Theater and Dance

Dance

101. Cultural Choreographies: An Introduction to Dance

June Vail T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25

Dancing is a fundamental human activity, a mode of communication, and a basic force in social life. Investigates dance and movement in the studio and classroom as aesthetic and cultural phenomena. Explores how dance and movement activities reveal information about cultural norms and values and affect perspectives in our own and other societies. Using ethnographic methods, focuses on how dancing maintains and creates conceptions of one’s own body, gender relationships, and personal and community identities. Experiments with dance and movement forms from different cultures and epochs—for example, the hula, New England contradance, classical Indian dance, Balkan kolos, ballet, contact improvisation, and African American dance forms from swing to hiphop—through readings, performances, workshops in the studio, and field work.

102. Making Dances

Paul Sarvis T 9:30 - 11:25, TH 9:30 - 11:25

Explores ways of choreographing dances and multimedia performance works, primarily solos, duets, trios. A strong video component introduces students—regardless of previous experience in dance—to a wide range of compositional methods that correspond to creative process in other arts: writing, drawing, composing. Includes some reading, writing, and discussion, as well as work with visiting professional dance companies and attendance at live performances.

104. Stagecraft

Michael Schiff-Verre T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25

Introduction to the language, theory, and practice of technical theater. Hands-on experience in lighting, scenic and property construction, costuming, and stage management. Considers the possibilities, demands, and limits inherent in different forms of performance and performance spaces, and explores the job roles integral to theater and dance production. Includes forty hours of laboratory work. Grading is Credit/D/Fail.

111. Introductory Dance Technique

Paul Sarvis M 2:30 - 3:55, W 2:30 - 3:55

Classes in modern dance technique include basic exercises to develop dance skills such as balance and musicality. More challenging movement combinations and longer dance sequences build on these exercises. While focusing on the craft of dancing, students develop an appreciation of their own styles and an understanding of the role of craft in the creative process. During the semester, a historical overview of twentieth-century American dance on video is presented. Attendance at all classes is required. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

112. Introductory Repertory and Performance

Paul Sarvis M 4:00 - 5:25, W 4:00 - 5:25

Repertory students are required to take Dance 111 concurrently. Repertory classes provide the chance to learn faculty-choreographed works or reconstructions of historical dances. Class meetings are conducted as rehearsals for performances at the end of the semester: the December Studio Show, the annual Spring Performance in Pickard Theater, or Museum Pieces at the Walker Art Building in May. Additional rehearsals are scheduled before performances. Attendance at all classes and rehearsals is required. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

130. Principles of Design

Judy Gailen M 9:30 - 11:25, W 9:30 - 11:25

An introduction to theatrical design that stimulates students to consider the world of a play, dance, or performance piece from a designer’s perspective. Through projects, readings, discussion, and critiques, students explore the fundamental principles of visual design, as they apply to set, lighting, and costume design, as well as text analysis for the designer, and the process of collaboration. Strong emphasis on perceptual, analytical, and communication skills.

195. Production and Performance

Davis Robinson

Engagement in the presentation of a full-length work for public performance with a faculty director or choreographer. Areas of concentration within the production may include design, including set, light, sound, or costume; rehearsal and performance of roles; service as assistant director or stage manager. In addition to fulfilling specific production responsibilities, students meet weekly to synthesize work. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

195. Production and Performance

Michael Schiff-Verre

Engagement in the presentation of a full-length work for public performance with a faculty director or choreographer. Areas of concentration within the production may include design, including set, light, sound, or costume; rehearsal and performance of roles; service as assistant director or stage manager. In addition to fulfilling specific production responsibilities, students meet weekly to synthesize work. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

202. Topics in Dance History: Rebel Dancers, Dancing Revolutions

June Vail T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25

A studio exploration of American social and theatrical choreography’s intersection with cultural and political upheavals in the United States during the past century. Assignments intersperse dancing with reading, writing, and viewing films and live performances, with workshops by visiting dance companies. Explores diverse styles and eras, including the turn-of-the century feminist/political art of Isadora Duncan; performances of racial and class solidarity by workers’ groups of the 1930s; avant-garde happenings and subversive choreographic strategies of the 1960s; the embodied politics of early hip-hop; and, the staging of gender identities in the 1990s and beyond.

