Theatre
THEATRE 307 Studies in Gender and Performance Recent research on the social and political background of gender, particularly women's access to performative expressions. Focuses on historical aesthetics: change in debates on women's participation in the public theatre and the significance of the body in performance. Prerequisite: PERF ST 307-1,2.
THEATRE 310 Advanced Voice/Styles (1) Advanced vocal techniques for the actor. Vocal styles include work on Molière, Restoration Comedy, Bernard Shaw, Noel Coward, and Tom Stoppard. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 312-1, 2 The Art of Storytelling (1) (1) Fundamentals of story delivery, performance, analysis, and criticism. Students will develop a repertoire of stories for performance in class, discuss each other's stories and critique storytellings outside of class.
THEATRE 338 Theatre Practicum (1 or 2) Enrollment for students who are members of the Northwestern Summer Theatre Festival Company.
THEATRE 339 Advanced Acting (1) Scene-study course in advanced acting techniques, emphasizing scene analysis and character development. Focuses on the creation of realistic characters from the modern theater. Primarily for graduate students and undergraduate transfer students. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 340-1, 2 Stage Directing (1)(1) Principles and techniques of the director ’s art. 1. Fundamentals of staging: blocking, movement, business, tempo, script selection and analysis, casting, and rehearsal planning. 2. Selected problems in exposition, suspense, surprise, marking of climaxes, and creation of mood. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 341-1, 2, 3 Acting II: Analysis and Performance (1)(1)(1) Theory, principles, and techniques of interpretation of drama from the actor ’s point of view. 1. Greek tragedy. 2. Shakespeare. 3. Modern drama. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 342 Lighting Design II (1) For advanced undergraduate lighting design students and graduate students studying lighting design as a secondary area. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 343 Scene Design II (1) For advanced undergraduate set design students and graduate students studying scene design as a secondary area. Lectures and design projects. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 344 Costume Design II (1) For advanced undergraduates studying costume design and graduate students studying costume design as a secondary area. Lectures and design projects. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 345-1, 2, 3 History of Western Theatrical Practice (1)(1)(1) Comprehensive survey of the theory and history of the theater and drama. 1. The classical period. 2.The Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and the early 17th century. 3. The late 17th through the 19th centuries and the modern period.
THEATRE 346-1, 2, 3 Playwriting (1)(1)(1) Fundamental techniques of playwriting: a yearlong sequence aimed at developing original, full-length play. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 347 Children ’s Theatre (1) Selection, evaluation, direction, and production of plays for children. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 348-1 Creative Drama (1) Applications of creative drama in many areas (e.g., teaching, performance, therapy, writing, recreation). Students explore the use of process-centered improvisations in their lives and work. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 348-2 Advanced Creative Drama (1) Improvised drama as a teaching method and means of learning for the elementary school child. Theory and practice through reading, discussion, films, observation, culminating with extended teaching projects with children from local schools. Prerequisites: THEATRE 348-1 or equivalent and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 349-1, 2, 3 Acting III: Problems in Style (1)(1)(1) Advanced problems in acting theories and styles. 1. Comedy. 2. Contemporary drama. 3. Special topics. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 350 Production Management (1) Role and duties of a production manager. Experience in production management. Production management of modern shows in different venues. Prerequisite: permission of instuctor.
THEATRE 351 The Staging of Contemporary Drama (1) Production problems peculiar to the staging of plays of the contemporary theater. Advanced directing; readings and discussion.
THEATRE 353 Topics in Stagecraft (1) Seminars with guest or resident faculty on topics in stagecraft.
THEATRE 354 History of Costume and Decor (1) Style and aesthetics of art, architecture, fashion, and decorative arts. Special emphasis on periods of theatrical production. Lecture and projects. Topics vary. May be repeated for credit with change of topic. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 355 Scene Painting (1) Traditional and contemporary theory and practice of scene painting. Lecture and studio .Lab fee required. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 356-1, 2, 3 Drawing and Painting for the Theatre (1)(1)(1) Techniques and materials of graphic communication for the stage designer. 1. Model Building. 2. Rendering the Theatrical Space. 3. Rendering the Theatrical Figure. May be repeated for credit with change of topic. Prerequisite:permission of instructor.
THEATRE 357-1, 2 Drawing and Painting for the Theatre (1)(1) Drawing for scenery, costume, and lighting designers; principles of drawing and composition using a variety of drawing materials. 1. Freehand Drawing. 2. The Figure in Space. Lecture and studio. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 358 Improvisation for the Theatre (1) Discussion-participation course investigating improvisational techniques and theater games as methodologies useful to the actor or director in any creative process. Summer only.
THEATRE 359 Directing for the Open Stage (1) Special techniques of stage directing for situations in which the performers are completely or partially surrounded by the audience. Summer only.
THEATRE 360 Problems in Stagecraft (1) Investigation of curricular and production stagecraft topics for the secondary teacher. Topics may vary. Summer only.
