Theater Studies Course Atlas - Spring 2008

THEA 131              ///              Basic Stagecraft
Scott Little

TTh 10:00-11:15          Max: 18          Room: MGM Theater, DUC

Students are required to sign up for one of the following labs:

1) Tues. Lab 1-3       MAX: 6      Instructor: Scott Little
2) Wed. Lab. 2-4       MAX: 6      Instructor: Scott Little
3) Thurs. Lab 1-3       MAX: 6      Instructor: Scott Little

Please note that you will need to enroll in the lab that best fits your schedule.

Content: The primary goal of the course is to provide beginning students with an awareness and understanding of the technical aspects of theater production. The course will provide students with an overview of the visual aspects of theater along with construction techniques for props and set. Practical exercises are directly related to productions staged in the Mary Gray Munroe Theater and include assignments to technical crews for productions of Theater Emory. The course will involve three hours of lecture and two hours of lab work per week, and students are required to crew one Theater Emory production in the semester.

Particulars: Grading is based on participation in class, lab work, and theatrical productions, as well as progress over the semester.

Texts:
Required: Holloway, John. Illustrated Theatre Production Guide
Recommended: Carter, Paul. The Backstage Handbook, 3rd Ed.

A $20 supplies fee will be charged to students' Bursar accounts.

THEA 190 - 000      ///     Freshmen Seminar: Literature in the Flesh
Lisa Paulsen

TTh 11:30-12:45    MAX: 15    Room: Schwartz 203 (Theater Lab)

For Freshmen Only

Content: This seminar will bring you into an acting laboratory to play with story, character, theme, language, etc! Actors have developed a multitude of ways to bring a written character to life on-stage. We will borrow exercises from the actor's creative process, but adventure beyond dramatic literature into fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. By working back and forth between instinctive and intellectual insights, we'll seek to enrich our understanding of each text we encounter through the semester. Students will take part in vocal, physical, and improvisational class exercises, along with class discussions and readings.

Particulars:  Grading is based upon attendance and class participation in addition to class assignments, including an informal journal entry each week, three (3) small-group presentations, and one (1) collaborative culminating project.

No Acting Experience Necessary.

Texts:   Text excerpts will be selected from across genres of drama, fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. A portion of the reading list will be compiled in collaboration between students and instructor. A $10 to $20 photocopying fee may be charged to students' Bursar accounts to cover handouts.

THIS COURSE HAS BEEN CANCELED

THEA 190 - 001    ///      Freshman Seminar:Putting Themselves Onstage:
                              Social Issues in the 20th Century Theater
Pat Miller

TTh 2:30 to 3:45     MAX:15        Room: 207 Rich Bldg.

For Freshmen Only

Content: This course will look at the evolution of the American character as portrayed in a dozen plays that in some way became rallying points for social change. Study works could include The Adding Machine , (Elmer Rice,1923), The Hairy Ape (Eugene OíNeill,1922), One Third of a Nation and The Cradle Will Rock (Federal Theater Projects, 1938), Waiting for Lefty (Clifford Odets, 1935), Our Town (Thornton Wilder, 1938), The Crucible (Arthur Miller,1953), The Basic Training of Pablo Havel (David Rabe, 1965),  The Colored Museum (George C. Wolfe, 1986) , Los Vendidos (Luis Valdez,1967), Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches (Tony Kushner, 1992) and others.

Particulars: Students will be responsible for writing a short paper identifying the issues in the plays they read. In addition they are required to research and present background material for one of the play-related topics. The final examination will be an essay question exam.

THEA 201SWR     ///    Reading for Performance
Donald McManus

TTh 11:30-12:45        Max: 12      Room: 207 Rich Bldg.

Content: The aim of this seminar is to practice the close reading required to lift a play effectively and intelligently from page to stage. Through a close analysis of a variety of plays for such issues as plot, patterns of action and theme, characterization, style, genre, extra-textual reference, visual and sonic elements, and world of the play, we will sort out the challenges and rewards of practical knowledge of and responsibility to the text. The course will also touch on theater semiotics (how things express meaning from the stage, and the variety of options different sign-systems offer) and textual adaptation for performance. Our ongoing exploration will incorporate the specific awarenesses that actors, directors, designers, and dramaturgs need to construct from a play-text.

