Theater Representation of Sexual Plurality in Taiwan (1990-99)

• Main Authors: Liang-jun Chen, 陳亮君
• Other Authors: Hui-ling Chou
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2008
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/qv3s97

碩士 === 國立中央大學 === 英美語文學研究所 === 96 === 　　In this thesis I aim to explore the social function of sexuality performance in the little theater during the nineties of Taiwan. The little theater artists made their social debates on the theme of sexual plurality on stage. In the nineties, in the space of little theater, their works reflected the living difficulties of sexual plurality group and criticized the unitary sexual code’s oppression. My investigation began by asking what kinds of sexual plurality have been represented in the little theater, by what theatrical skills, and the possible reasons of theater artists’ putting on these performances. 　　I assert in the first chapter that after the lift of martial law in 1987, some theater artists composed works which directly confronted the society’s sexual morality. In the following decade, theater artists who concerned about sexual plurality formed a coincident alliance with sexual emancipation scholars to try to challenge the rigid sexual norms. The discourse of sexual emancipation provided a theoretical base for my analyzing the meaning of sexual plurality performances. I then chart three important theater works in Chapter Two, and propose that the theme of pain was so highlighted by theater artists in their works that it reflected the ever-existed sexual oppression. In Chapter Three, I continue to bring out that the theme of pain has been seasoned by comic flavor in other works by other artists who also took sexual plurality rights to heart. Although the theatrical change could not prove that the sexual oppression has already been fully emancipated, it indicated that theater representation of sexual plurality became more developed. Finally, I conclude that these sexual plurality works made contributions to the little theater cultural resources on the aspects of theme, character and theatrical skills. Through these works, artists helped to cultivate a group of audience who supported sexual plurality representations.