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At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Integrate knowledge of the larger historic context (social, economic, political,
geographic, philosophical, and cultural) with the study of major periods in
world theatre from the Greeks through the 17th century.
2. Demonstrate a general knowledge of the major periods of world theatre,
from the Greeks through the 17th century, including significant movements,
practices, forms, artists, and literature.
3. Compile evidence illustrating how the relationship between the audience
and theatre artist has changed over time.
4. Analyze and compare the present role of theatre in modern United States
society to that of past cultures, civilizations, and periods in world theatre
from the Greeks through the 17th century.
5. Apply various theories of aesthetic and critical analysis in the reading,
viewing, and interpretation of plays.
6. Expand critical comprehension and communication skills through discussion
of the literary and artistic value of a script, as well as its historical context
and its playwright's world view.
7. Compare and contrast basic elements of dramatic structure used in
significant works from various cultures, civilizations, and periods
in world theatre from the Greeks through the 17th century.
8. Identify and interpret thematic elements, including common thematic
threads, within a historical and/or cultural context.
9. Analyze the relationship between the methods of production used during
a script's period of origin and the structure of that script.
10. Support one's own interpretation of a theatrical script with examples
drawn from script analysis and scholarly research, while recognizing that
there may be many valid interpretations of the same work.
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I. What is Theatre?
A. Defining Theatre
1. Theatre and its relationship to other art forms
2. Aesthetics and personal response to the arts
3. Theatre's role in society today
B. The benefits of studying theatre history
II. Theatre as Literature: Introduction to Script Analysis
A. Differences between scripts and other forms of literature
B. Aristotle's poetics
C. Structural elements of a script
III. Theatre in Performance
A. Relationship of audience and performance
B. Genres, styles & conventions
C. Components of theatre today (brief overview)
IV. Theatre Research and Resources
A. Basic research techniques
B. Introduction to theatre resources
C. The role of research in theatre
D. Citing research sources
V. Origins of Theatre
A. Origin theories and early traditions
B. How we know about the past
1. Methodology
2. Addressing varying histories
VI. Classical Theatre: Greece
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Greek society
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
VII. Classical Theatre: Rome
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Roman society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
VIII. Classical Theatre of Asia: India
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in India's society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
IX. Classical Theatre of Asia: China
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Chinese society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
X. Classical Theatre of Asia: Japan
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Japanese society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
XI. Classical Theatre of Asia and the Middle East: Other Cultures (brief overview; optional)
A. Other Asian Theatre Traditions (such as Korea, Southeast Asia, etc.)
B. Classical Theatre Traditions of the Middle East
XII. Medieval Theatre in Europe
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Medieval society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
XIII. Theatre of the Renaissance: Italy
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Italian society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
IX. Theatre of the Renaissance: England
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Elizabethen and Jacobean society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
1. The works of William Shakespeare
2. Shakespeare's contemporaries
G. Analysis of a representative text - Shakespeare
X. Theatre of the Renaissance: Spain
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
1. The Spanish Golden Age
2. Spanish Theatre in the New World
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in Spanish society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text
XI. French Neoclassic Theatre
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in17th Century French society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text - Molière
XII. English Restoration Theatre
A. Cultural and historic overview of the period
1. Late Jacobean period
2. The Commonwealth
3. The Restoration
B. Origins and connections to historic development of theatre
1. Origins
2. Influences from other periods/traditions
3. Impact on other periods/traditions.
C. Audience and the role of theatre in English Restoration society
1. The audience
2. Social role of theatre
3. The theatrical event
D. Development of the theatre space over time
E. Theatre practices
1. Production elements and conventions
2. Performers and acting style
3. Forms, genres and styles
F. Major artists, works, and/or movements
G. Analysis of a representative text - Comedy of Manners
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Homework and Graded Assignments:
1. Reading approximately 30-60 pages per week, including 8-12 plays and
supplemental material.
2. Attending 2-3 Theatre Arts department productions and analyzing them
from a cultural/historical perspective in class discussions and written assignments.
3. Reading Quizzes and/or Worksheets: These will focus on assigned scripts and/or
supplemental reading, assessing students' retention and interpretation of material
read. Per instructor preference, quizzes may be daily or weekly; they may be
take-home, in-class or a combination. They may also be take-home worksheets.
4. Writing Assignments: In addition to exam essay questions (see #5 below), students
will complete 2-4 written assignments over the course of the semester (totalling
approx. 8-15 pages of written work for the course; approx. 2000-3750 words which amounts to 250 words per page.
Examples of such assignments include:
A. Research Assignment: A series of research tasks intended to introduce students
to research technique, methodology, and resources relating to world theatre
history.
B. Production Critique: View a production and analyze the experience using
historic aesthetic criteria, or identify the contributions and/or similarities of this
production to those of other cultural/historical periods studied.
C. Script Analysis: Analyze an assigned script applying analysis criteria introduced
in the course.
D. Creative Project: Each student completes a creative project relating to the
historical/cultural focus of the class. All projects have a written component
and are evaluated on preparation, research, and historic/script analysis
applications, not skill. (8-10 hours of preparation, with documentation.)
5. 2-3 Exams:
A. In addition to multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, matching and/or T/F questions,
all exams will contain 1-4 essay questions. Exam essays may be take-home essays,
in-class essays, or a combination of both.
B. Exams will include material from both assigned reading and lecture. Questions
should include those assessing the following:
a. Ability to make connections between different theatres and traditions.
b. Ability to analyze elements of one or more scripts read.
c. Ability to identify historical influences in contemporary theatre productions.
C. While there may be some questions covering material taught earlier in the
semester, the final exam is not cumulative.
6. Regular attendance and participation in class discussions and exercises.