Particulars: Grades will be determined by class participation, a variety of short papers, and a final paper.

Texts: Representative plays ranging from classical Greek, Renaissance, naturalism, expressionism, contemporary realism, modern poetic drama, and post-modern experimental drama, plus handouts and internet resources will be used.

THEA 216         ///         History of Drama and Theater II
Michael Evenden

Same as English 216

MWF 10:40-11:30, Theater Majors Lab W 4-5:15         
MAX: 15 (ENG max: 10)        Room: 211 Rich Bldg

Theater Studies majors will be required to participate in a weekly laboratory in performance reconstruction; others may participate in the lab for extra credit.

Content: A study of Western drama from the 18th century through the modern period. Reading of representative dramas, an average of two per week, with special attention given to their cultural and historical contexts.

Particulars: Four equally-weighted exams , including take-home analytic essays and optional final paper.

Texts: Students will be expected to read two to three plays a week. Playwrights to be covered include Lillo, Marivaux, Schiller, Scribe, Feydeau, Ibsen, Shaw, Chekhov, Strindberg, Brecht, Beckett, Muller.

A $10 photocopying fee will be charged to students' Bursar accounts to cover handouts and additional materials.

THEA 221      ///     Acting:  Scenework
Lisa Paulsen

MWF 10:40-12:35    MAX: 10      Room: Rich Bldg. 205

Prerequisite: Theater 221 is open to students who have taken Theater 121 or, in the case of those who have considerable experience, to students who obtain permission of the instructor.

Content: The focus of this acting course is scene development, the basic unit of a play or film; including building character relationships, making appropriate and captivating choices, creating character, and working creatively with a partner. Material will be chosen from a wide variety of dramatic literature and for a screenplay unit, actors will work on-camera with a professional Director of Photography.

Particulars: This is a performance-based course, and there will be a variety of exercises and tasks involving work with a partner. Overall course grade will be based on the preparation and performance of selected scenes plus a final. This will require regular out of class rehearsal and, for the on-camera unit, a full Saturday spent on location. Attendance, participation, and cooperation are crucial for the growth and development of each performer's skills.

THEA 222     ///    Acting: Speeches and Monologues
Tim McDonough

TTh 1-3        MAX: 10      Room: 203 Schwartz Center (Theater Lab)

Completion of THEA 121 or 221, or previous acting experience, is recommended.

Content: When your character tells a story about offstage events, you must single-handedly play a scene in which you create the circumstances, play all the parts, struggle with conflicting impulses, shape turning points, and relive what happens as if it were happening all over again. Storytelling teaches skills that go to the very heart of acting. Topics include setting the scene and characterization; gesture, movement and space as storytelling tools; sound sense; fades, builds and the architecture of a speech; creating inner conflict with opposites.

Particulars: The class will meet for 2 hours. You will develop three narrative speeches of audition length. In the first half of the course, preparations for each session include reading, exploring assigned exercises, and creating moments to perform in class. The focus in the rest of the course is largely on issues involving whole speeches. Several hour-long conferences will be scheduled outside of class time. Grading is based on attendance and participation, preparation of assignments both large and small, and evidence of learning in the development of your speeches. The final includes a showcase performance open to the public. While there is no prerequisite for the course, prior acting experience is helpful.

Text: McDonough, Acting Narrative Speeches.

THEA 223     ///     Voice and Diction
Alexandre Harrington

TTh 10-11:15        Max: 16       Room: 205 Rich Bldg.

Content: An overview of voice and diction for actors and others. Through group exercises, text work, practiced presentation, and individual instruction, students will learn practical techniques to achieve proper breath support, vocal production, vocal range, articulation, and physical alignment necessary for stage performance and public speaking.

Text: The Voice Book, by Michael McCallion.

THEA 224     ///    Movement for the Actor
John Ammerman

MWF 11:45-1:40        MAX: 10        Room: 210 Rich Bldg.

