Focus: Gender, Performance, Theatre, Film A dissertation about how gender expresses itself through performance in film and theatre. In particular, this project is going to look at cross-gendered performances with the focus being on the little-researched area of women who play the role of men in theatre and film. Specifically, instances where cisgender females play the role of cisgender males which does not include a transgender storyline. In the undertaking of this research, this project will examine this area of performance through the lens of classical theories on gender and film.