Theatre History

This course is designed for advanced theatre students who have a strong background in acting to gain further knowledge of important plays and playwrights from the major periods in theatre history. Classwork and assessments in this course are balanced between reading, writing, performance, and research presentations.  Students will sometimes have a choice about the nature of their assessment, based on their particular areas of interest.  All students should be prepared for a rigorous, text-based class that will deepen their content knowledge of theatre styles and periods in history.  We will pay special attention at the beginning of this year to building an ensemble as we build community in the classroom and think about the meaning and importance of theatre around the world. The course will continue with a look at the history of Western theatre in Ancient Greece and Elizabethan England.  We moved over to the United States and explored contemporary theatre from 1900 to the present.  Finally, we look at traditional Asian theatre and post-colonial African theatre.  Students will read at least one play from each period and will complete a performance or research project based on the play that they have read and their understanding of the historical context.