This is a course heavily focused on physical exercise and conditioning.

Content: A laboratory workshop class focusing on the development of movement techniques through exercise and practice. Elements include center, balance, kinesthetics, combat, weapons, mime, clowning, improvisation, and rhythm.

Particulars: As a performance-based course, there will be a variety of exercises and tasks involving both solo and partner work. Grading will be based on the performance of selected and assigned topics, including the Final Exam, and will require outside rehearsals on a regular basis in order to prepare for presentation. Each actor will be required to dress in workout attire. Attendance, participation, and cooperation are crucial for the growth and development of each performer's skills.

THEA 230      ///     Principles of Design
Leslie Taylor and Greg Catellier

TTh 2:30-3:45    MAX: 12     Room: 311C Schwartz Center

This semester, the focus of this course will be on design for dance.

Content: This course will provide students with a theoretical and practical understanding of the processes involved in conceiving and executing stage designs. It will serve as an introduction to the theory and practice of set, costumes, and lighting design. In a broader sense, it is aimed at helping students to hear and experience dance and music with a richer sense of its visual qualities.

A $40 supplies fee will be charged to students' Bursar accounts. No text will be used.

THEA 233     ///    Lighting Design
Judy Zanotti

TTh 10-11:15       MAX: 7        Room: 207 Rich Bldg.

Content: This course will cover the theoretical and practical processes involved in the design of lighting for the theater. Topics included in the course are script analysis, design formulation, drafting, design paperwork, color theory, plotting, focusing, and cueing.

Particulars: Students will be required to purchase a limited amount of drafting equipment for the class, as well as a textbook and three plays. (A specific list of drafting needs will be given out during the first class period). Grading will be based on a series of homework assignments, three lighting design projects, as well as class participation, and growth and development throughout the semester)

THEA 251      ///      Directing
Susan Booth

M 2-4:50       Max: 10       Room: 203 Schwartz Center (Theater Lab)

Prerequisites: THEA 201, or a 200-level or higher acting course, or permission of instructor

Content: This course is intended to develop the student's ability to a) analyze plays both critically and imaginatively; b) read plays in terms of their psychological narratives and visual values; and c) realize production ideas in terms of current sociopolitical context and available human and material resources. Approximately the first half of the course is devoted to analyzing selected plays specifically from a director's perspective. A number of practical exercises are also assigned that deal with basic directing problems, including collaborative development of design conceit, developmental work with playwrights, and analytical work with actors. The second half of the course concentrates on the students staging a short work.

Particulars: Students are graded primarily on the basis of class participation and successful completion of the research and production work of their directorial project.

Texts
 --A Director Prepares: Seven Essays on Art and the Theatre, Anne Bogart
 --Tips: Ideas for Directors, Jon Jory

THEA 300R     ///      Production Laboratory
William Moore 00P, Scott Little 01P

TBD      Max: 5    Room: MGM Theater, DUC

Permission of instructor required prior to enrollment.

Content: The goal of this course is to provide students with a meaningful learning experience through the assumption of technical or administrative responsibilities in conjunction with the productions of Theater Emory and research areas of Theater Studies.

Particulars: Students should make arrangements with the departmental faculty regarding their assignments prior to registration. Grades are determined by the student's ability to successfully execute the tasks given to them by the individual instructor assigned to them. Each student enrolled in the class should contact the instructor during the first week of class and before the end of Drop/Add to determine their work assignment for the semester.

THEA 330R    ///   Stagecraft Laboratory
William Moore

F  1:00-4:00    MAX: 5    Room: MGM Theater, DUC

Permission of instructor required

Content: This course is intended for students interested in the art and crafts of properties and set dressing. The specific content of the course will vary according to the productions being staged by Theater Emory and will include practical exercises and assignments in property design, construction, acquisition and assisting the props master and production manager. A background in construction, crafts, Photoshop, painting, sculpting and art/art history are helpful. Or, choose to learn them in the course.

Particulars: In format, the course will function as a tutorial involving weekly meetings with the instructor. In addition, students will be required to assume significant supervised responsibilities connected with Theater Emory productions. These responsibilities will vary in the number of hours per week depending on the student's specific assignment. Grading is based on the successful completion of responsibilities assigned to the students during the semester.

