Genet's The Maids: performativity in performance

Author: Eldridge, Lizzie

Source: Studies in Theatre & Performance, Volume 25, Number 2, August 2005 , pp. 99-114(16)

Publisher: Intellect

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Abstract:

The notion of performativity has become a significant means of understanding the construction of sexual and gendered identities. Ironically, the same concept has posed certain problems for theatre studies because of the definitional tensions between performativity and theatricality. The following study of Genet's The Maids as both playtext and production proposes that, in this example, theatricality is the vehicle for the expression of performativity and that Genet's drama prefigures contemporary strands of cultural thought and theory.

Keywords: Genet; The Maids; Judith Butler; performativity; theatricality; transubstantiation

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1386/stap.25.2.99/1

Affiliations: 1: Queen Margaret University College

Publication date: 2005-08-01

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Studies in Theatre and Performance is a peer-reviewed journal which fosters a progressive forum to explore the nuances of theatre practice. The journal provides a critical scope to include other related disciplines in its scrutiny of the stage, exploring the interplay between performance, audience and dramatic practice.
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