| Popis: |
This thesis argues that the reality of vaudeville in its heyday was very different from the sorts of performances the label is associated with today. This is done in part by examining the career of Kitty Doner, the leading male impersonator of her generation. The 1962 movie, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane, is reexamined, highlighting its misinterpretation of vaudeville and the supposed reasons for its demise. Finally, a queer genealogy is structured to assert a new label of queer women performance, the Large Butch Crooners. This thesis, using queer and feminist theories and methodologies works to reimagine American vaudeville in the twenty-first-century, as well as looking for new ways to center women performers in its larger histories. |
