What is a dramaturgy blog?

This blog will serve as a source of research and information for the cast and crew of GPAC's Ragtime. Each post will address specific topics or areas of interest presented in the show. Dramaturgy is meant to highlight the historical, social, political, and economical context of the play as well as answer any questions presented by the cast and crew. Instead of printing packets of information for the cast, this online blog will allow me to continuously share research, pictures, video, music, etc - without wasting any paper! The blog will constantly be updated and under construction so feel free to email me about specific topics: JoanMarieHurwit@gmail.com.

Friday, June 17, 2011

Staging Rehearsal Friday, June 17th

TRAIN CONDUCTOR in "Not in the City"
Gum vs. Chewing Tobacco
Both were invented and popular at the turn of the century but neither were common in professional settings. Parlors and passenger cars even had spittoons for uses to dispose of their chewing tobacco, but I’m uncertain whether a train conductor would be demonstrating casual behavior on-duty. Unless we think New Rochelle is lax about it.

GRANDFATHER, 1:12-13
What is he doing?  Hobby or Habit?
 

HABIT Cigars – they were invented and popular, just starting to be manufactured commercially, but its effects were also known. Heavy smoker President Ulysses S. Grant was diagnosed with oral cancer in 1884; he was the only president to die of cancer.
 

Smoking Pipe – Available and common

HOBBY 
Stamp Collecting –The first postage stamp, the Penny Black, was issued by Britain in 1840 and pictured a young Queen Victoria. People started to collect stamps almost straight away, one of the earliest and most notable was John Edward Gray. In 1862 Gray stated that he "began to collect postage stamps shortly after the system was established and before it had become a rage." As the hobby and study of stamps began to grow stamp albums and stamp related literature began to surface and by the early 1880s publishers like Stanley Gibbons made a business out of this advent. Children and teenagers were early collectors of stamps in the 1860s and 1870s. Many adults dismissed it as a childish pursuit but later many of those same collectors, as adults, began to systematically study the available postage stamps and publish books about them. Stamp collecting is a less popular hobby today than it was in the early 20th century, but today it is estimated that about 25 million people enjoy the hobby in the United States, while worldwide the estimated numbers of stamp collectors is around 200 million. Today, though the number of collectors is somewhat less, stamp collecting is still one of the world's most popular indoor hobbies.
 
Coin Collecting – During the 19th and 20th centuries, coin collecting increased further in popularity. The market for coins expanded to include, not only antique coins, but foreign or otherwise exotic currency. Coins shows, trade associations and regulatory bodies emerged during these decades.

No comments:

Post a Comment