Drama 226 (sec 921) M/W 7 pm. - 10 pm. IBLC room 155

Class Schedule

Full Attendance is absolutely necessary in the class.

Monday May 5th: What is Drama?

Lecture: a short traditional history of one way of understanding 'drama'

a new way of understanding drama
introduction to our class

Class work: Discussion -->what are the definitions and understanding of drama that we bring to the classroom today?

finding partners to work with

Wed May 7th: Festival Dionysus & the Metamorphosis of myth Drama- Ritual and Fury.ppt Drama- Ritual and Fury.swf

READ: Eumenides: Aeschylus.pdf

Class Work: Discussion. In preparation for this discussion you should do some background reading about the City Dionysus Festival in the 5th century B.C. -- you will want to bring your questions and insights to class with you. Your goal is to research, as much as time allows, some aspect of the Ancient Greek Theatre that interests you: the performances, or the architecture, the history, the social and cultural elements, the psychology of Greek Tragedy, feminist critiques of the traditional views of Greek tragedy -- in short, any element of the theatre that you find interesting. You can use the resources I have posted in our sidebar, or find new sources.

creating working groups

Workshop: setting up your online writing journals

Working with power point and video for your presentations

Monday May 12: Anthropology of Performance Drama- Turner & Drama.ppt Drama- Turner & Drama.swf

READ: Anthrophology of performance(2).pdf Please read pages 1- 17 closely, and 28 to the end.
- Dionysus 69 This is just a short beginning of a review I found interestingly critical
- Dionysus 69- review.pdf Please read and take note of pages 8 - 13.

Class Work: Discussion :

I will discuss Victor Turner's article, Antrophology of performance(2).pdf,, and talk a little bit about the work of Richard Schechner. You should read pages 1 - 17 and 28 - 35. When you read Turner's article, please keep in mind that what you need to do is to take some of the ideas, understandings, and insights that Turner presents and use them to inform your individual research and readings. I will give you examples of how to accomplish this once you have all presented me with some ideas for research and readings on your journal pages.

After the break, you will have an hour of class time to work with your groups. You should come prepared to brainstorm your research ideas for presentations/workshops. You will have an hour of class time, so come with your ideas and your lap-tops, you will want to do some preliminary research to see what kinds of resources are out there that will help you answer your questions. Before class, I will spend the day reading your journal pages and also come prepared to work with groups individually.

Group report # 1 Due Wed May 14th: These reports are due on your journal page after class on Wed - so, you will have some time in class to collaborate on your reports on Wed. Follow the links to see my guidelines.

Wed May 14th:

Fields of Drama: Popular Culture/ High culture & Shakespeare's theatre Drama & Carnival.ppt

Lecture; I will finish with Monday's talk on Turner and Dionysus 69, and we can discuss ways that you might link ideas about social dramas and liminality, transformation and ritual, into your research for your presentations. Then I want to talk a little bit about the emergence of the authority of the author in the theatrical transition between popular festive performance and dramatic literature in Renaissance England: Shakespear's theatre. Please see my notes on my journal page before class.

Group work: You are going to put togeher your Group Report and post a collabortative page, with me as a collaboratotr - before the end of the class.

Wed May 21st:

Lecture: Drama & Festivity and Carnival : Drama on the Fringes Drama on the Fringe.ppt

READ: You shoud do some reserch to learn as much as time allows you about the Fringe Festivasl across Canada, I suggest you start with the Edmonton Fringe.

Group Work: Presentation Proposals due at end of class

Mon May 26/08:

Lecture; Hybridity and Digital Drama Digital Drama ?.ppt

READ:I'd like you to get online and search for examples of what you would classify as a 'Digital Drama'. Give me one or two links to examples on your journal page and explain your examples in terms concerned with 'dramatic conventions' and the 'artist/audience relationship we have been discussing in class. Consider 'the patron' and 'the social experience' or the 'community.
ClassWork: Please be prepared to discuss your examples in class.

Wed May 28th:

Lecture: Presentation technique: Presentations : Websites.ppt

Class Work: between 7 and 9 pm. I will schedule each group a slot, you'll find this time on your collaboration page in the next couple of days. I will also discuss what I expect at the meeting on your pages. Between 9 & 10 pm I'll talk about presentation techniques and building a web space for your presentation.

Drama 226 Schedule