The platforms of stage horror: Defining elements and cultural characteristics

The aim of this thesis is to examine a selection of dramatic examples from specific historical time periods in order to determine the elements that manifest horror on stage. By establishing the parameters of the horror genre as it pertains to live theatre, a definition begins to form that incorporates not only characteristics of the text, but also the significant role of audience response and authorial intent. The audience's relationship to the text, which ultimately dictates what the playwright chooses to include in the drama, is a communal experience of catharsis based on the battle between good and evil that ultimately gives the horror genre meaning as well as purpose. Each of the time periods to be discussed has a direct influence on the how the horror genre is approached based on cultural characteristics. These defining elements categorize the dramatic examples included into three proposed platforms of stage horror: the emotional and mental instability of certain characters, the reflection of socio-political ideologies, and the human body as a site of manipulation and physical torture. By assessing how certain dramatic examples utilize the criteria of the definition, the goal of this thesis is to formulate a clearer understanding of how to apply these findings to an original dramatic example. The last part of this essay is a critical reflection on the creative process inspired by an exploration into stage horror. A one-act play follows this thesis as the creative culmination of these critical findings.