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Course Descriptions
THE 110: Criticism and Practice
in Theatre
Goal: To look critically at plays, performance history, and/or
theatrical practices. To develop skills in the analysis, enactment, and
interpretation of performance events, theatre literature, or theatre criticism.
Content: A particular area of theatre or performance will be
closely studied through reading and active performance. Expertise in acting will
not be required or expected, but short performances will help students analyze
performance events during class discussion. Given the occasional change in
topic, the course is repeatable one time as THE 112 if the topic is distinct.
THE 112 is not a general education course.
Taught: Annually.
Gen. Ed. Category: Critical thinking.
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 125: Acting I
Goal: To introduce students to the fundamentals of acting,
including relaxation, concentration, communication, collaboration, and
self-confidence, and thereby develop the skills necessary for effective dramatic
expression.
Content: Theatre exercises and games, monologues, improvisation,
and scene study.
Taught: Fall, and occasionally Spring.
Gen. Ed. Category: Artistic expression.
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 225: Acting II
Goal: To apply the principles of the Stanislavsky and Meisner
acting methods and other relevant acting techniques to intermediate scene study
and monologues.
Content: This course begins students’ pre-professional acting
training. Students study characterization, communication, pacing, rhythm, and
other skills required to employment within the performing arts and related
fields.
Taught: Alternate years.
Gen. Ed. Category: Artistic expression.
Prerequisites: THE 125 or permission of instructor.
Credit: 3 hours.
235: Introductory Performance
and Production
Goal: To introduce students to all phases of acting, design, and
technical work.
Content: Participation in and reflection upon the
rehearsal/performance/design/ technical process of a Wesleyan College Theatre
production. Content will vary with production assignment.
Taught: Fall, Spring.
Prerequisites: Permission of instructor, to be granted after
auditions at the beginning of the semester and mid-semester. Permission of the
instructor required.
Credit: 1, 2, or 3 hours per term; usually 1 hour. Note: Theatre
majors must complete a total of four hours of THE 235.
THE 260/261: Exploring the
Theatrical Past
Goal: To explore a specific area of theatre history. To develop
analytical, critical, research, and speaking skills.
Content: Topics range from costume history to World War II
theatre, from the rise of the modern director to the history of musical theatre.
The course will help students connect specific moments in theatre history to
current practices. Given the occasional change in topic, the course is
repeatable one time as THE 261 as long as the topic is distinct.
Taught: Every third year or as needed
Prerequisite: None
Credit: 3 hours
THE 320: Advanced Performance
and Production
Goal: To provide students with advanced acting, technical, and
design experiences.
Content: Participation and reflection on an advanced level in the
rehearsal/ performance/design/technical process of a Wesleyan College Theatre
Production. Content will vary with production assignment.
Taught: Fall, Spring.
Prerequisite: THE 235 and permission of instructor, to be granted
after auditions at the beginning of the semester and mid-semester.
Permission of the instructor required.
Credit: 1, 2, or 3 hours per term; usually 1 hour. Note: Theatre
majors must complete a total of three hours of THE 320.
THE 333: Acting III
Goal: To expand upon the methods used in Acting II and apply them
to advanced acting work, such as period styles and audition techniques.
Content: Continuation of pre-professional studies in theatre, via
intensive scene and monologue study with emphasis on “style” techniques, using
material by Shakespeare, Brecht, and others.
Taught: Every three years.
Prerequisite: THE 225, THE 245, and permission of the instructor.
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 233: Voice and Movement for
Actors
Goal: To introduce students to techniques of voice and movement
for the stage.
Content: An intensive practical and theoretical course that
develops students’ skills in vocal production and movement. This course prepares
students for employment within the performing arts and related fields.
Taught: Alternate years.
Prerequisites: THE 125 or permission of instructor.
Gen. Ed. Category: Artistic expression.
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 245: Shakespeare on Page and
Stage
Goal: To provide students with an understanding and appreciation
of the plays of William Shakespeare.
Content: Students read and analyze ten of Shakespeare’s plays
across the genres, with an eye toward how these texts have impact not only on
readers but also, and even more significantly, on performers, audiences, and
critics.
Taught: Every three years, or as needed as a pre-requisite for THE
333, Acting III.
Prerequisites: WISe 101 and 102 or equivalent or permission of the
instructor.
Gen. Ed. Category: Critical Thinking
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 248: Stage Management and
Producing for Theatre
Goal: To introduce students to the practices of stage management
and producing for the theatre.
Content: Students learn and practice the techniques and duties of
theatrical stage managers and producers, including but not limited to
preparation of prompt books, budgets, and production plans; rehearsal and
production responsibilities; and working with actors, directors, and
playwrights.
Taught: Occasionally.
Prerequisites: THE 110, 125, and 235, or permission of the
instructor.
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 318: Directing
Goal: To teach advanced students how to direct a one-act play.
Content: Participants will study methods for directing. They will
choose a play which they will then cast, rehearse, and direct.
Taught: Every other spring.
Prerequisites: THE 110, 125, 225, 235, 250. Permission of the
instructor.
Credit: 4 hours.
THE 335: Race, Ethnicity,
Gender, and Performance
Goal: Learn to perceive and respond thoughtfully and
energetically, in oral and written form, to race, ethnicity, and gender issues
in plays, films, and the performance process itself.
Content: This advanced methods course offers comparative analyses
of contemporary play and film texts and performances, studied within the context
of critical and theoretical writings.
Taught: Occasionally.
Credit: 3 hours; cross-listed as WST 335; cross-cultural; S
course.
THE 396, 397: Special Topics in
Theatre
Goal: To develop an in-depth knowledge of a specialized topic
within the theatre arts: a particular playwright, genre, theme, period in
theatre history, or technical discipline.
Content: Varies with topic selected.
Taught: Occasionally
Credit: 3 hours.
THE 430: Senior Integrative
Experience
Goal: Concentration on a major theatre project.
Content: Seminar for Bachelor of Arts candidates in theatre.
Emphasis will be on the development of an interdisciplinary theatre project of
the student’s choosing. This may be a thesis paper or a performance (for
example, a one-woman show, the staging of an original play, or a community
outreach project involving theatre). Students in the course also take field
trips to libraries and productions, study career options in theatre, and may
work on a secondary project, also of the student’s choosing.
Taught: Annually
Prerequisites: Fulfillment of all course requirements for the
theatre major through junior level.
Credit: 3 hours; S-course.
Rev. 05.10