tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86284780807451562472024-03-07T21:13:31.979-08:00Theatre Classes at Ohio State UniversitySyllabi, news, and other information about classes taught in the Department of Theatre at The Ohio State University by Dr. Alan Woods and other members of the Theatre faculty.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-19778461317704826322010-10-26T20:47:00.000-07:002010-10-26T20:47:16.589-07:00Theatre 597<i>Teaching the capstone course in censorship again; here's the syllabus; some 70 students are enrolled. I warn them that we will all be shocked during the course of the quarter-- some of us once or twice, others of us continuously.</i><br />
<b><br />
Theatre 597: Issues of the Contemporary World: <br />
Censorship as an Instrument of Public/Private Policy </b><br />
<br />
5 cr hrs. U/G. Autumn 2010 TR 1:30-3:18 p.m. Parks Hall 0111 <br />
Lecturer: Dr. Alan Woods <br />
1104 Drake Performance and Event Center 292-8238 woods.1@osu.edu Office hours: M 12:00 p.m. -1:00:p.m., T 11:00 a.m.– 12:00 p.m. <br />
and by appointment <br />
Instructors: Matthew Vadnais discussion section meets in University Hall 0086<br />
Vadnais.1@buckeyemail.osu.edu <br />
Office hours: TBA<br />
Ian Pugh discussion section meets in Baker Systems Engineering 0198<br />
Pugh.104@buckeyemail.osu.ed<br />
Office hours: TBA<br />
<br />
Prerequisite: Senior Standing. GEC contemporary world course. Not available for graduate credit for graduate students in the Department of Theatre.<br />
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<b>Course Description</b>: <br />
Exploration of the ways in which censorship has been employed by governmental groups in both western and Asian societies as an instrument of public policy, or in response to pressure groups within those societies. <br />
<b><br />
Course Objectives</b>:<br />
1. To discover how different contemporary societies perceive the role of government in controlling what information citizens can freely access<br />
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2. To study the interaction between cultures with differing (and often mutually exclusive) societal value systems<br />
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3. To explore the ways in which the cultures of contemporary societies have become interdependent, and some of the stresses that interdependence creates<br />
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4. To give students the opportunity to gain a richer comprehension of issues of censorship and governmental control in the contemporary world. <br />
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<b>Background Statement</b>:<br />
As culture becomes global, one response has been an increasing nationalism, often expressed in efforts by governmental bodies to control or shape information. Those efforts frequently result in censorship (whether overt or covert), often justified on moral, cultural, political, or educational grounds. Worries about secular Western influences in fundamentalist Islamic countries which led to the banning of cable television in Iran, the concern about the imposition of American sexual freedom on Chinese youth which caused the Chinese government to ban a production of Eve Ensler’s <i>The Vagina Monologues</i>, a Wisconsin superintendent cancelling the musical <i>Urinetown</i> to protect student morals, or efforts to block pornographic websites (defined in radically diverse ways) in American libraries, schools and homes--all are recent manifestations of beliefs that governments must regulate expression. However justified, such efforts often are met with fierce resistance and at least some measure of public debate. The course will explore selected examples of censorship, or attempts to establish censorship, in a variety of western and eastern cultures, to examine the issues that such efforts expose.<br />
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<b>Course Requirements</b>:<br />
Each student will write a personal manifesto regarding his/her own response to the larger issue of the role of government in regulating information; the draft manifesto is due October 7th, and the final version will be submitted December 2nd.<br />
Small research teams of 5-6 students each will explore specific cases of censorship. The explorations will result in classroom presentations, a written report, and an annotated bibliography. Written reports may be submitted in whatever format best serves the material; however, the format must be approved by November 23rd. The final report is due by December 7th.<br />