211. Intermediate Dance Technique

Gwyneth Jones T 2:30 - 3:55, TH 2:30 - 3:55

A continuation of the processes introduced in Dance 111. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

212. Intermediate Repertory and Performance

Gwyneth Jones T 4:00 - 5:25, TH 4:00 - 5:25

Intermediate repertory students are required to take Dance 211 concurrently. A continuation of the principles and requirement introduced in Dance 112. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

240. Performance in the Twenty-first Century

Roger Bechtel M 1:30 - 3:25, W 1:30 - 3:25

Hybrid by nature, rebellious in spirit, performance rejects the boundaries and conventions of traditional theater and dance, combining and recombining these live forms with every other artistic mode and medium imaginable. Yet as the first decade of the new century draws to an end, so does the fifth decade of this "new" form. Is it still breaking boundaries, or has boundary-breaking itself become a convention? What, these days, is new about performance? This class will examine the genealogical roots of performance, and then move on to study the ways 21st century performance is exploring the body, the mind, technology, intercultural aesthetics, and globalism. Students will enact critical inquiries in the creation of their own performance works.

311. Advanced/Intermediate Dance Technique

Gwyneth Jones M 2:30 - 3:55, W 2:30 - 3:55

A continuation of the processes introduced in Dance 211. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

312. Advanced/Intermediate Repertory and Performance

Gwyneth Jones M 4:00 - 5:25, W 4:00 - 5:25

Intermediate/advanced repertory students are required to take Dance 311 concurrently. A continuation of the principles and requirement introduced in Dance 212. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

Theater

101. Making Theater

Professor TBD M 9:30 - 11:25, W 9:30 - 11:25

An active introductory exploration of the nature of theater: how to think about it, how to look at it, how to make it. Students examine a range of theatrical ideas and conventions, see and reflect on live performance, and experience different approaches to making work. Designers, directors, performers, and scholars visit the class to broaden perspective and instigate experiments. Students work collaboratively throughout the semester to develop and perform original work.

104. Stagecraft

Michael Schiff-Verre T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25

Introduction to the language, theory, and practice of technical theater. Hands-on experience in lighting, scenic and property construction, costuming, and stage management. Considers the possibilities, demands, and limits inherent in different forms of performance and performance spaces, and explores the job roles integral to theater and dance production. Includes forty hours of laboratory work. Grading is Credit/D/Fail.

120. Acting I

Professor TBD M 1:30 - 3:25, W 1:30 - 3:25

Introduces students to the physical, emotional, and intellectual challenge of the acting process. Voice and movement work, analysis of dramatic texts from an actor’s point of view, and improvisational exercises are used to provide students with a variety of methods for acting truthfully on stage.

130. Principles of Design

Judy Gailen M 9:30 - 11:25, W 9:30 - 11:25

An introduction to theatrical design that stimulates students to consider the world of a play, dance, or performance piece from a designer’s perspective. Through projects, readings, discussion, and critiques, students explore the fundamental principles of visual design, as they apply to set, lighting, and costume design, as well as text analysis for the designer, and the process of collaboration. Strong emphasis on perceptual, analytical, and communication skills.

195. Production and Performance

Davis Robinson

Engagement in the presentation of a full-length work for public performance with a faculty director or choreographer. Areas of concentration within the production may include design, including set, light, sound, or costume; rehearsal and performance of roles; service as assistant director or stage manager. In addition to fulfilling specific production responsibilities, students meet weekly to synthesize work. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

195. Production and Performance

Michael Schiff-Verre

Engagement in the presentation of a full-length work for public performance with a faculty director or choreographer. Areas of concentration within the production may include design, including set, light, sound, or costume; rehearsal and performance of roles; service as assistant director or stage manager. In addition to fulfilling specific production responsibilities, students meet weekly to synthesize work. May be repeated for credit. Grading is Credit/D/Fail. One-half credit.

