Theater and Human Flourishing

The Humanities and Human Flourishing series publishes edited volumes that explore the role of human flourishing in the central disciplines of the humanities, and whether and how the humanities can increase human happiness.

This volume presents essays on the significance of theater to wellbeing and human flourishing. Combining scholarship in psychology and positive psychology with new perspectives in theater and performance studies, the volume features eleven prominent theater and performance studies scholars who offer original, previously unpublished examinations of the social benefits of theater and performance. This volume explores the questions: Why is theater considered a "social good"? And what makes theater a valuable contribution to happiness and wellbeing?

Contributors point to theater as a rich source of community and examine the unique value of live, theatrical performance as a medium through which trauma as well as socio-political differences can be expressed. The personal, societal, and artistic benefits of theater are examined through chapters on actors' suffering and acting training, community theater, theater and trauma, breaking social barriers through theater, etiquette in the theater, and the theatrical community as a refuge for minoritized groups. Like other titles in this series, Theater and Human Flourishing uses an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach, which here breaches the divide between science-focused fields that study human flourishing and the artistry of theatrical performance.

Harvey Young is the Dean of the College of Fine Arts at Boston University. He is the author or editor of ten books, including Theatre & Race, Embodying Black Experience, The Cambridge Companion to African American Theatre and, most recently, Theatre after Empire.

Series Editor's Foreword by James O. Pawelski
Introduction by Harvey Young

Chapter 1: "Actors as Surrogate Sufferers: Toward a Model for Well-Being in Acting Training"
Scott Magelssen

Chapter 2: "The Potential of Pain: Conflict Dramaturgy and Transformation in the Theatre"
Laura A. Lodewyck

Chapter 3: "Braver Angels: Perfoming Comity in a Polarized Era"
John Fletcher

Chapter 4: "Beyond Survival: Theatre of the Oppressed, Flourishing while Fighting, and Fighting to Flourish"
Kelly Howe

Chapter 5: "Community Musical Theatre as a Human Flourishing Project"
Stacy Wolf

Chapter 6: "Teaching Theatre and Detroit History for Undergraduates to Flourish"
Lisa L. Biggs

Chapter 7: "Changing States: English-Language Theatre in Quebec"
Erin Hurley

Chapter 8: "Refusing to Flourish: Jennifer Moon and Anant Shinar Perform Self-Help"
Gwyneth Shanks

Chapter 9: "On Laughter and the Bonds of Community"
Harvey Young

Chapter 10: "Touching Theatre: Practice, Criticism and Aesthetics of Touch in the Flourishing Theatrical Moment"
Marcia Ferguson

Chapter 11: "Theatre, Performance and Community Cultural Development for Human Thriving"
Stephanie Etheridge Woodson

Chapter 12: "Theatrical Flourishing: A Roundtable Discussion"

Index