Research teams may explore any of the following cases of censorship or attempted censorship; other cases may be chosen with permission of the instructor: <br />
<br />
SEX ON STAGE AND IN PRINT:<br />
Apple Stores and Ninjawords, 2009<br />
Gay Mormons<br />
RELIGION ON STAGE AND IN ART: <br />
<i>Jerry Springer, The Opera</i>, on stage and television, 2003-2007 <br />
Chocolate Jesus in New York, 2007<br />
Pike Theatre, Dublin, Tennessee Williams, and the Roman Catholic Church, 1956<br />
The War on Christmas, annually<br />
Yale University Press and The Cartoons That Shook the World, 2009<br />
POLITICS<br />
Murray Hill for Congress, 2010<br />
Wal-Mart: what to call the biggest shopping period of the year and who will be offended by doing so<br />
<i>Porgy and Bess</i> and cultural diplomacy, Europe and the Soviet Union, 1952-56.<br />
Texas representative asks Asian-Americans to change their names to “easier ones for Americans to pronounce”<br />
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” controversy continues<br />
KEEPING PUBLIC SPACES NEUTRAL<br />
Colorado bans smoking in theatrical performances, 2009<br />
Venus on the London Underground and elsewhere, 2008<br />
Hebron painting banned in Temecula, 2009<br />
Wonder Woman on tour<br />
The “Ground Zero Mosque” 2010<br />
Target Stores targeted<br />
EDUCATIONAL CENSORSHIP<br />
<i>Rent</i> in Corona del Mar, 2009<br />
Political Tee Shirt ban upheld in Texas, 2009<br />
Band Tee Shirts banned in Sedalia, Missouri, 2009<br />
“Bastard Files” banned in Louisville, 2010<br />
Classroom movie policy, Marysville, Ohio, 2010<br />
Washington School bans “Emperor’s New Clothes” 2009<br />
“Snow White” text altered to delete offensive references, Washington, 2010<br />
No Pornography banned by Calvin College, 2010<br />
KEEPING THE AIRWAVES NEUTRAL<br />
Dr. Laura: censorable or merely clueless?<br />
Andrew Breitbart/Keith Olbermann/Rachel Maddow/Stephanie Miller//Glenn Beck/Jon Stewart/Ann Coulter: pull the plug?<br />
Google and China<br />
“Adult services” on social networks sites<br />
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Each student will also evaluate other members of the research team, covering such elements as timeliness of contributions, ability to accomplish assignments, the usefulness of contributions, value of contribution to the overall project, willingness to participate in group project. <br />
Each student will also evaluate six presentations by other research teams, research team presentation evaluations are due no later than one week following the presentation. <br />
Production evaluations: each student will evaluate one of the following Department of Theatre productions, analyzing which aspects of the production might or have caused efforts to censor performances. One evaluation is required; additional evaluations may be submitted for additional credit (requires permission of recitation instructor in advance). Productions include: <i>On The Shore of the Wide World</i> by Simon Stephens, performed in the Roy Bowen Theater, Drake Center, November 4th through 16th; <i>Aida</i> by Elton John, Time Rice, Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang, performed at the Southern Theatre November 18th through the 21st. Ticket information will be distributed in class.<br />
Guidelines for all evaluations are available on Carmen.<br />
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Bibliography: <br />
Alpert, Hollis. <i>The Life and Times of Porgy and Bess: the Story of An American Classic.</i> New York: Knopd, 1990.<br />
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Angelou, Maya. <i>Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting’ Merry Like Christma</i>s. New York: Random House, 1976.<br />
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Barish, Jonas. <i>The Anti-Theatrical Prejudice</i>. Berkeley: U of California P, 1981. <br />
Bolton, Richard, ed. <i>Culture Wars: Documents from the Recent Controversies in the Arts.</i> New York: New Press, 1992.<br />
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Hamilton, Marybeth. <i>When I’m Bad, I’m Better: Mae West, Sex, and American Entertainment.</i> New York: HarperCollins, 1995. <br />
Heins, Marjorie. <i>Not In Front of the Children : "Indecency," Censorship, and the Innocence of Youth</i>. New York : Hill and Wang, 2001.<br />
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Hunter, James Davison. <i>Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America</i>. New York: Basic Books, 1991.<br />
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West, Mae. <i>Three Plays by Mae West</i>, ed. Lillian Schlissel. New York : Routledge, 1997.<br />
