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Jane Rosenbaum
Major: Theatre

Jane Rosenbaum '04 will spend the next two years experiencing innovative theatre at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, MA, and the University of Exeter, in Devon, England.

Education without boundaries has tangible meaning for Jane Rosenbaum ’04. After an inspiring experience with world theatre at Goucher, the Providence, RI, native landed two postgraduate opportunities: an internship at the American Repertory Theatre for the company’s 2004-05 season, and a 2005-06 seat in the University of Exeter’s M.A./M.F.A. in Theatre Practice program.

“In my sophomore year at Goucher, I took a World Theatre class with Becky Free and became very enthusiastic about Asian theatre forms,” says Jane Rosenbaum. “I was really interested in Noh, Kabuki, Kathakali, and Balinese puppet theatre, as well as the work of modern Japanese dramatists, especially Tadashi Suzuki and Kobo Abe. Abe inspired his actors to emote using physiological methods, as opposed to creating emotion through memory recall or psychological methods.”

In her senior thesis, Rosenbaum compared Abe’s ideas to Alba emoting, a new acting method that uses specific breathing, postural, and facial patterns to portray the full range of human emotions.

“My research began with a book called Acting: (Re)considered by Phillip Zarrilli,” Rosenbaum explains. “I realized that Zarrilli’s a professor at the University of Exeter, in a program that applies martial arts traditions such as yoga, tai chi, and kalarippayattu.”

“While in London on the Theatre and Dance winter intensive course abroad, I traveled to Exeter to meet Zarrilli and observe the training program. It was pretty intense. Students spend an hour every day practicing these martial art forms, using every muscle. The program is very physically challenging. You have to have incredible stamina and flexibility. I applied anyway.”

While waiting to hear from Exeter, Rosenbaum submitted an internship application to the American Repertory Theatre (ART) in Cambridge, MA. She’s been accepted as an intern in the literary management department, where she’ll read and evaluate scripts submitted to the theatre for possible production, gather research material for programs and publications, and assist with special events.

“Many of the artists that I learned about in Experimental Theatre and World Theatre classes at Goucher have worked at ART,” says Rosenbaum. “This summer, I’ll be helping Gideon Lester, the associate artistic director, research the book he’s writing on David Mamet. In the fall I’ll serve as a dramaturg for the 2004-05 production season, which includes a festival of South African theatre, as well as works by Eugene O’Neill, Anton Chekhov, and Christopher Marlowe.”

With her plans for the immediate future firmly in place, Rosenbaum is looking forward to a long, successful career in professional theatre.

“For the next two years, I’ll be observing and experiencing inspiring theatre,” she says. “It’s thrilling to be able to work in the field that I’ve studied for four years, especially in the areas that I’ve become most passionate about.”