantella was one of the few places where Nora was allowed to express something of herself. She is released, in some way, by the opportunity to dance. The way that we’ve staged it explores the idea that it starts by being a dance for men who are observing her, and it ends by being a dance for herself.”

Carrie Cracknell provides an invaluable insight into her process in this On Directing interview.

Breach Theatre's It's True, It's True, It's True

For a more nuanced discussion of feminist theatre and the forms it can take, we recommend contrasting A Doll’s House with Breach Theatre’s award-winning 2020 verbatim piece, It’s True, It’s True, It’s True, which tells the story of the 17th century rape trial of painter Artemisia Gentileschi.

As Jen Harvie explains in A Critical Introduction to It's True, It's True, It's True, this piece “exposed how patriarchal culture condones sexual violence against women”, a theme she further unpacks with co-directors Ellice Stevens and Billy Barrett in the audio interview, The Making of It's True, It's True, It's True.

In contrast to Ibsen’s contemporary discussions of feminism and women’s rights for A Doll’s House, Harvie also highlights how “the verbatim use of real court transcripts from the 17th century makes the point that male violence against women has remained unchanged throughout history”. 

Dive into Feminist Theatre with Digital Theatre+

Feminist theatre is an invaluable resource for English, Theatre, and Performing Arts students, helping to broaden their perspective on the world and encourage critical thinking through complex and wide-ranging narratives.

What’s more, both A Doll’s House and It’s True, It’s True, It’s True encompass multiple styles and forms of theatre. Explore their influence on – and engagement with – Modernist and Verbatim Theatre in Catherine Love’s invaluable Study Unit, or in our Key Concepts in Modernism e-learning resources, which include extracts from A Doll’s House.

Explore these resources with a free trial to Digital Theatre+ today!

If you are already a customer, you can watch Carrie Cracknell's A Doll's House on DT+.