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Individual students will also write a peer evaluation of their colleagues on the research team, covering such elements as timeliness of contributions, ability to accomplish assignments, the usefulness of contributions, value of contribution to the overall project, willingness to participate in group project. Each student will also evaluate six presentations by other research teams.<br />
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Attendance Policy</b>:<br />
Attendance is expected, and will be taken. Missing more than two class sessions will result in the loss of ten points. Each session missed after two will result in an additional ten point loss.<br />
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<i>Additional Course Guidelines</i>:<br />
1. All written work must be submitted in processed form or via e-mail. Handwritten work will not be accepted.<br />
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2. Course material will be available online on Carmen, via the course webpage. <br />
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<b>Texts</b>:<br />
General texts will be available online on Carmen, on the course webpage; hard copies will be available on reserve through the Ohio State University Libraries. <br />
Research projects will require the use of primary source materials which may have limited availability, due to their nature. The types of research materials each topic entails, and their availability, will be made clear at the beginning of the term. <br />
<b><br />
Grading Scale</b>:<br />
Your grade will be based on a combination of the following: <br />
Midterm examination: 30 points <br />
research project oral report: 41 points<br />
research project written report: 45 points <br />
research project annotated bibliography: 10 points<br />
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peer evaluations: 10 points <br />
play production evaluation: 10 points <br />
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personal manifesto: preliminary draft 10 points<br />
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personal manifesto: final version 15 points <br />
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Evaluations of research teams: 6 @ 4 points 24 points<br />
Atttendance: 5 points<br />
TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: 200 <br />
Grading Points:<br />
A 185 and above A- 180-184 B+ 174-179 <br />
B 166-173 B- 160-165 C+ 154-159 <br />
C 146-153 C- 140-145 D+ 130-139 D 120-129 E 119 and below <br />
Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss your specific needs. Please contact the Office for Disability Services at 614-292-3307 in room 150 Pomerene Hall to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. Fax: (614) 292-4190 TDD: (614) 292-0901 Email: ods@studentlife.osu.edu. <br />
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This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request.<br />
USG ESCORT SERVICE: 292-3322. http://www.ps.ohio-state.edu/sss/escort_info/<br />
Class Schedule: <br />
R 9/23: backgrounds: definitions of types of censorship, discussion of reasons for efforts to censor; governmental and public policy issues. <br />
T 9/28: governmental and public policy issues; have read Hunter, introduction; Bolton, Chapter 1;. <br />
R 9/30: the impact of public media; have read Heins, Conclusion.<br />
T 10/5: history of censorship in the west, Classic through early Medieval periods; formation of research teams; assignment of research project topics; Barish, chapters 1-3 <br />
R 10/7: discussion; Barish, chapter 4. Personal manifesto preliminary draft due.<br />
T 10/12: history of censorship in the west, Medieval through Renaissance periods<br />
R 10/14: discussion<br />
T 10/19: history of censorship in the west, post Renaissance<br />
R 10/21: discussion<br />
T 10/26: censorship in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries; have read Hunter, Prologue <br />
R 10/28: Midterm examination <br />
T 11/2: history of censorship in the east; nationalism, cultural/class identity. <br />
R 11/4: discussion<br />
T 11/9: case study: Mae West. Have read West: Sex, The Drag. <br />
R 11/11 Veterans’ Day celebrated; no class <br />
T 11/16: case studies: the Lord Chamberlain in England, 1747-1968; Socialist Realism in the Soviet Union. <br />
R 11/18: discussion<br />
T 11/23: case study: the Motion Picture Code in the United States, 1934-1955, final report format approval by this date.<br />
R 11/25: Thanksgiving Day. No class. Eat too much. <br />