THEA 331R - 00P    ///    Costume Design Tutorial
Leslie Taylor

TBA    MAX: 5

Prerequisite: THEA 231 and/or written permission of instructor

Content: This course will provide further information for students who have demonstrated an interest and ability in costume design. Students will advance their skills and knowledge by either completing several in depth projects or assisting the costume designer on a Theater Emory project.

Particulars: Grades are determined on the basis of successful completion of major design projects, attendance in class, and growth.

THEA 332R - 00P     ///     Scene Design Tutorial
Leslie Taylor

TBA    MAX: 5

Prerequisite: THEA 232 and/or written permission of instructor

Content: This course will provide personalized instruction for those students who have demonstrated an interest and ability in the area of set design. The course will enable advanced students to develop and further their talent, skill, and knowledge in set design. A major part of the course will involve either assisting the set designer in the execution of Theater Emory productions or designing and executing scenery for student productions emanating from classes offered by the department, as well as design projects.

Particulars: Grades are determined on the basis of successful completion of major design projects, attendance in class and working on Theater Emory and class productions.

THEA 333R - 00P    ///    Lighting Design Tutorial
Judy Zanotti

TBA       MAX: 3

Prerequisite: THEA 233 and/or written permission of instructor

Content: The goal of this course is to provide advanced students with a further understanding of the lighting design process. Theatrical, as well as dance, concert, film and video lighting practices will be covered.

Particulars: Students are graded on their completion of five lighting projects, a practical design assignment, and development throughout the semester. The course will involve two hours of lecture per week plus 90 hours of assignments.

Texts: The course will include material from a variety of texts.

THEA 334R - 00P      ///    Sound Design Tutorial
Judy Zanotti

TBA       MAX: 3

Prerequisite: THEA 234 and/or written permission of instructor

Content: An advanced course in the theory and practice of sound design

THEA 341R - 00P    ///    Theater Administration Tutorial
Pat Miller

TBA    MAX: 5    Variable Credit: 2-8 hours

Prerequisite: Enrollment requires permission of the professor and is dependent upon completion of THEA 241 and the availability of a suitable project for the student.

Content: This is a tutorial on practical problems in theater administration, including budgeting, contracting, and marketing. This course is a continuation of the theoretical work covered in THEA 241. Students take responsibility for an aspect of the administrative work for productions in the Theater Emory season.

Particulars: Participation and completion of the assigned administrative responsibilities are the most important considerations for grading.

Texts: Students are expected to read American Theatre Magazine, Variety, and the Sunday New York Times Arts & Leisure Guide on a regular basis. Readings on special topics may be assigned throughout the course.

THEA 365SWR    ///      Modern Drama
Alice N. Benston

Same as ENG 365SWR

TTh 11:30-12:45        MAX: 7 THEA, 5 ENG               Room: 201 Rich Bldg.

Note: Students will be required to purchase textbook from the Theater Studies department.

Content: A survey course tracing the development of modern drama covering works from Ibsen and Strindberg to Ionesco and Beckett.

Particulars: There will be three papers. There will be no scheduled exams, but an occasional specific exercise in examining specific questions relating to a script may be assigned.

Text: Masters of Modern Drama, Block, Haskell & Shedd, Robert, eds. Random House.

THEA 375RWR - 00P     ///    Advanced Playwriting   
Joseph Skibell

Same as ENG 375RWR 00P

Th 2:30-5:30     MAX: THEA 5 (ENG/CW 10)     Room: 142 Schwartz Center

Pre-requisite: THEA/ENG 372: Playwriting.

Application for this course is required. See the spring 2008 Creative Writing course Atlas for details.
www.creativewriting.emory.edu/atlas/index.html

Content: In a round-table setting, students will workshop their own work, critique their fellows' work, and delve into the art of playwriting and dramatic narrative, while reading and acting in each other's scenes. Writing and reading intensive.

