Przybylski, Teresa2019-07-022019-07-022019-04-222019-07-02http://hdl.handle.net/10315/36352Roland Barthes has famously noted plastics as miraculous substances of infinite transformations and transmutations, yet we are in the midst of a paradigm shift in which the material plays an increasingly destructive role in our society and environment. The thesis addresses the question of how meaning is made and transformed by theoretically and practically dissecting plastic through three distinct research areas: object, body, and ritual. Most prominently, my thesis demonstrates how situating the plastic bag in a funeral can forge human to non-human reverence and reformulate affectual associations. Through creative investigation and extensive multidisciplinary research in visual arts, film, and queer theory, I aim to provide a deeper understanding of how plastics can obscure and entangle the boundaries between theatre and performance art.enAuthor owns copyright, except where explicitly noted. Please contact the author directly with licensing requests.Performing ArtsElectronic Thesis or Dissertation2019-07-02Plasticecologyritualeco-designfuneraldeath studiesperformance studiesperfomance designtheatre designcostume designobject designron atheykembra pfahlerfranko bdavid lynchlars von triertwin peakscorpsepuppetdeatheco-theatrelucas olscampmfa designsustainabilityuncanny valleycindy shermancarolee schneemannolivier de sagazanperformanceperformdragqueerqueer artqueer theoryqueer studiesheather davistoxic progenyroland bartheshistory of plasticperformance art