T 11/30 censorship in the present: what buttons are now being pushed? Play production evaluations due.<br />
R 12/2:. Discussion; personal manifesto final version due <br />
T 12/7: final reports submitted or mounted on webpage <br />
R 12/9: 3:30 p.m. Final Examination scheduled; peer evaluations dueUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-85827976107814638852010-04-23T12:31:00.001-07:002010-04-23T12:31:20.795-07:00Thinking About next fallwhen Theatre H101 will be offered again. So we'll be looking for interested playwrights, able to correspond with students as the course progresses--<br />
<br />
--more anon!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-28358033035364484472009-02-09T10:51:00.001-08:002009-02-20T11:53:05.827-08:00Playwrights for the seminar in springThe following writers have graciously consented to participate in Theatre 802.07 in the spring term; much thanks!<br /><br />Monica Bauer<br />Ludmilla Bollow<br />George Brome<br />Hindi Brooks<br />Janis Contway<br />Lillian Cauldwell<br />Sandra de Helen<br />Sandra Dempsey<br />Carolyn Gage<br />Nancy Gall-Clayton<br />Paddy Gillard-Bentley<br />Mary-Ann Greanier<br />Andre Hogan II<br />Sandy Hosking<br />Karen Jeynes<br />Maureen Brady Johnson<br />Judy Juanita<br />Kathleen Coudle King<br />Shirley King<br />Jean Klein<br />Rachel Rubin Ladutke<br />mara lathrop<br />Jenny Levison<br />Robin Rice Lichtig<br />Susan Middaugh<br />Rebecca Nesvet<br />Owa<br />Tammy Ryan<br />Jewel Seehaus-Fischer<br />Shane/Sharyn Shipley<br />Faye Sholitan<br />Donna Spector<br />Mary Steelsmith<br />Molly Tinsley<br />Shay Youngblood<br /><br />and check back; there'll be more!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-88998092032546610322009-01-28T12:53:00.001-08:002009-01-28T13:06:34.321-08:00Graduate Seminar to Explore Contemporary PlaywritingTheatre 802.07, to be offered at Ohio State Unversity's Department of Theatre in the Spring Quarter 2009, will explore contemporary playwriting in North America; graduate students will be assigned a current writer, and look at how that writer produces work, gets it produced, and manages a career. Writers will be drawn from playwrights whose work is archived in the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute at Ohio State, particularly from the archives two groups, the International Centre for Women Playwrights and the African-American Playwrights Exchange. There will also be writers whose work is collected individually, and work from the Eileen Heckart Senior Drama Collection. More about the Lawrence and Lee Institute at http://library.osu.edu/sites/tri/.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-80644783091291756102008-09-27T16:39:00.000-07:002008-09-27T16:46:32.621-07:00Dorothy Fadiman, Award winning filmmaker to visit Theatre ClassDorothy Fadiman, award-winning documentary filmmaker, will be visiting the OSU Columbus campus on Tuesday, September 30th, for a screening of portions of her newest film, “Stealing America: Vote By Vote.” The film is being shown at the Landmark Gateway Theatre, 9/26 through 10/2. <br /><br />The on campus visit, showing excerpts, will be in Theatre 777, Studies in Documentary, 2038 Drake Performance and Event Center, 1:30 p.m. Guests are welcome to join the class. She is available that morning for other classes or visits. Please contact Alan Woods, Department of Theatre (woods.1@osu.edu, 292-6614) for more information. A brief bio is attached, and the film’s website is <br />http://www.stealingamericathemovie.org/<br /><br />Dorothy Fadiman, Producer/Director<br />Dorothy Fadiman has been producing media with a focus on social justice and human rights since 1976. Her film subjects have ranged from progressive education in WHY DO THESE KIDS LOVE SCHOOL? (produced with KTEH-TV) and progressive change for women in some of the least developed villages of India in WOMAN by WOMAN: New Hope for the Villages of India (produced with KQED-TV); to a three-film series on reproductive issues and a five-film series on AIDS in Ethiopia including From RISK to ACTION: Women and HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. Fadiman has won more than 50 major awards, including an Emmy for her 1995 production FROM DANGER to DIGNITY: The Fight for Safe Abortion, and an Oscar nomination for Best Short Subject, as well as the Gold Medal from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for her 1992 production WHEN ABORTION WAS ILLEGAL: Untold Stories. Her films have been broadcast on PBS, and have been screened in many international venues. Fadiman’s new book, PRODUCING with PASSION: Making Films That Make a Difference was released in June, 2008.