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Erin Scheidegger-Menendez, Ph.D. is a 2024 graduate of the PHD Program in Leadership and Change at Antioch University.

Erin Scheidegger-Menendez at her Dissertation Defense.

From L-R: Dr. Carol Barrett, Committee Chair, Dr. Betty Overton, Committee Member, Dr. Loree Miltich, Committee Member

Dissertation Committee

  • Carol Barrett, PhD, Committee Chair
  • Betty Overton, PhD, Committee Member
  • Loree Miltich, PhD, Committee Member

Keywords

African Americans, fine arts, holocaust studies, literature, minority and ethnic groups, performing arts, theater, theater history, theater studies

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Date

2024

Abstract

Anne Frank is linked to her contemporaries in about 80% of 18 English-language published and produced plays. The remaining plays pair Frank and African American icons Harriet Tubman, Emmett Till, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Research on dramatic literature with Frank as a character, the writing of plays linking her with African American personages, or history, analysis, or comparison of the process of multiple plays about Frank does not exist. A few articles extant compare the Goodrich and Hackett play with the Kesselman rewrite, a dissertation on five plays about Frank (those five plays are in the 80% mentioned earlier). The central question of this dissertation is why the playwrights of Harriet and Anne: An Original Narrative, Janet Langhart Cohen's Anne & Emmett: A One-Act Play, and Letters from Anne and Martin unite Anne Frank and African American historical figures. What were the playwrights' intentions with this linkage, and how were they fulfilled? This dissertation intends to fill this research gap in theatre history. The playwrights were interviewed using a prepared questionnaire completed by mail, email, telephone, or Zoom to discover the reason(s) for writing the three works. The writers answered using their preferred methods, and results were compiled within the work's question/answer format. Articles and the playwrights' websites were mined for additional historical data about the works and writers. The research found the plays to be works of remembrance/cultural trauma written by playwrights who shared seminal experiences regarding Anne Frank and the African American icons. The writers were driven by intense feelings of social justice, inspiring their creative works. These playwrights used Anne Frank, Harriet Tubman, Emmett Till, and Martin Luther King Jr. to communicate their thematic messages of social justice. They urged their audiences to keep these icons' history from repeating itself and honor those entities. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu/) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).

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Erin Scheidegger-Menendez

ORCID: #0009-0000-1067-7507

Erin Scheidegger-Menendez, with over 30 years of experience in the field of education, has worked in the public school system, charter schools, and post-secondary institutions. She is a certified intervention specialist in mild to moderate disabilities (K-12), and her extensive personal and professional experience in Autism and Dyslexia is a cornerstone of her expertise. Erin holds endorsements to her teaching license in the areas of Teacher of Visual Impairment (K-12) and Gifted Intervention Specialist (K-12). Her work as a certified Orton-Gillingham reading tutor further demonstrates her commitment to education. Erin's research interests in theatre history and literature and the Holocaust reflect her intellectual curiosity and add a unique perspective to her professional profile.

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