Meet KU's Authors

Witch Fulfillment: Adaptation Dramaturgy and Casting the Witch for Stage and Screen

Jane Barnette (Professor, Theatre & Dance)

TUE SEP 17, 6:00 PM

Lawrence Public Library Auditorium

Jane Barnette addresses the witch as a theatrical type in North America. Witch Fulfillment examines this figure in performance, considering how actors embody roles designated as witches (casting), and how dramaturgical choices (adaptation) heighten their witchy power. Through analysis of witch characters ranging from Elphaba to Medea, classic plays such as “The Crucible” and “Macbeth,” feminist adaptations—including “Sycorax,” “Obeah Opera,” and Jen Silverman’s “Witch”— and popular culture offerings, like the “Scarlet Witch” and “Jinkx Monsoon,” this book examines the dramaturgical meanings of adapting and embodying witchy roles in the twenty-first century. The book contends that the witch represents a crucial category of analysis for inclusive theatre and performance.

Barnette is the Head of Dramaturgy and a professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance, teaching courses in dramaturgy, theatre history, and script analysis, as well as seminars in theatrical adaptation and the performance of gender and sexuality. Barnette’s research also includes feminist adaptations, and student-centered pedagogy.