<br /><br />The syllabus for the course is below:<br /><br />Theatre 777: Studies in the Documentary <br />3 cr hrs. U/G. Autumn 2008 TR 1:30-3:18 p.m. DR 2039 <br />Instruc Instructor: Dr. Alan Woods 1433 Lincoln Tower 292-6614 woods.1@osu.edu Office hours: MW 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., T 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. and by appointment <br />Course Description: <br />Conceptual, aesthetic, critical, social, ethical, practical issues in the practice of documentary and docudrama production of cinema and video works. The course will examine relatively contemporary documentary films which deal with political issues, exploring the role of the citizen in shaping a democratic society. <br />Course Objectives:<br />1. To examine the history of the political documentary film in the American cinema, and the cinematic languages developed as the visual conventions of the documentary have shifted and changed over time<br />2. To explore, both practically and theoretically, the perception that documentaries are fact-driven and essentially neutral, and the reaction when some viewers become convinced of bias on the part of a filmmaker<br />3. To survey the subject matter of recent political documentaries, and how they reflect areas of societal concern<br />4. To study the ways in which the manipulation of the ostensibly neutral form of the documentary film influences viewer perceptions and may shape the national agenda<br />5. To explore how critical theorists organize the discussion of the documentary form, and the extent to which formal analysis how different contemporary societies perceive the role of government in controlling what information citizens can freely access . <br />Course Requirements:<br />Each student will examine a single documentary film, taken from the list below, and will give a research presentation to the class on the film and its creative staff, focusing on the topics above. In addition, presentations should also cover a consideration of the filmmakers’ careers, the critical and economic reception the film received, how and where the film became available to audiences, and a critical assessment how well the film succeeded in fulfilling the filmmakers’ purpose. The research presentation in class will be preceded by a preliminary outline, submitted in written form on Tuesday, October 14th, and will be the basis for a formal research document due at the end of the quarter. The format of the final research document may take whatever shape the researcher feels is most appropriate; the format must be approved in advance, and a format proposal is due on Thursday, November 20th. <br />Bibliography: <br />Background texts are on reserve in the Ackerman Library, as are copies of the texts from which readings are required, <br />Aitken, Ian, ed. <span style="font-style:italic;">Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film</span>. New York: Routledge, 2006.<br />Barnouw, Erik. <span style="font-style:italic;">Documentary : a history of the non-fiction film</span>, rev. ed. Oxford [Oxfordshire] ; New York : Oxford U. P., 1983.<br />Bullert, B. J. <span style="font-style:italic;">Public Television: politics and the battle over documentary film</span>. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers U. P., 1997.<br />Chanan, Michael. <span style="font-style:italic;">The Politics of Documentary</span>. London: British Film Institute, 2007.<br />Girgus, Sam B. <span style="font-style:italic;">America on film : modernism, documentary, and a changing America</span>. Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge U. P., 2002.<br />Juhasz, Alexandra, and Jesse Lerner, eds. <span style="font-style:italic;">F is for Phony: fake documentary and truth's undoing</span>. Minneapolis : U. of Minnesota P., 2006.<br />Nichols, Bill. <span style="font-style:italic;">Blurred Boundaries : questions of meaning in contemporary culture</span>. Bloomington: Indiana U. P., 1994.<br />-----. <span style="font-style:italic;">Introduction to documentary</span>. Bloomington: Indiana U. P., 2001.<br />Renov, Michael. <span style="font-style:italic;">The Subject of Documentary</span>. Minneapolis: U. of Minnesota P., 2004.<br />Rhodes, Gary D., and John Parris Springer, eds. <span style="font-style:italic;"> Docufictions : essays on the intersection of documentary and fictional filmmaking</span>. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co., 2006.<br />Ward, Paul. <span style="font-style:italic;">Documentary : the margins of reality</span>. London: Wallflower, 2005.