Drama Department

II. Intermediate

200a or b. The Experimental Theater (1/2)

This course focuses on putting theory and technique into practice through participation in the performance, design, or technical aspects of drama department productions in the Experimental Theater of Vassar College. Recent productions included The Secretaries by the Five Lesbian Brothers, Spring Awakening by Frank Wedekind, As You Like It using original staging practices, a race specific Pygmalion, Quills by Doug Wright, Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, a new translation of Oedipus at Colonus, Cloud Nine by Caryl Churchill, and an all-female Macbeth, as well as various student written works and collaboratively generated projects. The department.

Prerequisite: Drama 102, 103, and permission of the department.

May be repeated up to four times.

One 3-hour period and production laboratory.

[ 201b. Text In Performance ] (1)

The analysis of performance texts as they are interpreted in contemporary production. Students engage in close readings of play texts and criticism and then examine the ramifications of production choices by viewing a number of professional productions. Ms. Cody, Mr. Grabowski.

Prerequisite: Drama 102, 221-222 or special permission of the instructors.

One 2-hour period and laboratory.

Alternate years: Not offered in 2009/10.

[ 202b. The Art of Theater Making ] (1)

This course is a sequel to Drama 102. Students explore more deeply the complexities of interpreting and realizing texts on the stage. The source materials include poems, short stories, and plays and the course culminates in the conceiving and staging of a non-dramatic text. Ms. Cody and Mr. Grabowski.

Prerequisite: Drama 102, 221-222 or special permission of the instructors.

One 3-hour period and laboratory.

Alternate years: not offered in 2009/10.

203a or b. The Actor's Craft: The Study of Acting (1)

Theories From 1915-Present

The development of rehearsal techniques and strategies in preparation for acting on the stage. Ideas are drawn from the work of Constantin Stanislavsky, Michael Chekhov, Tadashi Suzuki, Anne Bogart, Sanford Meisner, and others. Ms. Tucker.

Prerequisite: Drama 102, and permission of the department.

Two 2-hour periods.

205a. The Actor's Voice (1)

Instruction, theory, and practice in the use of the voice for the stage. Ms.Tucker.

Prerequisite: Drama 102 and permission of the department.

One 3-hour period.

206a. Movement for Actors (1)

Training in stage movement for actors. Students learn to understand neutral posture alignment and explore the dynamic and expressive qualities of movement, as well as the methods of developing a rich physicalization of character. Concepts from the Alexander Technique, Laban Movement Analysis, experimental theatre, and post-modern dance are used. Ms. Wildberger.

Prerequisite: Drama 102, and permission of the instructor.

One 3-hour period.

209b. Topics in Production (1)

In-depth study of one or more of the specialized skills used in the creation of the technical aspects of theatrical production. Past topics have included Drafting and Draping. Graphic Communication for Designers, Scene Painting, and Stage Management. May be repeated, but students may study each skill area only once. Ms. Hummel.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

One 3-hour period.

210a. Introduction to Playwriting (1)

Introduction to playwriting explores the process and possibilities of dramatic writing. Course work includes analysis of several plays over the semester, including work by Friel, Shepard, Kennedy, Murphy, and Chekhov, among others. The bulk of the work, however, is work-shopping of student writing. By the end of the semester, students turn in a portfolio that includes a monologue, a short play, and a one-act play, all of which are expected to be revised. Ms. Delaney.

Prerequisite: Drama 102

Two 75-minute periods.

215b. Plays of the Black Diaspora/Performing the Black Diaspora (1)

(Same as Africana Studies 215b) Through comedy, tragedy, and satire, playwrights from Africa, Europe, the United Kingdom, and the Caribbean have dramatized the rich heritage and vibrant cultures of the Black Diaspora. The course explores the forms and themes of black theater. It examines the evolution of the black theatre from the African Grove, to urban "chitlin" circuits, and contemporary Black theater. It discusses how playwrights of the black Diaspora have dealt with issues like myth, identity, gender, spirituality, love, and ownership. Works include plays by Wole Soyinka, August Wilson, Derek Walcott, Susan Lori Parks, Alice Childress, Pearl Cleage, Ed Bullins, Athol Fugard, Lorraine Hansbury, Lynn Nottage, Dipo Abgoluage and Errol Hill. Mr. Reid.

Prerequisite: Drama 102.

Two 75-minute periods.

221a/222b. Sources of World Drama (2)

An exploration of dramatic literature and performance practices from around the world with a focus on the theories that have affected both the literature and practice of theatre from Aristotle's The Poetics to writings by late twentieth-century theorists. The course focuses in depth on a series of critical periods and explores the relationship between the theater and the culture responsible for its creation. Ms. Walen.

Prerequisite: Drama 102.

Two 75-minute periods.

231a. History of Fashion for the Stage (1)

A historical survey of dress from the Egyptian era through the fin de siècle as seen in sculpture, manuscript illumination, painting, and drawing. Cultural background investigated through manners and customs in Western Europe. Ms. Hummel.

Permission of the instructor required.

Two 75-minute periods.

241-242. Shakespeare (1)

(Same as English 241-242) Ms. Dunn.

282a. Dramaturgy: The Art of Dramatic Structure (1)

The aim of this course is to give students the tools with which to engage in serious historical and cultural research on a particular text, and to learn how to most productively offer this material to the practical needs of a production company. Students read theoretical essays, published as well as unpublished plays, and learn how to "cut" scripts, as well as to "adapt" existing material. Weekly presentations in class, and "interning" on a Vassar Experimental Theater production constitutes a core part of the course. Ms. Cody.

Prerequisite: Drama 102

One 2-hour period.

290a or b. Field Work (1/2 or 1)

To be elected in consultation with the adviser and the Office of Field Work.

298a or b. Independent Work (1/2 or 1)

To be elected in consultation with the adviser.