Politics as Theater

Topic: Politics as Theater

Source:
David S. Thompson, Associate Professor of Theatre
Agnes Scott College
Atlanta, Georgia (404) 471-6250

Contact:
Dolly Purvis, Manager of News Services
Agnes Scott College
(404) 471-5451 or

Marilynne Herbert, Halstead Communications (212) 734-2190

Politics as theater was a topic of discussion among political pundits, even before Ronald Reagan, the Great Communicator, made his first run for national office. Now, a professor at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta is taking a close look at campaigning as theater.

"The problem with discussing politics as theatre does not lie in finding a comparison, but in finding the best comparison in a multitude of possibilities," says David Thompson of the Agnes Scott College Theater Department. Thompson is poised to speak on the subject of presidential campaigning as theater, looking at the candidates and their speech, gestures and rhetoric as well as the themes they develop throughout the process.

And he has strong feelings about the subject: "Ultimately, and rather sadly for the country, the presidential campaign probably has more in common with children's theatre than with any other form."

"Like a bad production of 'Chicken Little'," Thompson continues, "the candidates run madly while squawking their negative 'sky is falling' message. And as in real life, the children in the audience behave better than the unbelievable characters on stage."

He holds a B.A. and M.F.A. from the University of Tennessee and received his doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin.

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