Quiet Virtue or Roaring Indignation: One Actor's Quest, and Ultimate Failure, to Reveal Complexity in Shakespeare's Cordelia

Authors

Mary Lucy Lockamy, University of Nebraska at LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

5-2010

Document Type

Article

Comments

A Thesis by Mary Lucy Lockamy Presented to the Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements for the Degree of Master of Fine Arts, Major Theatre Arts, Under the Supervision of Harris Smith, in Lincoln, Nebraska in May 2010 Copyright 2010 Mary Lucy Lockamy

Abstract

QUIET VIRTUE OR ROARING INDIGNATION: ONE ACTOR'S QUEST, AND ULTIMATE FAILURE, TO REVEAL COMPLEXITY IN SHAKESPEARE'S CORDELIA Mary Lucy Lockamy, M.F.A University of Nebraska, 2010

Advisor: Harris Smith

This thesis documents the performance process I underwent while tackling the role of Cordelia in William Shakespeare’s King Lear in the November 2009 production at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This document is the culmination of a three-year endeavor to attain a Master of Fine Arts in Acting.

There are three main sections. In Part One, I focus on Cordelia’s presence in the story of King Lear, before Shakespeare ever wrote his version, in order to compare and contrast earlier Cordelias to Shakespeare’s Cordelia. In this discussion and the ones that follow, I focus on the traditional conception of the character of Cordelia as simple and one-dimensional, and in the end, I argue that modern audiences, and I as the actor, are not satisfied with a character who exhibits her virtuousness only through steady calm and sweet composure.

Part Two comprises the journal I kept during the rehearsal process of King Lear from the first day of rehearsal until closing night. It is an informal and personal piece that describes my frustrations, elations, musings, and discoveries that are all normal to an actor’s exploration of a role.

Part Three is a collection of critiques from the three main members of the Graduate Acting faculty at UNL. In this portion, each faculty member provides his or her insight as it relates to my performance of my thesis role and my general progress as an actor here at UNL.

I also include appendices to each section, including a brief selection of annotated bibliographies, images, journal entries, a theatre review, and feedback transcriptions.