Fundamentals of Stagecrafts/Tech Theatre I

Prereq: Drama I (may be taken concurrently)

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts/Architecture

 

Covering the basic approach to designing the performance space in terms of scenery and lighting, this class focuses on the designer’s responsibilities in the collaborative process of theatre.  The class will cover specific parts of the production process with practical experience in both lighting and scenic design.

 

Instructional needs:

• 1-for-1 channel Dimmer System (Current system must be renovated) for Light Lab Set Up
• Drafting Lab
• General Drafting Supplies (leads, triangles, vellum/drafting paper)
• Modeling Supplies (balsa wood, glue, rubber cement, etc…)
• Theatrical Design and Production, J. Michael Gilette

 

 

Fundamentals of Stagecrafts/Tech Theatre II

Prereq: Drama I (may be taken concurrently)

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts

 

The emphasis in this section of Stagecrafts/Tech Theatre will be on costuming and makeup with an added focus on practical application.  Students will “apply” for production slots, including designer, assistant, etc….  Every student will be required to design at least one show, both costume and makeup, including design projects not to be realized on stage at this time.  This course will refine comprehension of the production process, demanding more involvement in the process itself.

 

Instructional needs:

·        Costume Shop (sewing machines, patterns, fabric, thread, needles, etc…)

·        Makeup Kits (furnished 1 per student per semester)

·        Wigs

·        Theatrical Design and Production, J. Michael Gilette

 

Advanced Stagecrafts/Tech Theatre

Prereq: Stagecrafts I and II

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts/Vocational

 

A design course, Advanced Stagecrafts will review knowledge from both Stagecrafts I and II, extending the knowledge of the design process.  Students will work to become scenographers—designers of scenery, light, and costumes—to present audiences with a production that exemplifies Aristotle’s Unities of Action, Time, and Place.  The final project in this class will result in a portfolio suitable for college and scholarship interviews in the field of Design and Technical Theatre.  By portfolio audition only.

 

Instructional needs:

• Same as listed for Stagecrafts I and II

 

Script Analysis and Dramaturgy

Prereq: Drama I, English 9

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts/History

 

An often overlooked aspect of theatre, the dramaturg’s ability to research theatre as a vital, thriving art form in today’s society is an absolute essential.  Students will analyze scripts from specific authors (mainly American), noting their contributions through that particular production as well as their overall impact on the world of theatre as we know it.  Placing productions within their cultural and historical contexts helps elucidate the importance of human thought and philosophy.  This course aims to provide the student with analytical skills that will aid in deepening the understanding of theatre’s connection to the world it speaks about. 

 

Instructional needs:

• Class Sets of Various Plays (Most outside the English canon)
• Theatre History Texts (Specific to theatre history—most texts are too general to serve this purpose)
• Media Center (theatre history texts)
• Computer Lab (word processing)
• The History of Theatre, Oscar Brockett

 

World Theatre

Prereq: Drama I, English 9

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts/History

 

A survey course of theatre outside the British Isles and United States, World Theatre will focus on the art of theatre as catalyst for social change.  Theatre is often relegated in the category of stagnant art form, few understanding its long reach into the lives of a country’s people.  Students will examine the theatre of several continents, establishing connections that cross geographic borders as well as the differences within these contexts. 

 

Instructional needs:

• Same as listed under Script Analysis and Dramaturgy

 

Improvisation and Stage Movement

Prereq: Drama I and Drama II

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts

 

In today’s fields of acting and performance, physical control is an absolute essential, as is the need for the actor to stay “in the moment” while working through rehearsals in the production process.  Stage movement will focus on portraying period characters from Greek Theatre up through Commedia Dell’Arte.  Students will refine understanding of the body as the kinesthetic center, connecting intention to action, working to realize both onstage. 

Building upon this, the improvisation section of this course will work students in both long and short formats.  Students will rehearse standard and created formats for production throughout the semester.  By audition only.

 

Instructional needs:

• Rehearsal space (space with wall mirror)
• Improv Materials (books/formats)
• Neutral Masks (for basic physical work)
• Period Plays (class sets of scripts from various periods)
• Improv, Viola Spolin

 

Creative Dramatics/Children’s Theatre

Prereq: Drama I and Drama II

STRAND: Theatre/Performing Arts/Academy of Education

 

Creative Dramatics are an integral part of the dramatic process.  Building upon early childhood games and activities, Creative Drama forces participants to utilize their imagination to open themselves up to artistic impulses.  Students will learn as participants as well as group leaders, emphasizing the benefits of Creative Drama inside as well as outside the classroom, including conflict-management and role-playing.  Students will participate in partnership programs with area elementary schools to bring drama in the form of Creative Dramatics to primary school-age students.  Students will also put a Children’s Theatre piece up from start to finish, to be presented at the end of the semester.

 

Instructional needs:

• Creative Dramatics in the Classroom, Nellie McCaslin
• Children’s Theatre pieces—Theatre for Young People
• NC TYP Tour (Spring Semester)
• Touring Theatre of Greensboro (Full-year)
• Transportation (to and from schools—touring van?)

 

Musical Theatre (History and Performance)

Acting for the Camera

Directing