INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE THR 116 FALL 2007 COURSE CREDITS AND CONTACT HOURS Credits 3 3 class hours week INSTRUCTOR Gary Wetzel Righettini OFFICE LOCATION AND NUMBER George Potter Center 101 PHONE NUMBER AND OFFICE HOURS 517 796 8591 extension on campus phone 8591 Office hours M W 8 00 10 00 T 8 00 9 00 R 8 00 12 00 F 8 00 9 00 and by appointment email gary m wetzel righettini jccmi edu A COURSE DESCRIPTION from Catalog and complete with prerequisites A survey of Western theatre and drama Appreciation of theatre through the understanding of historical development and societal function Theatre architecture production costuming acting styles and the artist s who create them B PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES You will be able to demonstrate your knowledge understanding and appreciation for the cultural and mechanical aspects of theatre and appreciate why and how theatre is created You will also be introduced to the language theories and history of theatre through the use of lectures texts visual aids and workshop labs C REQUIRED TEXT The Essential Theatre ninth editions Brockett and Ball D ASSIGNMENTS AND WHEN DUE 1 Readings assignments from the text 2 Examinations based on the text and lecture demonstrations You are responsible for all assignments and material covered in class E EVALUATION GRADING Tests will constitute 100 of your grade Extra credit may be earned F MAKE UP WORK AND OR TEST POLICY Missed exams must be made up within a week of the missed class and will not be the exam format given on the assigned exam day Please see me if you cannot attend a class The final exam may not be made up You will be givena Grade to Date on your exams starting with the second test You are responsible for picking up your exam should you miss the class when they are distributed G FAILURE Failure in this usually results from poor class attendance Due to the nature of this course the text is used to supplement the lectures and therefore cannot be used in and of itself to pass the course A great deal of material is NOT covered in the text and a missed class will be detrimental to your grade especially if enrolled in the 3 hour classes It would be beneficial during the first few classes to exchange phone numbers with someone to help with notes H ACADEMIC HONESTY POLICY Academic honesty is expected of all students It is the ethical behavior that includes producing your own work and presenting others work as your own either by plagiarism by cheating or by helping others to do so I HOW TO GET HELP AND WHAT KIND IS AVAILABLE I will be more than happy to tutor you on all facets of this class should you need it J INSTRUCTOR ATTENDANCE POLICY Regular attendance and participation is expected Failure to attend every day will seriously affect your grade K COURSE MANAGEMENT Please call whenever possible if you will be late or absent Exceptions to the syllabi can be arranged L HELP Supplemental texts videos or other materials such a biographies and autobiographies are available I will be more than happy to guide to the proper sources M CALENDAR Please note that some revisions are possible You will be informed in advance should this be required WEEK 1 Introduction to the course WHAT IS THEATRE Foundations Origins Basic Elements and Special Qualities P 3 19 2 Theatrical Spaces and a Theatre Tour Pp 279 286 3 Introduction to Theater s Artists The Actor What IS Acting And how it is done Primarily in class material Pp 155 157 337 352 Exam 1 4 The Actor continued Exam 2 All material thus far 5 6 7 The Playwright and Play Structure Pp 295 299 304 8 The Glory That Was Greece Pp 57 66 71 The Director From Paper to Production Pp 150 153 314 335 Exam 3 9 10 The Gory That Was Rome Pp 72 75 78 79 Once gain a great deal of this is not in the text 11 The Theatre of the Middle Ages Pp 79 87 92 Exam 3 All material until but not including the Renaissance 12 The Italian Renaissance The Age of Innovation and the Commedia del Arte Pp 107 116 13 Elizabethan Theatre and GULP Bill Wm Shakespeare Pp 95 102 14 Neo Classicism Romanticism and Melodrama Pp 120 121 134 140 145146 155 157 15 Realism Futurism and the Now Pp 154 155 165 167 176 16 Review and Final exam N The Board of Trustees has determined that all JCC graduates should develop or enhance certain essential skills while enrolled in the college Several of these Associate Degree Outcomes are addressed in this class including ADO 6 Understanding and appreciating the aesthetic experience and artistic creativity A Student in this class Develops an understanding and vocabulary of theatre capable of identifying and knowing theatre its components and the societal historical context whereby it is created Understands the methods of analysis of what constitutes theatre and those who create it Uses discipline specific language to comprehend what constitutes good theatre Engages in prompted discussions and theatre games in the creative contexts demonstrating various components within which an theatre and it participants work and the artist s resulting creative choices Understands and Identifies the components and of theatre those who create it the aesthetic standards used to make critical judgments in how theatre reflects society l Approaches a theatrical work of collaborative creative work with comprehension the requirements to do theatre and a greater appreciation of theatre as an art form ADO 7 Critical Thinking Demonstrates interest in learning Recognizes need for questions Identifies emotional impact from character and theme development in a theatrical production and dramatic script Distinguishes between reality and theatrical reality Identifies criteria for good theatre Identifies bias in dramatic scripts productions and audience perceptions Recognizes how theatre reflects society Understands how theatre is created How a theatre experience develops from concept script stage design blocking to production O CAVEAT Due to differing factors some revisions may be necessary in this course School closings failure of a student to attend on an assigned day illness etc will be considered and appropriate adjustments made EXTRA CREDIT Extra credit will be given for the following 1 attendance and a review of the JCC Fall production of When You Coming Back Red Ryder for a full 1 step up on your lowest test score Production dates and requirements for the review will be given in class 2 step up on your lowest test grade for attending Project Success day 3 Participation either as cast member or crew on the