THEATRE 361 Textile Arts and Crafts for the Costume Designer (1) For advanced undergraduates and graduates studying costume design. Topics may include fabric dying, fabric modification, wig ventilation, millinery construction, and yarn arts. May be repeated for credit with change of topic. Prerequisite: THEATRE 344 and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 362 20th-Century Stage Design (1) Major stylistic development in 20th-century scene design, costume design, lighting design, and scenography. Emphasis on the American artist in context with the major influences that have shaped the craft. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 363 Theatre Sound (1) Planning and execution of sound for the theatrical production and the design of the actor’s acoustical environment. Lecture and laboratory.
THEATRE 364-1, 2, 3 Period Pattern Drafting and Draping (1)(1)(1) Techniques of flat pattern drafting and advanced construction used to create historical garment patterns for the stage. 1. Flat patterns. 2. Draping. 3. Period patterns. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 365-1,2 American Theatre and Drama (1)(1) Survey of American theater and drama: examines relevance of plays, performances (e.g., pageants and blackface minstrelsy), theater companies, and their original contexts to national identity. 1. Beginnings through the 1930s. 2. The 1940s to present.
THEATRE 366 Special Topics in History, Literature, Criticism (1) Content varies. Studies of individual playwrights, national or regional theaters, historical periods, performance practices, or theoretical inquiries.
THEATRE 367 History of Lyric Theater (1) An overview of the artistic and social history of the inter-related art forms of Ballet, Opera, and Musical Theater. The course includes multi-medica lectures, and viewing of related video materials.
THEATRE 368 African Theatre and Drama (1) Major practices in African theater and drama. Topics may include: festival practices, traveling and popular theaters, Anglophone drama, nationalist dramas, reappropriation of the Western canon, or theater for development.
THEATRE 369 Latin American Theatre (1) Explores the intersection of theatre and politics in modern and contemporary Latin American Theate by linking dramatic texts to readings in history, genre,and theory.
THEATRE 372 Teaching of Dramatics (1) Drama in the secondary school. Relation of theater to the individual, society, and arts; process of acting; study of the dramatic text through improvisation; organizing the play for production. Lecture, class participation, peer teaching, and field experiences in local high schools.
THEATRE 373 Computer Graphics for the Theatre Artist (1) Computer graphics for the stage designer. Investigation of available software programs and strategies for use in the theater. Lecture and laboratory. May be repeated for credit with change of topic. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 374 Text Analysis for Theatrical Production (1) Seminar in analysis of dramatic and nondramatic texts as related to the problems of realized theatrical production. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 376 Participation Theatre for Young Audiences (1) Participation and story theater; incorporating improvisation in the structure of a scripted play for the child audience. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 380 Internship in Theatre Practice (1, 2, or 3) Full-time participation in production and/or management activities in a theater company. Open to graduate students with department approval. Normally only one unit of THEATRE 380 may be applied toward candidacy for the MA degree. Up to three units may be applied toward candidacy for the MFA degree. Cannot count toward PhD residency.
THEATRE 401 Introduction to Graduate Study (1) Problems and methods involved in graduate study and research.
THEATRE 402 Graduate Colloquium (0) Advanced graduate study. Topics vary with instructor.
THEATRE 420-1 Collaboration: American Realism (1) First in a series exploring collaboration between stage director and designers for production. Focus: collaborative process; realistic and naturalistic American drama. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 420-2 Collaboration: Contemporary Drama (1) Second in a series exploring collaboration between stage director and designers for production. Focus: contemporary drama. Prerequisites: THEATRE 420-1 and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 420-3 Collaboration: Shakespeare in the Twenty-first Century (1) Third in a series exploring collaboration between stage director and designers for production. Focus: Shakespeare. Prerequisite: THEATRE 420-1, THEATRE 420-2, and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 434 Workshop in Drama-Oriented Teaching Techniques (1) Content varies; focuses on the origins and practice of storytelling, theater games, and story theater. Summer only.
THEATRE 440 Studies in Comparative Theatre and Drama (1) One aspect of the drama and theater before the modern period.
THEATRE 441 Studies in Modern Theatre and Drama (1) One aspect of the modern theater movement, a dramatist, or type of drama.
THEATRE 442 Studies in Theatre Practice (1) Advanced problems in stage lighting, directing, scene design, costuming, or another aspect of theater activities. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 443-1,2 Problems in the Production of Premodern Drama (1)(1) Problems of producing premodern drama for present-day audiences. 1 .Classical, medieval, and Elizabethan. 2. Continental Renaissance, Stuart and 18th-century.
THEATRE 444 Dramatic Criticism (1) Principles of dramatic criticism from Aristotle to the present. Critical standards and methods and their application to the evaluation of drama in performance.
THEATRE 445-1,2,3 History of Western Theatrical Practice (1)(1)(1) History and theory of theater and drama.
THEATRE 446 Theatre Management (1) Principles and methods in the conduct of theater operations, such as organization, choice of plays, building an audience, publicity, ticket sales, box office routines, house management, touring, and business records.
THEATRE 447 Studies in Child Drama (1) Analysis and interpretation of advanced problems in children’s drama, both formal and informal.
THEATRE 448 Studies in American Theatre and Drama (1) Intensive study of one aspect of American theater and drama,s uch as political theater, Chicago theater, American drama and the American dream, or the history of acting in America.
