The Public Reading Career of Agnes Moorehead: an Investigation of Her Theory and Practice
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Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1987 The Public Reading Career of Agnes Moorehead: An Investigation of Her Theory and Practice. Orville Leon Perkins Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Perkins, Orville Leon, "The ubP lic Reading Career of Agnes Moorehead: An Investigation of Her Theory and Practice." (1987). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 4467. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/4467 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 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O ther_______________________________________________________________________________ UMI THE PUBLIC READING CAREER OF AGNES MOOREHEAD: AN INVESTIGATION OF HER THEORY AND PRACTICE A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy m The Department of Speech Communication, Theatre, and Communication Disorders by Orville Leon Perkins B. A., Southwest Texas State University, 1971 M. A., Southwest Texas State University, 1977 December, 1987 Acknowledgements This study took many years to complete. I was supported and encouraged by many people. I thank Stephanie Ducote, who typed the rough drafts for each of the chapters, and Beth Nixon and Ricky Sheets, who typed the final draft with patience and skill. I thank my mother and father for their love and guidance, and B. Jaye Schooley, who was always ready to listen to my tales of woe. I especially thank Grady Prados, who always believed that I would achieve success though I did not believe it myself. I thank Dr. Francine Merritt, who was always willing to give of her time and advice. Finally, my most sincerest graditude I give to my major advisor, Dr. Mary Frances HopKins, who never gave up even when I reached my lowest moments. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter INTRODUCTION............................................ vii AGNES MOOREHEAD: A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH AND BRIEF HISTORY OF HER PROFESSIONAL CAREER.............1 Early Years Education Early Professional Life Radio Career Association With Orson Welles Motion Picture Career Television Career Later Stage Work Other Professional Activities Last Illness Summary Endnotes....................................................29 II. MOOREHEAD AND DON JUAN IN HELL.........................33 Laughton, Gregory and An Armful of Books Don Juan In Hell The Text The Company The Role of Dona Ana Staging Touring Don Juan In Hell Moorehead Directs Don Juan In Hell Don Juan In Hell. 1972 Summary Endnotes.................................................. 64 III. MOOREHEAD'S SOLO READING CAREER........................68 That Fabulous Redhead--Original Tour Staging Outline of Program and History of Original Tour Later Tours and Production Changes in Moorehead's One-Woman Program An Analysis of Moorehead's Recorded Performances Review of Critical Comments Summary Endnotes.................................................. 109 IV. MOOREHEAD'S THEORY OF PERFORMANCE. 113 Pedagogical Influences on Moorehead's Art of Interpretation Nature and Purpose of the Theatre On the Performer A Theory of Performance Contemporary Theories of Oral Performance Found in College Textbooks of the 1950's and 1960's Moorehead's Theory and Textbook Approaches Compared Endnotes....................................... 148 V. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS............................. 154 Cultural Renaissance in the United States in the Second Half of the Twentieth Century Oral Performance of Literature after World War II Prominent Oral Performers in the Years Following World War II An Analysis of Moorehead's Programming and Performance Style Agnes Moorehead: Solo Performer of Literature Endnotes................................................ 179 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 182 APPENDIX 191 A Synoposis of That Fabulous Redhead (Spring Tour, 1954) ABSTRACT Agnes Moorehead worked as a professional actress for forty-five years. She was employed in all the major entertainment fields of her time--theatre/ vaudeville, radio, film, television and the recording industry. A significant reason for this almost constant employment was Moorehead's career as a public reader of literature. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, it seeks to document Moorehead's public reading career with emphasis upon her solo performances of literature and in so doing to provide an investigation of those people and events that most influenced her success as an oral reader. The second purpose is to postulate Moorehead's theory of performance. It is hypothesized that any actor develops a personal theory of performance whether or not this theory has been formulated either consciously or unconsciously. Therefore, it is reasoned that Moorehead's theory of performance can be discovered by examining her practice and her comments about performance. Chapter I provides a biographical sketch of Moorehead's life. Chapter II contains a history of Moorehead's participation as both actress and director in three separate productions of George Bernard Shaw's Don Juan In Hell; attention is especially given to the first of these v productions, directed by Charles Laughton and produced by Paul Gregory. Chapter III is a discussion of Moorehead's one-woman program of readings, That Fabulous Redhead. produced by Laughton and Gregory, and a description of its conception, staging, touring history and subsequent developments. Chapter IV is an examination of Moorehead's theory of performance based upon her practice and her comments about performance. The Appendix to the study contains a copy of Moorehead's original script for her solo program. Moorehead was a success as an oral performer of literature. The longevity of her career supports this conclusion. Moorehead's reading career was largely influenced by the theories and practices of Laughton and Gregory. Her theory was also in agreement with those theories of performance advocated by the authors of major college textbooks on interpretation during the period of her performance career. Similarily, her practice was in harmony with the practice of other important oral performers of the period. vi Introduction Agnes Moorehead worked as a professional actress from 1929 until her death in 1974. She was employed in all the major entertainment fields of her time--theatre, vaudeville, radio, film, television and the recording industry. She was a dedicated, indefatigable performer who often began rehearsals for a new production before completing the terms of a then current engagement. Although known primarily as a versatile character