Particulars: Students should budget for photocopying. Students are required to attend on-
campus readings and colloquia sponsored by the Creative Writing Program and play readings sponsored by The Playwriting Center of Theater Emory outside of class time.

The following course is not cross listed with THEA, but may be of interest to theater students.

ENG 378RWR: Creative Writing: Intermediate Screenwriting - Two sections
CROSSLISTED WITH FILM 402WR: Scriptwriting
MAX: 15 (ENG/CW: 10; FILM: 5)

Ken Weitzman - Monday 2-5 p.m.
Jenna Milly - Wednesday 2-5 p.m.

Content:

Ken Weitzman's section:
This course will introduce the fundamentals of writing for film. We will explore the basic elements of storytelling, including character creation, story structure, visual storytelling, format, the writing of narrative description and dialogue. The course will concentrate on analyzing the screenplays of several well-known films, developing a treatment for a full-length original screenplay, as well as the writing of one or more short screenplays. Classes will be conducted as workshops in which the main emphasis is on the students' own work, both in-class and take home writing exercises. The objective of the course is to deepen each student’s conceptual understanding of the craft screenplay writing (and storytelling in general) and to put this knowledge into practice.

Milly's section:
This course will introduce the fundamentals of writing for film. We will explore the basic elements of storytelling -- character, plot, setting, structure dialogue, etc. -- and how each is used in writing for the screen. Students will learn the various formats used for film scripts. Editing skills will be sharpened in discussion and evaluation of each other's work-in-progess. The course will concentrate on the creation of a two short screenplays as well as technical consideration of technique, character development, and dramatic structure. Classes will be conducted as workshops in which the main emphasis is on the students' own work, with much in-class writing and improvisation.

NOTE: Students wishing to take this course as FILM 402 Scriptwriting will also need to fill out the Creative Writing Program application (please state on the application you want this as FILM 402) and return it to the Creative Writing Program by the deadlines stated at the beginning of this course atlas.

Texts (both sections):
Story, Robert McKee

Particulars: No pre-requisite for students taking this course as ENG 378RWR. Prerequisite for students taking this course as FILM 402WR: FILM 270, Introduction to Film. Students should budget for photocopying. Students are required to attend weekly film screenings, and on-campus readings and colloquia sponsored by the Creative Writing Program outside of class time.

THEA 389S - 000     ///     Special Topics: Performing Language: Metaphor,
                                       Conceptual Blending, and Performativity
Amy Cook

Same as LING 385S

MW, occasional Fridays TBD   10:40-11:30      MAX: THEA 5, LING 10     Room: Rich Bldg. 207

Content: This class will investigate the relationship between language and performance, beginning with the assumption that the performance context of speech impacts meaning. We will read contemporary theorists in cognitive linguistics such as George Lakoff, Gilles Fauconnier, Rafael Núñez, and Eve Sweetser as well as performance studies theorists such as Richard Schechner and Philip Auslander. We will conduct our own cognitive linguistic performance analysis on Bush’s final State of the Union address and Ethan Hawke’s “to be or not to be” speech in Almereyda’s film of Hamlet from 2000. The class will include special guest speakers and will be interdisciplinary in focus.

Particulars: This course will be part lecture and part seminar. We will use occasional Friday sessions for group projects and presentations. Grades will be based on participation, short response papers, and a final paper/project.

Texts:
1. Philosophy in the Flesh by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson
2. The Way We Think by Gilles Fauconnier and Mark Turner
3. Glam Rock by Philip Auslander

THEA 389SWR - 000     ///    Special Topics: Les Fourberies de Scapin,
                                             du texte a la scene
Alexandre Harrington

Same as FREN 488SWR 

MWF 10:40-11:30
Required Tuesday Workshop/Labs in April, 6-8:30 on April 1, 8, 15, and 22
Max: THEA 6 (FREN 12)      Room: 210 Rich Bldg.

Content: Moliere's Les Fourberis de Scapin. A greater understanding of the text will be made through an exploration of Moliere's works, that of his contemporaries, French classical theater, an analysis of past and present productions (costumes, sets, etc.). This research will take place alongside practical work on the play leading to a performance at the end of the semester.

