“No Iphis can I be” Exploring Lesbianism and Gender Fluidity Through Adaptation/Fanfiction of Twelfth Night in One and the Same, an Original Play

Abstract

In this thesis I seek to explore the queering of William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night through writing, directing, and performing in One and the Same, an original play that more earnestly features same-gender attraction and gender fluidity within the early modern tropes, characters, setting, and language of Shakespeare. I will lay out my sources of inspiration for One and the Same—fanfiction culture, Shakespeare’s other plays, and much more—I will narrate the process of writing, editing, and producing the play, the reception of it from audiences and actors, and I will share my final thoughts on the entire experience and how what I learned from the process could be applied elsewhere in staging Shakespeare in ways that facilitate the entertainment and enlightenment of as diverse an audience as possible.Theatre, Speech & DanceBachelors of Arts (BA