Theater Arts

LSNS0313 Individual Lessons: Voice This course is for private instruction in singing and vocal technique and can be taken by any Emmanuel College or COF student, regardless of proficiency level. The student will meet once per week on campus with the instructor to work on improving technique, learning new repertoire and enhancing overall musicianship. Regular practice throughout the week between sessions is required. For majors or minors in the Theater Arts, these lessons may culminate in a year-end recital. Students may enroll in the course as many times as desired. Fall and spring semesters. 0 credits. (Pass/Fail) $450 lesson fee. Scholarship available: see department chair

LSNS0314 Individual Lessons: Piano This course is for private instruction in piano technique and performance and can be taken by any Emmanuel College or COF student, regardless of proficiency level. The student will meet once per week on campus with the instructor to work on improving technique, learning new repertoire and enhancing overall musicianship. Regular practice throughout the week between sessions is required. For majors or minors in the Theater Arts, these lessons may culminate in a year-end recital. Students may enroll in the course as many times as desired. Fall and spring semesters. 0 credits. (Pass/Fail) $450 lesson fee. Scholarship available: see department chair

SPCH1111 Public Speaking: Voice and Diction Fundamentals of public speaking are studied, including volume and projection, proper posture and voice-body integration, diction, clarity and techniques for engaging an audience. These skills are then applied to the composition, analysis and presentation of formal and informal speeches as well as role-playing exercises concerning other business and social situations. Fall semester. 4 credits

SPCH3111 Public Speaking: Interactive Speech In this course, advanced techniques of interpersonal communication will be stressed, enabling the student to handle the complexities of business and social interaction. Role-playing situations include interviews, negotiations and debates. An emphasis will be placed on audience interaction, proxemics and nonverbal communication, as well as the balance of power between parties in any situation where two or more parties directly interact. Spring semester. 4 credits Prerequisite: SPCH1111

THTR0111 Theatrical Productions The Theater Arts program presents two to four theatrical productions each semester, ranging from small-scale, student-directed shows to large, mainstage performances. Students must be enrolled to participate in one or more of these productions. Participation can be as a performer, technician, and/or administrative assistant, and may include acting, singing, dancing, design, construction, musical accompaniment, crew, front-of-house support, writing of original material to be staged, or any combination of these in support of a show. Students are not required to work on all the productions in the semester, but are required to participate in at least one, including a minimum two hours of non-performance support for any production for which they volunteer. Students may register after the drop/add period, as cast and crew lists are posted periodically throughout the semester. Students may also register for as many semesters as they choose. Fall and spring semesters. 0 credits(Pass/Fail)

THTR0312 Performance Techniques for the Singing Actor This course incorporates movement, acting and vocal techniques for those interested in musical theater. Course study to culminate in a scenes recital. Students may enroll in the course as many times as desired. Fall and spring semesters. 0 credits. (Pass/Fail)

THTR0314 Performance Techniques for the Dancing Actor This course incorporates dance and movement techniques for those interested in musical theater. Students will learn selected dance vocabulary and choreographed sequences, movement analysis, and audition and performance techniques. Students will also be required to submit a written analysis of each of the dance selections. The course will culminate in a final performance. Fall and spring semesters. 0 credits. (Pass/Fail)

THTR1101 Theater History and Appreciation

Aesthetic Inquiry Arts (AI-A)

This survey course traces the history of theater as an art form, a branch of literature, a vocational craft and ultimately as an expression of the human condition. Students begin with an introduction to the elements of theater: its architecture, terminology and the roles and functions of each contributing artist in the theatrical process. From here the history of the theater is discussed, beginning with its early origins and including study of key areas in theater history: Greek theater, religious theater of the Middle Ages, the Elizabethan Era, the Restoration theater, Victorian spectacle and the Era of Modernism. Finally, a critical perspective is applied to the presentday theater and students discuss how influences from each of the preceding eras have affected what is presented and the expectation of audiences today. Spring semester. 4 credits THTRCOF1102 Introduction to Performing Arts The gateway course to the COF minor in Performing Arts, this course is a survey of dance, theater, music, and performance art through observation and listening, readings, and experiential learning. The class will include lectures, discussions, and attendance at performances, as well as performance activities. Students will study the varied roles of performing arts in history and throughout the world, as well as their role in contemporary society. The business of performing arts will also be considered. Students will study music, theater, and dance terminology, fundamentals, and basic techniques of each art form. Spring semester. 4 credits

THTR1211 Dance: Barres and Ballet This course will provide students with an introduction to Ballet through a study of its basic principles, practices and terminology. Through movement participation, students will learn barre and floor Ballet combinations and technique culminating in a Ballet final. We will also explore Ballet history through lectures, written assignments and films. Fall semester. 4 credits

THTR1212 Dance: Concepts and Practice This course will explore the history and importance of dance. It will also familiarize students with a broad range of dance techniques and vocabularies such as Modern, Jazz, Hip Hop, Cardio, Latin, and Yoga. Through movement participation and dancing as a group, it will introduce students to a range of musical rhythms and body organization patterns. Instruction will include dancing in class, class lectures, films, and handouts; written analyses will also be required. Students will be able to demonstrate the skills they learned in their final. Spring semester. 4 credits

