The Spot: First Staging
Date of Award
5-2026
Document Type
MSU-Only Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
College/School
College of the Arts
Department/Program
Theatre and Dance
Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair
Stefanie Batten Bland
Committee Member
Danae McWatt
Committee Member
Parul Shah
Abstract
The Spot is an interdisciplinary thesis project that examines how movement, text, and music operate as integrated research methods for storytelling rooted in cultural specificity and embodied experience. Set in an intimate black box theatre, the work follows the sudden reunion of two former lovers who cross paths in their hometown a decade after parting ways. Their reconnection becomes a framework for examining belonging, identity, and reclamation within communities of color. Drawing from contemporary and street-based choreographic languages, a fully scripted narrative, and original live music composed from scratch, the project foregrounds the body as a repository of memory and lived history. This thesis articulates the project’s central questions, interdisciplinary methodology, compositional structure, and collaborative development process, documenting how rehearsal practices, design choices, and audience feedback shape the work’s impact and inform its future evolution into film.
File Format
MP4
Recommended Citation
Yang, Page, "The Spot: First Staging" (2026). Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects. 1672.
https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/etd/1672
written thesis
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Comments
The performance video is restricted to the Montclair State University community but the PDF file of the thesis, which is located at the bottom of the screen, is available to anyone interested in reading it.