Theatre

This course is an introduction to theatrical performance, history, and theory with an emphasis on the production process. Attending live theatre is an intrinsic part of the course, and through lecture, design projects, and collaborative group performance students experience first-hand the processes of creating theatre.

This studio course is an introduction to the craft of Acting, utilizing the foundational psychophysical Movement training of the Michael Chekhov Acting technique. Emphasis on acquiring the skills necessary to audition for a role in a theatrical production, including choosing and developing monologue materials and preparing an actor’s headshot and resume. Priority will be given to Theatre Majors and Minors.

This course seeks to combine musicianship, music theory, and keyboard skills by exposing the students to elementary aspects of musical literacy and developing functional musical skills. 

First-Year Seminars (FYS) constitute a common and academically significant experience in a student’s first year at Converse. All incoming first-year students are required to take a 3- or 4-credit hour FYS course in the fall semester, choosing from a variety of discipline specific topics. Each FYS carries the corresponding departmental prefix, but with a common course number.  Each FYS carries the corresponding departmental prefix but with a common course number. Special emphasis is given to cultivating critical thinking, effective speaking, and writing skills. 

This course is designed as a varied study including but not limited to: costume construction sewing skills (hand, machine, and serger); fabric content and characteristics; costume crafts (mask-making, millinery, accessories); costume production script and design analysis; and costume upkeep (hanging, ironing, cleaning, restocking). Particular emphasis will be placed on the production process of Theatre & Dance Converse’s mainstage productions, and creating multiple costumes for use in those productions. 

Performance Studies examines the participants, contexts, and mechanisms by which performance is created. Borrowing from Anthropology, Sociology, and bodies of theory including those concerned with space, gender, race, class, and nation, Performance Studies takes up those performances generally located outside the theater or beyond the traditional performance spaces. Ritual, myth, and oral traditions as well as parades, festivals, and even sporting events are analyzed through the lens of Performance Studies. What unites the objects of study are “twice-behaved behaviors”—those behaviors that are rehearsed and presented before an audience that are concerned with making human action worth watching in a measured time and space.

GEP, Major/Minor & Elective Credit

This course explores the evolution of theatre from ancient times to the present, with a particular focus on how historical plays continue to resonate in and shape modern society. Through examining seminal works from different eras and analyzing their cultural, political and social contexts, students will gain an understanding of the ways in which theatre has reflected societal values, challenged norms and inspired change throughout history. Drawing connections between past plays and current events, the course will encourage students to critically engage with the enduring power of the stage and its relevance today. (major, minor, GEP) 

This course familiarizes the student with the fundamentals of the physical theatrical production process. Among the areas covered are materials, tools, safety, construction methods, electricity, and plan reading.

The course will focus on drafting techniques and problem solving as it applies to the engineering of the building of the scenic elements for a play.

This course examines the history and influence of the American art form of musical theatre, focusing on its connections to marginalized communities, its broad popularity and its power to inspire social change. Students will explore key works and influential creators throughout musical theatre history that highlight how the genre creates cultural shifts, influences public opinion and remains a powerful tool for promoting empathy and activism. 

This studio course continues the exploration of the psychophysical Movement training of the Michael Chekhov Acting technique, deepening students’ understanding and practice of Imagination, Concentration, Form, and Ease. Emphasis on Character development and the development of the student artist's personal artistic voice in the studio. Priority will be given to Majors and Minors.

A laboratory course in which students receive a component of experiential learning toward their degree. The work created by students enrolled in this course will both directly serve Theatre Converse’s production and department needs and will offer the students a wide variety of production opportunities unavailable in the standard classroom, ranging from running mainstage shows to experiencing master-class type workshops, depending on the Theatrical Season calendar. This course is required for Theatre Majors and Musical Theatre Majors every Fall and Spring Term, thus it may/will be repeated for
credit, as the content will change based on production needs.

This course covers all aspects of lighting design for theatre. Through lectures, demonstrations, hands-on projects, topics include: script analysis, electrical theory, control, distribution, instrumentation, color theory, movement, plus the development of a light plot and associated paperwork.

Through lectures, demonstrations, and class projects, this course covers the aesthetics and conventions of costume design for the theatre. Emphasis will be placed on the development of design ideas resulting from script analysis, clothing history research, figure drawing, color theory, fabric knowledge, and adapting existing garments, as well as the development of a costume portfolio and costume production paperwork. Offered in alternate years.

