Rebecca Rey

Thesis

Staging DeLillo

Summary

My thesis is on Don DeLillo’s plays, using his novels, interviews and personal notes as a backdrop for an original analysis of his theatrical works. In particular I'm exploring his movements between genres and common themes running across his oeuvre, with the intention to begin critical scholarship on his playtexts.

Why my research is important

The critical acclaim both from literary circles and his devoted readers places DeLillo among the leaders of contemporary American fiction. Despite this fame for his novels, his playtexts have been left scattered along the margins of scholarly critique. My aim is to instigate a literary investigation into this author’s overlooked experimentation on the stage. Until now, there would appear to have been no such criticism of his plays, nor has a significant comparison ever been drawn between his theatre and his fiction.

Funding

• UWA Convocation Postgraduate Research Travel Award for 2011 ($2500).
• Joyce Riley Australian Federation of University Women (WA) Scholarship, 2010 ($1500).
• Postgraduate Teaching Internship Scheme ($6000).
• Australian Postgraduate Award, 2008 ($20,000 p.a.).
• Ernest & Evelyn Havill Shacklock Scholarship, awarded to the highest-ranked student in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 2008 ($6,000 p.a.).
• Katherine Moss Prize for English Literature, awarded for the best Honours dissertation, 2007 ($1825).
• Commonwealth Learning Scholarship, 2006 ($2080).
• UWA Convocation Graduates Association Prize for best second-year student in Philosophy, 2004 ($50).