Particulars: This class will be taught in French. Class participation involving personal and group research, learning lines, and rehearsing the play. There will be 2-3 short papers on specific areas of exploration and one final reflective essay.

Texts:
Les Fourberies de Scapin by Moliere
and other individual plays by Pierre Corneille and Jean Racine

THEA 389 - 00P  ///   Special Topics: Stage Management Fundamentals
Robert Schultz

MW 11:45-1:40     Max: 6     Room: 207 Rich Bldg.
Additional lab sessions required outside of class time, to be determined

Permission of instructor required.

Content:  This course will explore the function of stage management in the modern theater and instruct students in practical methods and organizational tools.  Topics covered will include preparation of production book, scheduling, communication, rehearsal procedures, technical rehearsals, and running of performances. Practical exposure to professional stage management will be provided through participation in a Theater Emory production as an assistant stage manager (ASM).

Particulars:  Grading – One exam given mid-semester covering lecture portion of the course. The second major component for the grade is each student’s contribution as assistant stage managers working on the Theater Emory production of Oh What A Lovely War performing in April 2008.  (Participation as an ASM does not preclude acting in the show.) Students will also be graded on class attendance and on a small number of stage management paperwork and skills exercises.  In the second half of the semester class sessions will be abbreviated to compensate for required attendance at certain meetings, rehearsals and performances connected to the ASM assignment. 

Texts:  The text for the course will be The Stage Management Handbook by Daniel A Ionazzi plus selected material distributed by the teacher.

THEA 396R - 00P     ///    Theater Colloquium
Leslie Taylor and Pat Miller

Th 4-5      MAX: 65      Room: 203 Schwartz Center (Theater Lab)

One-credit. Two semesters of this course are required for the theater major and minor

Content: A series of guest speakers, workshops, and presentations addressing varying aspects of work and life in the theater. Meets on select Thursdays; attendance at approved outside events is also required.

THEA 397R - 00P     ///    Directed Studies in Theater

TBA     MAX: 5

Written Permission of Supervising Instructor Required

Content: Special projects, research, and readings under the direction of a faculty member.

THEA 400R - 00P     ///      Acting Tutorial
Faculty

TBA    MAX: 10

Written permission of instructor required

Content: This course provides advanced theater students with a context for intensive work on specific acting issues. It is intended to meet individual needs; to supplement, extend, and enrich the training offered in regular acting classes; and to give specialized instruction to students in connection with performance projects. Both private and small group tutorials are offered; qualified students with specific needs and learning agenda are encouraged to apply.

Permission for tutorial sessions must be obtained from Theater Studies prior to registration. Admission is by departmental approval.  A tutorial normally involves eight hours of personalized instruction, and may be taken for one or two credits.

THEA 421R - 00P    ///   Applied Acting Laboratory
Staff

TBD    Room: TBD

Permission only . Variable credit

THEA 421R - 01P    ///   Acting Laboratory: Credit for Theater Emory Productions

1 or 2 credit hours, permission only

THEA 421R - 02P    ///   Acting Laboratory: Credit for Theater Emory Productions

1 or 2 credit hours, permission only

THEA 495R - 00P-03P     ///     Honors Project in Theater

Qualification for honors and consent of department required

Content: This course is designed to provide advanced students with a learning experience designed to meet their specific interests and needs. In some cases this may involve weekly instruction on a particular aspect of acting or stagecraft. In other cases a student may wish to work with an individual faculty member on a research project concerned with a particular dramatist, historical period or critical theory.

Particulars: Grading policies will be determined by the particular nature of the project undertaken. Permission for enrollment is by vote of the faculty and must be obtained during preregistration in the previous semester. See the Department for more specific information.
Please direct questions or comments to Theater Studies.

THEA 497 - 00P     ///     Senior Project in Theater

Consent of department required

Content: A supervised project in any area of theater for seniors. Total credit not to exceed twelve hours.

THEA 499R - 00P     ///     Special Project in Theater

Consent of department required

Content: A supervised project in any area of theater. Total credit not to exceed twelve hours.

updated 11/30/2007
by John Ward (jward03@emory.edu)