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Study Guide
UMASS
theater
Production Facts:
A UMass Theater production like House of Desires typically
involves undergraduate and graduate students, staff members, professors, and community members.
Most of the actors are undergraduates ranging from firstyear students to seniors. Most are theater majors.
The directors are usually professors or graduate students.
In the case of House of Desires, the director is a secondyear graduate student.
Translation #1,
from The House of Trials,
tr. David Pasto
Translation #2,
from House of Desires,
tr. Catherine Boyle
Cultural Context
To understand this production, it helps to know more about the cultural context in which Sor Juana was writing, as
well as about some of the theatrical conventions of the day.
Code of Honor
Margaret Inners
Discussion Questions
Do you think our society has a Code of Honor? What is it?
How do you feel about the Code of Honor of the world of the play? Do you see any part of this code that survives in our
culture today? Do you think it is viable in our day and age?
What do you think of womans role in the Code? If it pertained to you, would you be comfortable marrying someone just
because you had been alone in a room with him? How would you feel about your male relatives killing someone because
of you? If you had to choose one of these two options, which one would you choose, and why?
How do you think 17th century Mexicos social hierarchy compares to that of our society? How do you think this hierarchy
affects the plot of the play?
Costume facts
The costumes for House of Desires
are partly built and partly pulled.
Built, means we created them just
for this play. Pulled refers to costumes we had in storage that we are
using in this play. Pulling a costume
is cheaper and takes less work than
building one. It is a good money-saving measure in a show like House of
Desires, which has a large cast.
The costume designer drove a total
of 580 miles to collect and fabric and
trim for this show.
Costanos disguise costume contains
18 yards of fabric and 54 yards of
trim.
Doa Ana
On several fronts, the costumes help the audience to buy into a theatrical plausibility that does not have a
strong footing in reality. For instance, the servants, Cecilia and Costao, are much more astute about life and the
happenings in the household than their noble masters, who constantly make poor choices and therefore constantly
complicate their lives. To support the wise servant idea, those two characters have a color intensity in their clothing
that reinforces their strong characterization. Another divergence from reality includes the actor who plays Costao
tting into Dona Leonors clothing to disguise himself. The audience is asked to accept this disconnect and play along
with the fun. In addition, Dona Ana wears her characters intentions as a design in the form of a spider on the front
of her costume, which has no basis in costume history and is pure design fantasy.
June Gaeke, costume designer
Don Juan
Don Pedro
Production Facts:
The set is designed to give the illusion of a spider web.
The female actors had to start wearing corsets in midOctober in order to start getting used to them and the feel
of their costumes.
The actors practice their sword fight every night prior to
performing so that it is like second nature to them. This
helps ensure everyones safety.
Attending a performance
the role of the audience
In some ways, going to a theater performance feels like
going to a movie. After all, just as in a movie, you, the audience
member, sit in a darkened theater and watch the action unfold
in front of you as a group of actors bring written words to life.
However, theres one huge difference. In a movie, everyone
involved in the production finished their work months ago.
Whats on the film is there to stay. For better or for worse, no
matter how many times you watch it, the film will always be the
same.
In contrast, one of the things people love about theater is
that its rarely ever the same. Any number of things, good and
bad, can make a work change from night to night: The actors
understanding of his or her role deepens and changes; a light
or sound cue might come in at the wrong time; something that
happened offstage might affect the way two actors relate to each
other in either a good or a bad way.
One of the biggest variables is the audience. A bad audience
can throw actors off and make for a bad performance, whereas
an engaged and respectful audience can help boost the actors
energy and raise the level of the play.
There are a few things you can do to make a performance
better for you and for the actors.
1. Open your mind. If youre unsure whether youll like
this play, or theater in general, give it a chance. Having new
experiences is part of broadening your horizons, so sit back and
let the story and the experience unfold and enjoy it!
2. Please react respectfully. Actors love an audience that
is attentive and reacting to what happens onstage; it can really
boost the energy of a performance. Laugh when something
funny happens, cry when something touches you, and clap if
youre impressed. But if you are annoyed with a character or you
think an actors performance is terrible, please do not yell at the
stage. You could wreck an actors concentration and ruin the
show.
3. Cell phones and pagers should always be turned off during
a show. Nothing is worse for actors and audiences alike than to
be in the midst of a moving scene and to hear that annoying
beeping.
4. And finally, even if you think its the worst thing youve
ever seen, please keep in mind that the people onstage poured
their heart and soul into this production, and that there are
many others in the audience who completely disagree with you.
Please remain respectful. Do not talk, try not to fidget, and
unless its a medical emergency, please do not leave your seat
until intermission or the end of the play.
Anna-Maria Goossens