The Role Of Judas Iscariot in Stephen Adly Guirgis The Last Days Of Judas Iscariot: A Production Thesis in Acting and the Actor Director Relationship

by Woltz, Scott Matthew

Directing The Last Days of Judas Iscariot and playing the title role was chosen as the basis for a thesis project in the fall semester of 2008 to be presented to the Graduate School of Louisiana State University in partial fulfillment of the graduate requirement for the Master of Fine Arts degree in Theatre. The thesis will contain an introduction, a text analysis, a directors concept, a chapter on the rehearsal process (to include a physical score and a tactical score), a chapter on performance, and a conclusion. The purpose of this thesis is to explore both an actors interpretation as well as a directors interpretation of the play as they interface, contrast, and finally combine. Beyond documentation of the experience as both an actor and a director, the central focus of this thesis will determine whether acting in a central role while simultaneously directing can ultimately be judged as liberating or limiting in the process of creating a theatrical production.