THEATRE 450 Topics in Stage Design (1) Seminars with guest or resident faculty on advanced topics in theater design; intended primarily for graduate design students. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 451-1,2,3 Seminar in Advanced Directing (1)(1)(1) Seminar in advanced directorial topics; required of graduate students in the MFA program in directing.
THEATRE 462-1 Advanced Studies in Lighting Design (1) Primarily for graduate lighting design students. Students develop lighting ideas and images based on text analysis and production parameters and explore graphic means of communicating their ideas and images . Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 462-2 Advanced Studies in Lighting Design (1) Primarily for graduate lighting design students. Students implement lighting ideas and images through light plots. Photometrics and technical knowledge and skills emphasized. Prerequisites: THEATRE 462-1 and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 462-3 Advanced Studies in Lighting Design (1) Primarily for g raduate lighting design students. Special topics are addressed through a paradigm of master classes, workshops, lecture demonstrations, and projects. Prerequisites: THEATRE 462-1, THEATRE 462-2, and permission of instructor .
THEATRE 463-1 Advanced Studies in Scenic Design (1) Script and the action of the play as the foundation for scene design. Use of initial reading of the script, combined with research, in forming design ideas. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 463-2 Advanced Studies in Scenic Design (1) Students apply drawing, painting, modeling and drafting skills developed in THEATRE 463-1 to create a mature design presentation that expresses their ideas clearly. Prerequisites: THEATRE 463-1 and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 463-3 Advanced Studies in Scenic Design (1) Using the process developed in Theatre 463-1 and Theatre 463-2, students generate a complete, professional scenic design for a major work of drama, including a fully documented package. Prerequisites: THEATRE 464-1, THEATRE 462-2, and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 464-1 Advanced Studies in Costume Design (1) Individual design process, involving text interpretation, character analysis, and research, in response to texts of various theatrical genres. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
THEATRE 464-2 Advanced Studies in Costume Design (1) Students apply costume design processes developed in THEATRE 464-1 to the interpretation of traditional and non-traditional text. Prerequisites: THEATRE 464-1 and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 464-3 Advanced Studies in Costume Design (1) Using the processes developed in Theatre 464-1 and Theatre 464-2, students generate a professional level costume design for a major work of drama. Texts may be in verse or operatic form. Prerequisites: THEATRE 464-1, THEATRE 464-2, and permission of instructor.
THEATRE 470 Theatre in Education: The Teaching of Acting (1) Explores various approaches to teaching acting, concentrating primarily on the basic structures of a curriculum designed for the novice actor. For directors, teachers, and advanced actors contemplating a teaching career. Summer only.
THEATRE 499 Independent Study (1, 2, or 3) May be repeated for credit. Permission of instructor and department required.
THEATRE 545 Seminar: Studies in Drama (1) Content varies. May be repeated for credit with change of topic.
THEATRE 546 Seminar: Studies in Theatre (1) Content varies. May be repeated for credit with change of topic.
THEATRE 590 Research (1, 2, or 3) Independent investigation of selected problems pertaining to thesis or dissertation. May be repeated for credit.
Dance
DANCE 330 Dance Criticism (1) Criticism and theory of writers on Western theatrical dance. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
DANCE 331 Summer Dance Institute (1) Choreography workshop explores the elements of jazz dance with guest artists. Summer only.
DANCE 332 Improvisation for Dance with Music and Theatre (1) Theory and practice of improvisation as a source for performance and composition. Lecture/laboratory examination of the interrelationships of the arts. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
DANCE 333 Dance and Music: Studies in Collaboration (1) Music and dance collaborations from historical and theoretical perspectives. Seminar/practicum. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
DANCE 334 Advanced Choreographic Study (1) Advanced choreographic concepts: abstraction, style, use of music, group work, and humor in dance. Lecture and laboratory.
DANCE 335 Special Topics in Dance Research (1) Research methodologies, dance scholarship, criticism, and historical reconstruction.Content varies. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
DANCE 337 Theory of Dance and Expressive Art Therapies (1) Movement as it relates to body image and human development; psychotherapeutic use of movement/artfor physical integration; expressive language of the body in relation to personality and symbolic meaning; nonverbal communication of affective and unconscious states. Overview; not training for therapists.
DANCE 371 Dance in Education (1) Organizing and teaching dance for children and adolescents. Creative play, movement exploration, and
acquisition of basic motor skills. Lecture, film, simulations, and field experiences.
DANCE 442 Studies in Dance (1) Advanced problems in dance. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
DANCE 499 Independent Study (1, 2, or 3) May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
Related Courses in the Department of African-American Studies
AF AM ST 378 The Harlem Renaissance (1) Examination of African-American cultural production from 1915 to 1930, across a variety of fields, such as theater, music, visual arts, political and social movements, as well as literature.
AF AM ST 379 African Women Playwrights (1) Texts written approximately 1916 –present. Recuperation of biographical information, theatrical representations of the “folk ” and of black feminism, antilynch and other propaganda plays, and development of analytical tools. Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
