University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2009 Machinal: A Sourcebook For The Actress Playing "young Women" Brittney Rentschler University of Central Florida Part of the Theatre and Performance Studies Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Rentschler, Brittney, "Machinal: A Sourcebook For The Actress Playing "young Women"" (2009). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4151. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4151 MACHINAL: A SOURCEBOOK FOR THE ACTRESS PLAYING “YOUNG WOMAN” By BRITTNEY RENTSCHLER B.A. University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2006 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts in the Department of Theatre in the College of Arts and Humanities at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Spring Term 2009 © 2009 Brittney Rentschler ! "" ABSTRACT This thesis will document four phases of my rehearsal process/performance while portraying the role of Helen in Sophie Treadwell’s Machinal. The first phase of the project will be researching and analyzing historical material on: Sophie Treadwell (the playwright) Ruth Snyder (the murderess upon whom the character of Helen is based), and the actual murder that occurred in the 1920’s. The second phase that will be documented is a character analysis. I will take each episode and divide it into the following sections: given circumstances, what is said about the character by the playwright, by others, or by herself, objectives, tactics, vocal traits, and physical traits. The third phase will include a written journal of my experiences as an actor as they occurred during the rehearsals and performances. The fourth and final phase will include a self-analysis of the performance. I will reflect on my abilities in synthesizing the research and character analysis found in phase one and two into the actual performance. In addition, Committee Chair, Mark Brotherton, and my thesis Committee Members, Kate Ingram and Vanduyn Wood will also give written responses. The performances will be held February 14-17, and 21-24, 2007 in the University of Central Florida’s Black Box Theatre. Dr. Julia Listengarten will direct the performance. ! """ ACKNOWLEDMENTS “It is in the shelter of each other that the people live…” –Irish Proverb There are so many people I have been lucky enough to share this journey with. My family: Mom, Dad, and Erika- thank you for your unconditional love and patience. Every success I have I share with you; you are my foundation. The faculty of UCF: thank you for the inspiration, knowledge, and dedication. Mark Brotherton, who I would not have made it through this process without! Thank you for your red ink and encouragement. Kate Ingram, who never gave up on pushing me and gave me the greatest gift of all- the opportunity to learn, love, and embrace my own voice. Be Boyd, for teaching me to knock myself off balance. Tad Ingram, for ESB, counseling, and setting my path to this University. Anne Hering and the Orlando Shakespeare Theater, for being understanding and forgiving with time beyond belief. Much appreciation goes to my entire committee, including Vandy Wood, and my wonderful, gifted director, Julia Listengarten. Also, thanks to the entire team of talented actors, designers, and technicians that made Machinal a reality. The teachers of my past: thank you for shaping my love of theatre and my belief that it could be my life: Dennis McLernon, Will York, Ward Harbaaur, Roy Hudson, Barry Austin, Melanie Palmeri. My SARS All Stars: the classmates who I have laughed, cried, and rolled around on dirty floors with- thank you for sharing such precious pieces of your heart with me. My own personal Richard Roe: who loves life and tastes joy. Thank you for the new eyes. For all my fellow artists and friends, thank you for inspiring me daily…”We are the music makers, we are the dreamers of the dreams”-Arthur O’Shaughnessy (Brainymedia). ! 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I.4(!+P!*)P)*),$)4!11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111!QG! ! # CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION “Treadwell strove to represent feminine vacillation and desperation in the search for selfhood in an altering and amorphous society” (Heck-Rabi 1976: 217) “I do not wish women to have power over men, but over themselves! … The helpless- the degraded position of women is the presumption of my mind…” (Dickey 115) -Sophie Treadwell, 1921 Sophie Treadwell’s Machinal, based on the murder committed by Ruth Snyder, was written and produced in 1928. In her introduction to the play, Ms. Treadwell asks the reader to explore society as a “machine”, the literal English translation of the French title. We meet a young woman caught in a world, or “machine”, where she cannot operate, and Ms. Treadwell is careful to mention that this is “an ordinary young woman, any woman” (Treadwell xii). Ms Treadwell describes the plan of the play as: To tell this story by showing the different phases of life that the woman comes in contact with, and in none of which she finds any place, any peace. The woman is essentially soft, tender, and the life around her is essentially hard, mechanized. Business, home, marriage, having a child, seeking pleasure- all are difficult for her- mechanical, nerve nagging. Only in illicit love does she find anything with life in it for her, and when she loses this, the desperate effort to win free to it again is her undoing (Treadwell xii). In 1928, Sophie Treadwell was a journalist and wrote Machinal based on her inspiration from work. Covering the trial of Ruth Snyder, an actual