THTR1303 History of the American Musical Theater

Aesthetic Inquiry Arts (AI-A) Visual & Creative Inquiry (VCI)

Emphasizing music and theater equally, this course studies the origins of American musical theater from its European opera and operetta influences, through vaudeville and minstrel shows and including the many variations of the form over the last half century. Fall semester. 4 credits

THTR2101 Studies in Drama: Ritual and Social Reality This course is a survey of dramatic literature from the classical period to the modern era, with an emphasis on drama’s fundamentally communal character. The playwrights considered may include Sophocles, Aristophanes, Plautus, Shakespeare, Behn, Moliere, Ibsen, Chekhov, Brecht, and Beckett, as well as medieval and renaissance genres such as the mystery and morality plays and the commedia dell’arte. Fall semester, odd years. 4 credits

THTR2102 Modern Drama This course analyzes selected plays by British, European, American and world dramatists of the 20th century, with close attention to the evolving methods and sensibilities associated with the cultural movements of naturalism, modernism, and postmodernism. Writers may include Ibsen, Shaw, Wilde, Brecht, Beckett, O’Neill, Soyinka, Churchill, Kushner, Friel, and Wilson. Fall semester, even years. 4 credits

THTR2111 Acting: Basic Techniques This course is a production-oriented study of movement, acting and improvisation techniques. Students practice rehearsal methods, text analysis and interpretation, and learn the basic fundamentals of acting. Students perform scenework as well as improvisation, and careers in acting are discussed. Fall semester. 4 credits

THTR2112 Acting: Styles and Genres Basics of acting are applied to specific styles and genres, including Greek Drama, Elizabethan Theater, Restoration Comedy, Comedy of Manners and Realism. Students present scenes from classic plays and study the conventions of various major periods in theater history. Spring semester. 4 credits

THTR2113 Playing Shakespeare: from Study to Stage The course combines the reading of a small selection of Shakespeare’s plays with a performance component in which students prepare scenes for class presentation. Students also consider staging and performance issues by attending live performances and by analyzing film versions of the plays. By adding a theatrical dimension to the traditional study of texts, the course translates the written word into that complex of speech and action that brings drama to life. Fall semester, even years. 4 credits

THTR2212 The Moving Body This course provides an introduction to principles of the body in motion and its application to dance and other movement techniques. Students will investigate physiology through movement exploration, observation, reading assignments, and written analyses. Various theories will be considered, including experiential anatomy, Laban Movement Analysis, and Bartenieff Fundamentals. Through these methods, students will improve physical performance and increase range of expression. Spring semester. 4 credits

THTR2312/2313 Advanced Performing Techniques for the Singing Actor This course provides singer-actors who have already taken THTR0312 with weekly vocal coaching sessions in order to deepen their connection with the various skills required to prepare for a performance on stage. The students will receive individual attention in a workshop setting, aimed at improving diction, rhythm, phrasing, breath control, emotive expression, listening skills and practice habits. While the majority of the time will be spent in song and peer discussion, students will receive the chance to work as a class on common topics that arise. The class will culminate in a performance at the end of the semester, in which everyone will be required to participate. Fall and spring semesters. 2 credits

THTR2314 Advanced Performing Techniques for the Dancing Actor This course incorporates dance and movement techniques for those interested in musical theater. Students will learn selected dance vocabulary and choreographed sequences, movement analysis, and audition and performance techniques. Students will also be required to submit a written analysis of each of the dance selections. The course will culminate in a final performance. Fall and spring semesters. 2 credits

THTR3101 Dramaturgy and Play Analysis This course offers study and analysis of theater history and topical readings. Individual research projects by class members are required. Spring semester, even years. 4 credits

THTR3121 Theatrical Design and Production In this course, students gain hands-on experience with every aspect of theatrical production, from show selection and script analysis to lighting, costuming and scenic design. In conjunction with the instructor, students will select a script or set of short scripts as the basis for a project portfolio. Each part of the production process will then be explored in relation to each student’s project, beginning with the thematic analysis of the script, and continuing with set design, lighting design, costume design, sound design, prop selection, casting, blocking and production publicity. Professionals in each field may also be invited to visit class and field student questions. Students will also participate in the current Emmanuel College Theater production (THTR0111) and will apply skills developed in class to the actual working production for credit. A particular emphasis will be placed on the technical side of the directorial process. Spring semester, odd years. 4 credits Prerequisite: THTR1101

THTR3122 Playwriting Students will learn the elements of a wellmade play, guidelines for submission of manuscripts professionally to theater companies and dramatists’ organizations, elements of drama, crafting of stage directions, and the process of producing, acting in, and directing original work. To this end, students will each develop a new play workshop-style and also read from, act in, and direct scenes from these original works. Emphasis will be placed on writing specifically for actors and directors. Fall semester, odd years. 4 credits

THTR4131 Theater Arts Internship This internship is designed to offer the student related experience in a theater company, organization or talent agency. Prerequisites: INT1001 and permission of department chair Fall and spring semesters. 4 credits

THTR4178/4179 Directed Study I and Directed Study II Students take part in independent and individual study in the field of their choice.