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Description
- Theatrical Roles: An Introduction to Theatre is an open educational resource (OER) created by Gibson Alessandro Cima for Introduction to Theatre at Northern Illinois University. Published through the Humanities LibreTexts platform under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, the textbook is designed as a free, accessible alternative to traditional introductory theatre textbooks.
Rather than organizing theatre history around a conventional Western canon, the OER approaches theatre through the major collaborative roles involved in production: playwright, director, performer, designer/technician, and audience. The structure emphasizes theatre as a collective human practice rather than a linear history of great men and canonical texts.
The book includes:
• An introduction exploring what theatre is and why humans perform.
• Units on the playwright, director, performer, and designers.
• Contemporary case studies featuring working theatre artists and production processes.
• Practical assignments that place students in creative production roles.
• Discussion questions, learning checks, glossaries, references, and recommended resources.
Theatrical Roles is explicitly decolonial and equity focused. The textbook critiques traditional theatre-history narratives centered on European and white male traditions and instead foregrounds global performance practices, collaborative creation, and inclusive teaching methods. The resource also uses active learning. Students create, perform, direct, design, and collaborate. Assignments culminate in practical production work, reflecting the text’s emphasis on embodied learning and ensemble-based practice.
Because it is hosted on LibreTexts, the OER is modular, openly licensed, and adaptable for instructors. Faculty can remix, revise, or selectively assign chapters without requiring students to purchase a commercial textbook.
Publication Date
Spring 5-11-2026
Department
School of Theatre and Dance
Publisher
LibreTexts
City
Davis, California
Keywords
Introduction to Theatre, Decolonialism, Playwriting, Acting, Directing, Theatrical Design, Theatre History
Disciplines
Acting | Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory | Playwriting | Theatre and Performance Studies | Theatre History
Rights Statement
This textbook is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY) license unless otherwise indicated, which means that you are free to: SHARE – copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format ADAPT – remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose
Original Citation
Cima, Gibson Alessandro. (2026). Theatrical Roles: An Introduction to Theatre. Illinois Secretary of State/Illinois State Library OER Grant: Northern Illinois University. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Included in
Acting Commons, Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory Commons, Playwriting Commons, Theatre History Commons
