Until recently, major theatrical discussions excluded regional pantomime. This new research adds to the regional perspective, through the analysis of Aladdin pantomimes in Birmingham and the Black Country. from 1813 to 1914. Originally from the Arabian Nights' Stories, Aladdin positioned within local contexts. reveals relationships between the exotic and theatrical Chinese locations and the everyday products and trade that informed the lives of local theatre audiences.

Even though Aladdin had its origins in the Arabic tales, authors and audiences approached the pantomime through their existing knowledge of China. Later Aladdin productions continued to mirror the oriental undercurrents and societal synergy surrounding the dissemination of ideas concerning Chineseness. My critical analysis of Aladdin establishes the depiction of China through locally manufactured goods, the willow pattern plate, the tea trade and the art of Japanning.

The interaction of pantomime and product was an affirmation of the association between the exotic and the everyday. and the connection that regional audiences made with the real China and the topsy-turvy unreal world of pantomime. The critical coexistence of these opposing elements enables a reassessment of the regional role of pantomime in local political. social and cultural development.

The exotic and the everyday, regional Victorian pantomime in Birmingham and the Black Country 1813-1914

Alongside ‘iconic’ sights such as buildings, monuments, artworks, modes of transport, and so on, linguistic landscape is a prime semiotic resources for the tourist consumption of place. Apart from their referential function (naming or indexing places, buildings, institutions, products, etc.), written signs work as symbolic resources to create a ‘sense of place’ and as performative displays of identity for their producers and consumers. This paper examines the representation and production of linguistic landscapes on the seemingly banal yet one of the most ubiquitous and powerful of tourist genres – the postcard. I consider six types of interpretive frames for understanding the presence (or absence) of language as part of the postcard image: absence of text; caption; greeting; spectacle; language learning and teaching; tourist script. I conclude with some observations on the sociolinguistic reflexes of mediated tourist-host contact under globalisation.

Linguistic Landscapes on Postcards: Tourist Mediation and the Sociolinguistic Communities of Contact

A hundred years ago the international craze for picture postcards distributed millions of images of popular stage actresses around the world. The cards were bought, sent, and collected by many whose contact with live theatre was sometimes minimal. Veronica Kelly's study of some of these cards sent in Australia indicates the increasing reach of theatrical images and celebrity brought about by the distribution mechanisms of industrial mass modernity. The specific social purposes and contexts of the senders are revealed by cross-reading the images themselves with the private messages on the backs, suggesting that, once outside the industrial framing of theatre or the dramatic one of specific roles, the actress operated as a multiply signifying icon within mass culture – with the desires and consumer power of women major factors in the consumption of the glamour actress card. A study of the typical visual rhetoric of these postcards indicates the authorized modes of femininity being constructed by the major postcard publishers whose products were distributed to theatre fans and non-theatregoers alike through the post. Veronica Kelly is working on a project dealing with commercial managements and stars in early twentieth-century Australian theatre. She teaches in the School of English, Media Studies, and Art History at the University of Queensland, is co-editor of Australasian Drama Studies, and author of databases and articles dealing with colonial and contemporary Australian theatre history and dramatic criticism. Her books include The Theatre of Louis Nowra (1998) and the collection Our Australian Theatre in the 1990s (1998).

Beauty and the Market: Actress Postcards and their Senders in Early Twentieth-Century Australia

The concept of a port city, when narrated by popular visualities, goes through intense transformations of port spaces. Globalization, technological transformations of the maritime industry, and wat...

Images and Spaces of Port Cities in Transition

Abstract:From a set of five Costa Rican photographic postcards, although a few more examples will be taken into account, an iconological task is undertaken regarding these visual relics. While the images in these cards offer an iconographic testimony, the objective is to make a visual reading of them and subject them to an iconological analysis. As a working hypothesis, considering them documentary artefacts, it is possible to select information that makes possible their contribution to historical knowledge. It is imperative to articulate the concept of “iconology” as an interpretive reading that goes far beyond the simple description of an image without strictly adhering to that which is represented. The formulation of interpretations that go beyond the boundaries of the visible is, iconographically speaking, implemented as a practice that contributes to a richer, more acute historical articulation.Resumen:A partir de un conjunto de cinco postales fotográficas costarricenses, aunque se tomarán en cuenta algunas más, se acomete una tarea iconológica en torno a estas reliquias visuales. Si bien las imágenes de estas fichas ofrecen un testimonio iconográfico, el objetivo es hacer una lectura visual de las mismas y someterlas a un análisis iconológico. Como hipótesis de trabajo, considerándolos artefactos documentales, es posible seleccionar información que posibilite su contribución al conocimiento histórico. Es imperativo articular el concepto de “iconología” como una lectura interpretativa que va mucho más allá de la simple descripción de una imagen sin adherirse estrictamente a lo representado. La formulación de interpretaciones que van más allá de los límites de lo visible se implementa, iconográficamente hablando, como una práctica que contribuye a una articulación histórica más rica y aguda.Résumé:A partir d’un ensemble de cinq cartes postales photographiques costa-riciennes, bien que quelques-unes soient prises en compte, une tâche iconologique est entreprise autour de ces reliques visuelles. Si les images de ces cartes offrent un témoignage iconographique, l’objectif est d’en faire une lecture visuelle et de les soumettre à une analyse iconologique. En tant qu’hypothèse de travail, en les considérant comme des artefacts documentaires, il est possible de sélectionner des informations qui permettent leur contribution à la connaissance historique. Il est impératif d’articuler le concept «d’iconologie» comme une lecture interprétative qui va bien au-delà de la simple description d’une image sans adhérer strictement à ce qui est représenté. La formulation d’interprétations qui dépassent les limites du visible est mise en œuvre, iconographiquement parlant, comme une pratique qui contribue à une articulation historique plus riche et plus nette.

Jeffrey Richards

Papers

A social history of Britain in postcards, 1870-1930