ABSTRACT
Many storylines, characters, motifs, and themes from what are now considered “classic” fairy tales have long and varied histories as theatrical performance—including Commedia dell’Arte, pantomime, ballet, the Broadway musical, improv theater, and TYA/Theater for Young Audiences. This chapter addresses the centrality of fairy-tale material in theater history, both popular and elite, as well as the centrality of theatrical performance in the multimedial history of the fairy-tale form. As in other media, fairy tales have frequently been used onstage to challenge the boundaries of artistic forms, to subvert dominant ideologies, and to enact social change.
