User:Launt Thompson

The account of this former contributor was not re-activated after the server upgrade of March 2022.

About Me: I’m a retired academic but I spent the first half of my working life as a professional actor/director working out of New York City and Sydney. Later I taught theatre techniques for 21 years in the Department of Theatre Studies at the University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia. My research area is the Philosophy or Art (specifically as it relates to theatre and the visual arts). I enjoy writing, fishing and visiting art museums and galleries around the world.

Education

• 1984 Master Of Education -(Research Degree: The Art of Theatre and the Role of Education) 1st Class Honours. Awarded the University Medal. - University Of New England.
• 1977 Teacher’s Certificate - Education Department of Tasmania
• 1977 Bachelor Of Education - Tasmanian College of Advanced Education
• 1975 Advanced Diploma Of Teaching -Tasmanian College of Advanced Education

Publications

• The Nature of Reality , Philosophy Now, 61., May/June 2007 pp34 - 35
• The Role of ‘Function’ and The Place of ‘Purpose’ In Art. Logos, No. 15., 1994
• Living Among Pigeons, Logos, No. 14., 1993
• The Impertinence of Drama Teaching, Educational Philosophy and Theory, 1987 (19) pp50. – 56. N.B. The above article also appears in The Philosopher's Index, Philosophy Documentation Center, Bowling Green State University, Ohio, U.S.A.
• What Is This Quintessence of Dust? (Notes on the Drama K-12 Policy Statement, The Teaching of English (Journal of the English Teachers' Association of New South Wales), September 1982, No 43, pp 30-41
• Dramatic Education, Ideaed, Number Six, Second Semester 1978 pp 14. – 42.
• Six Puppets In Search of A Genre, Theatre Australia, July 1977 pp17. – 21.

• CONFERENCE PAPERS

• "Writing for Young Peoples Theatre" presented at the Third Australian National Playwrights Conference, Australian National University, May 1975.
• "Drama as a Separate Area of Study within the School Certificate." presented at The New South Wales English Teachers' Association Regional Conference, Armidale, April 1980.
• "Myths and Mysteries of Belief and Illusion in Theatre Practice" presented at The International Conference of the Australasian Drama Studies Association, University of New England, August 1981.
• "Teaching Drama as Art" presented to the Ninth National Drama in Education Conference, National Association for Drama in Education, Melbourne College of Advanced Education, August 1984.
• "Zen & the Art of being a Swimming Coach: A Drama Curriculum" presented at the Tenth National Drama in Education Conference, National Association of Drama in Education, Sydney, October 1985.
• “The Case For The Performing Arts: Applying the Principle”, presented at The International Conference of the Australasian Drama Studies Association, University of New South Wales, August 1991. This paper along with a companion piece (The Case For The Performing Arts) was published as part of the papers of the conference.
• “Two Streetcars: A Lesson In Acting” presented at the 27th Australasian Universities Language and Literature (AULLA) Congress, Dunedin New Zealand, Feburary 1993.

PAPERS OFFERED AT RESEARCH SEMINARS

• 1990 The Myth of Aesthetic Distance presented at Theatre Studies Department Seminar Series '90, U.N.E.
• 1989 "What is Art?" presented to the U.N.E. Philosophy Society, University of New England.
• 1986 The Imperative Convention presented at Theatre Studies Department Seminar Series '86', U.N.E.
• 1985 THE DIRECTOR'S RESPONSIBILITY TO THE TEXT, presented at Theatre Studies Department Seminar Series '85', U.N.E.