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Young Audiences, Theatre and the Cultural Conversation

  • Book
  • © 2014

Overview

Editors:
  1. John O'Toole

    1. Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne, South Brisbane, Australia

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  2. Ricci-Jane Adams

    1. Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia

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  3. Michael Anderson

    1. Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

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  4. Bruce Burton

    1. School of Education and Professional Studies, Griffith University, Queensland, Australia

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  5. Robyn Ewing

    1. Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

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  • Offers rare insights on how adolescent and post-adolescent young audiences experience and appreciate the theatre
  • Results from a six year study involving three Australian states and thirteen major performing arts companies
  • A thorough investigation into the extent to which young audiences are part of our society's cultural conversation

Part of the book series: Landscapes: the Arts, Aesthetics, and Education (LAAE, volume 12)

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Table of contents (12 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xvii
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • John O’Toole
    Pages 1-15

  3. The TheatreSpace Project, Its Partners and Its Purposes

    • Michael Anderson, Josephine Fleming
    Pages 17-31

  4. Access and the Practicalities of Attendance

    • Christine Sinclair
    Pages 33-47

  5. The Context of the Performance Event

    • Madonna Stinson
    Pages 49-63

  6. The Education Landscape: Building Engaged Theatre-Goers

    • Kate Donelan, Richard Sallis
    Pages 65-82

  7. Young Audiences from the Educators’ Perspective

    • Robyn Ewing, Josephine Fleming, Bruce Burton, Madonna Stinson
    Pages 83-97

  8. The Industry Partners’ Perceptions

    • Josephine Fleming, Robyn Ewing, John Hughes
    Pages 99-114

  9. Engagement and Liveness

    • Penny Bundy
    Pages 115-127

  10. Building Theatre Confidence

    • Christine Sinclair, Ricci-Jane Adams
    Pages 129-144

  11. Theatre Literacy

    • Bruce Burton, Penny Bundy, Robyn Ewing
    Pages 145-158

  12. ‘It’s Real’: Genre and Performance Style

    • Angela O’Brien
    Pages 159-176

  13. Conclusion: A Continuum for Planning

    • Christine Sinclair, Ricci-Jane Adams, John O’Toole
    Pages 177-198

  14. Back Matter

    Pages 199-201
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Keywords

About this book

This volume offers rare insights into the connection between young audiences and the performing arts. Based on studies of adolescent and post-adolescent audiences, ages 14 to 25, the book examines to what extent they are part of our society’s cultural conversation. It studies how these young people read and understand theatrical performance. It looks at what the educational components in their theatre literacy are, and what they make of the whole social event of theatre. It studies their views on the relationship between what they themselves decide and what others decide for them. The book uses qualitative and quantitative data collected in a six-year study carried out in the three largest Australian States, thirteen major performing arts companies, including the Sydney Opera House, three state theatre companies and three funding organisations. The book’s perspectives are derived from world-wide literature and company practices and its significance and ramifications are international.The book is written to be engaging and accessible to theatre professionals and lay readers interested in theatre, as well as scholars and researchers. “This extraordinary book thoroughly explains why young people (ages 14-25+) do and do not attend theatre into adulthood by delineating how three inter-linked factors (literacy, confidence, and etiquette) influence their decisions. Given that theatre happens inside spectators’ minds, the authors balance the theatre equation by focusing upon young spectators and thereby dispel numerous beliefs held by theatre artists and educators. Each clearly written chapter engages readers with astute insights and compelling examples of pertinent responses from young people, teachers, and theatre professionals. To stem the tide of decreasing theatre attendance, this highly useful book offers pragmatic strategies for artistic, educational, and marketing directors, as well as national theatre organizations and arts councils around the world. I have no doubt that its brilliantly conceived research, conducted across multiple contexts in Australia, will make a significant and original contribution to the profession of theatre on an international scale.” Jeanne Klein, University of Kansas, USA “Young Audiences, Theatre and the Cultural Conversation is a compelling and comprehensive study on attitudes and habits of youth theatre audiences by leading international scholars in the field. This benchmark study offers unique insights by and for theatre makers and administrators, theatre educators and researchers, schools, parents, teachers, students, audience members of all ages. A key strength within the book centers on the emphasis of the participant voices, particularly the voices of the youth. Youth voices, along with those of teachers and theatre artists, position the extensive field research front and center.” George Belliveau, The University of British Columbia, Canada

Reviews

“This extraordinary book thoroughly explains why young people (ages 14-25+) do and do not attend theatre into adulthood by delineating how three inter-linked factors (literacy, confidence, and etiquette) influence their decisions. Given that theatre happens inside spectators’ minds, the authors balance the theatre equation by focusing upon young spectators and thereby dispel numerous beliefs held by theatre artists and educators. Each clearly written chapter engages readers with astute insights and compelling examples of pertinent responses from young people, teachers, and theatre professionals. To stem the tide of decreasing theatre attendance, this highly useful book offers pragmatic strategies for artistic, educational, and marketing directors, as well as national theatre organizations and arts councils around the world. I have no doubt that its brilliantly conceived research, conducted across multiple contexts in Australia, will make a significant and original contribution to the profession of theatre on an international scale.” Jeanne Klein, University of Kansas, USA

“Young Audiences, Theatre and the Cultural Conversation is a compelling and comprehensive study on attitudes and habits of youth theatre audiences by leading international scholars in the field. This benchmark study offers unique insights by and for theatre makers and administrators, theatre educators and researchers, schools, parents, teachers, students, audience members of all ages.

A key strength within the book centers on the emphasis of the participant voices, particularly the voices of the youth.  Youth voices, along with those of teachers and theatre artists, position the extensive field research front and center.” George Belliveau, The University of British Columbia, Canada

Editors and Affiliations

  • Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne, South Brisbane, Australia

    John O'Toole

  • Melbourne Graduate School of Education, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia

    Ricci-Jane Adams

  • Faculty of Education and Social Work, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Michael Anderson, Robyn Ewing

  • School of Education and Professional Studies, Griffith University, Queensland, Australia

    Bruce Burton

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Young Audiences, Theatre and the Cultural Conversation

  • Editors: John O'Toole, Ricci-Jane Adams, Michael Anderson, Bruce Burton, Robyn Ewing

  • Series Title: Landscapes: the Arts, Aesthetics, and Education

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7609-8

  • Publisher: Springer Dordrecht

  • eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Education (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2014

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-94-007-7608-1Published: 08 January 2014

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-94-017-7943-2Published: 17 September 2016

  • eBook ISBN: 978-94-007-7609-8Published: 17 December 2013

  • Series ISSN: 1573-4528

  • Series E-ISSN: 2214-0069

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XVII, 201

  • Number of Illustrations: 48 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Creativity and Arts Education, Performing Arts, Early Childhood Education

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