Through lectures, demonstrations, and class projects, this course covers the aesthetics and conventions of properties design for the theatre. Emphasis will be placed on the development of designs ideas resulting from script analysis, research techniques, and the understanding and implementation of some production tools, materials, and techniques used in professional theatre. Major, Minor, elective credit.

This course introduces students to the art of puppetry as a form of theatrical storytelling. In addition to exposure to a variety of puppetry forms, students will have the opportunity to design and build puppets based on their newfound knowledge. Students will read a number of playscripts that either incorporate puppetry or use it exclusively as the mode of staging. The course culminates in production portfolio presentations and scene selection performances.

Major, Minor, Elective credit. 

This course introduces students to the basic theories and techniques of Stage
Management. Over the course of the semester, we will examine and discuss common practices within the position, and, through activities, gain an understanding of duties performed in various situations throughout the production process, from running meetings and rehearsals to calling shows. Successful completion of this course will prepare students to confidently undertake the actual position at the university level, and will provide the background needed to build experiences toward working in stage management at the professional level. Major, Minor, elective credit.

Dramaturgy is the process by which a written text, artifact, or event is brought to life on the theatrical stage. As a professional theatre artist and member of the production team, a dramaturg combines knowledge of theatre and world history, playwriting, translation and script analysis, and performance practices such as directing in order to: research, examine, and share knowledge of the text of the play script, translation issues and options, the play’s original societal context, and any information that assists the director, actors, designers, or audience in understanding the theatrical performance. This course will investigate the history and development of Dramaturgy in European and later U.S. theatre and the contemporary function of the dramaturg in professional and academic theatre settings.

This course focuses on contemporary dramatic literature. Emphasis is placed on positioning scripts in historical and theoretical contexts including discourses on how representation makes and challenges identity in performance. Play scripts are analyzed as the foundation documents for the choices made by directors, designers, and actors in the creation of theatrical performances. Prerequisite THR200 (major, minor, GEP)

Course revised November 2024. Previous course was THR 102. 

This interdisciplinary course examines the impact of the mass media company, Disney, on American popular performance, and specifically the complex relationship between historical accuracy and representation as American history is reinscribed and reimagined through Disney’s media output. Of specific interest for this course will be the historiographic concerns that cross American history and American theatre history and performance studies including representations of marginalized identities such as indigenous populations and women of color. After analyzing key thematic concerns in Disney films, products, parks, musicals, and cruises, this course will travel to two Florida theme parks, the Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, to experience firsthand the many ways in which Disney employs performance to tell America’s history.

This studio course continues the exploration of the psychophysical Movement training of the Michael Chekhov Acting technique, deepening students’ understanding and practice. Emphasis on Advanced Composition tools and the development of students’ leadership voice in the studio through curricular assigned teaching opportunities. May be repeated once for credit. Priority will be given to Majors and Minors.

Major, Minor, Elective credit.
 

This course focuses on the storytelling aspect of singing, specifically related to Musical Theatre. Students will work on pieces from the Musical Theatre canon, ballad and up-tempo, traditional and contemporary. Exploring the text and using the Michael Chekhov Acting technique, students will learn to develop engaging characters and truthful stories while singing.

This course examines the foundations of the processes of learning and teaching with special attention paid to the ways in which theatre is taught and learned. Emphasis is placed on effective teaching methods in the arts and the variety of ways students learn including practice-based means and the strategic use of technology in the classroom. Major, Minor, elective credit.

This course explores leadership in theatrical productions and the skills required in contemporary directing practice. Student laboratory work will consist of solving directorial challenges and working with student artists in the creation of scenes. Students will also practice skills in script analysis, stage composition, actor coaching, communication, and collaboration.

A course designed to give the student the basic understanding and practical experience in the craft of playwriting. The course will culminate in the development of an original one act script. Writing Intensive.

This program is designed for students who plan a career in theatre. It offers students an opportunity to observe and participate in the activities of a regional theatre company. Students accepted for this program must receive a written recommendation from a member of the theatre department. Pass/fail grading.

This program is designed for students who plan a career in arts management. Students accepted for the program will observe and participate in the activities of an arts council or similar organization whose function is the management of an arts activity. Pass/fail grading.

Major, Minor, Elective credit. An intensive studio course focusing on devising a Musical Theatre review; students will learn music and lyrics from multiple Musical Theatre scores with a thematic thru-line. Layering in blocking, choreography, and character development, the class culminates with a public performance of the new work. May be repeated for a maximum of six credits.

Advanced work in the directorial process will be covered. Topics of study include the directing of experimental works, musicals, non-realistic drama, and period work. The student’s work will culminate in the performance of selected scenes from different genres.