212. Shakespeare's History Plays

William Watterson M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55

Explores the relationship of Richard III, 2 Henry VI, and the second tetralogy (Richard II, the two parts of Henry IV and Henry V) to the genre of English chronicle play that flourished in the 1580s and 1590s. Readings in primary sources (More, Hall, and Holinshed) are supplemented by readings of critics (Tillyard, Kelly, Siegel, Greenblatt, Goldberg, etc.) concerned with locating Shakespeare’s own orientation toward questions of history and historical meaning. Regular screenings of BBC productions. Note: This course fulfills the pre-1800 literature requirement for English majors.

225. Acting II: Physical Theater

Davis Robinson T 9:30 - 11:25, TH 9:30 - 11:25

Extends the principles of Acting I through a full semester of rigorous physical acting work focused on presence, energy, relaxation, alignment, and emotional freedom. Develops and brings the entire body to the act of being on stage through highly structured individual exercises and ensemble-oriented improvisational work. Scene work is explored through the movement-based acting disciplines of Lecoq, Grotowski, Meyerhold, or Viewpoints. Contemporary physical theater makers Théâtre de Complicité, Mabou Mines, SITI company, and Théâtre de Soleil are discussed. This course, along with Theater 220, Acting II: Voice and Text, is part of a two-semester course series. Theater 220 and 225 may be taken individually or in any order.

240. Performance in the Twenty-first Century

Roger Bechtel M 1:30 - 3:25, W 1:30 - 3:25

Hybrid by nature, rebellious in spirit, performance rejects the boundaries and conventions of traditional theater and dance, combining and recombining these live forms with every other artistic mode and medium imaginable. Yet as the first decade of the new century draws to an end, so does the fifth decade of this "new" form. Is it still breaking boundaries, or has boundary-breaking itself become a convention? What, these days, is new about performance? This class will examine the genealogical roots of performance, and then move on to study the ways 21st century performance is exploring the body, the mind, technology, intercultural aesthetics, and globalism. Students will enact critical inquiries in the creation of their own performance works.

270. Directing

Davis Robinson T 11:30 - 1:25, TH 11:30 - 1:25

Introduces students to the major principles of play direction, including conceiving a production, script analysis, staging, casting, and rehearsing with actors. Students actively engage directing theories and techniques through collaborative class projects, and complete the course by conceiving, casting, rehearsing, and presenting short plays of their choosing. A final research and rehearsal portfolio is required.

305. Studio 305

Roger Bechtel T 1:30 - 3:25, TH 1:30 - 3:25

A senior theater seminar focusing on independent work. Advanced students creating capstone projects in playwriting, directing, acting, and design meet weekly as a group to critique, discuss, and present their work. Final performances are given at the end of the semester.

317. The Arts of Power

Aaron Kitch T 6:30 - 9:25

Examines the intersection of aesthetics and politics in the English Renaissance, as the Tudor court utilized literary, dramatic, and visual arts in new ways to express its magnificence. Explores the development of spectacular masques by Ben Jonson and Inigo Jones for the court of King James, as well as the enabling system of royal patronage that made them possible. Topics include royal mythology, fashion at court, portraiture, and the arts of perspective in the context of court-specific styles of literature. Authors may include Wyatt, Sidney, Elizabeth I, Shakespeare, Spenser, Lanyer, and Jonson, with secondary readings on the structure of the English monarchy, the history of theatrical design, and the function of spectacle. Students have the opportunity to develop their own research projects during the semester. Note: This course fulfills the pre-1800 literature requirement for English majors.