<br />Warren, Charles, ed. <span style="font-style:italic;">Beyond Document : essays on nonfiction film</span>. Hanover, NH: U. P. of New England, 1996. <br />Zimmermann, Patricia Rodden. <span style="font-style:italic;">States of Emergency: documentaries, wars, democracies</span>. Minneapolis: U. of Minnesota P., 2000.<br />Additional Credit:<br />Theatre 777 is available for a total of 5 credits, with two additional hours of Theatre 693 or 893 (directed research); there will be an additional assignment, either written or practical, to be determined through consultation between the instructor and student.<br />Films<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">from http://www.documentary-film.net</span> <br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Bagdad ER <br />Fallujah White Phosphorus <br />A Few Inconvenient Facts<br />The Great Global Warming Swindle <br />Iraq For Sale<br />Loose Change </span><br />Oil, Smoke & Mirrors <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">In OSU library</span>: <br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Fahrenheit 9/11 <br />Iraq For Sale: The Profiteers <br />Michael Moore Hates America <br />72 hours to victory: Behind the scenes with Bill Clinton <br />Uncovered: the whole truth about the Iraq War <br />War in Iraq : road to Baghdad <br />The War Room</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">At Grandview Heights</span>:<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Journeys With George: A Home Movie <br />The War Room</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Through Ohio Link</span>:<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Point of Order </span> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">At TRI</span>:<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Senator Obama Goes to Africa <br />Uncounted: The New Math of American Elections </span> <br />Grading:<br />Preliminary research outline: 15%<br />Research presentation: 40%<br />Final research report: 45%: <br />Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307, room 150 Pomerene Hall, www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request.<br />USG ESCORT SERVICE: 292-3322. <br />Class Schedule: <br />R 9/25: introduction; course requirements and expectations; backgrounds <br />T 9/30: Traditional definitions; “Stealing America: Vote By Vote” with visit by filmmaker Dorothy Fadiman.. <br />R 10/2: History: origins of the documentary.<br /><br />T 10/7: History: early development<br />R 10/9: History: the recent past<br /><br />T 10/14: Realism/objectivity/subjectivity . Research project preliminary outline due.<br />R 10/16: Visual conventions, past and present <br />.<br />T 10/21: Business concerns: distribution, festivals<br />R 10/23: Audiences: who goes to see these films?<br /><br />T 10/28: Research Presentation<br />R 10/30: Research Presentation<br /> <br />T 11/4: No class; Election Day <br />R 11/6: Research Presentation<br /> <br />T 11/11: No class; Veterans’ Day <br />R 11/13: Research Presentation<br /> <br />T 11/18: Research Presentation<br />R 11/20: Research Presentation Research Report Format proposals due<br /><br />T 11/25: Research Presentation<br />R 11/27: Thanksgiving Day; No Class<br /><br />T 12/2: Summary: state of the documentary <br />R 12/4: Conclusions: can we predict the future of the form? <br /><br />T 12/9: Final Research Reports DueUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-80344410966279066812007-09-20T20:25:00.000-07:002007-10-26T12:57:07.336-07:00Theatre H101 and Theatre 871The syllabus for Theatre H101: Introduction to Theatre Through Primary Sources, a course for honors students, is available at http://theatreh101.blogspot.com<br /><br />Here's the syllabus for Theatre 871, a graduate seminar on Greek, Roman, and Medieval Theatre.<br /><br />Theatre 871 Greek, Roman and Medieval Theatre Autumn Quarter 2007<br />Instructor: Dr. Alan Woods, 1433 Lincoln Tower <br />Office Hours: M 1 3 p.m. T 9 - 11 a.m. and by appointment.<br />Phone: 292 6614 or 4 8238 e mail: Woods.1@osu.edu <br />Class Meetings: MW Time: 3:30 5:18 p.m. Room: 2068 Drake <br />Texts: <br />Ashby, Clifford. Classical Greek Theatre: New Views of an Old Subject (Iowa City: U of Iowa P, 1999). <br />Ehrenreich, Barbara. Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy (New York: Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt, 2006).<br />Familiarity also is assumed with Bieber's History of the Greek and Roman Theatre (second edition, 1961). A detailed bibliography will be on reserve in the Lawrence & Lee TRI and in the Reserve Room at the Thompson Library. Copies of both Ashby, Ehrenreich, and Bieber and plays to be read are on reserve in the TRI and at the Ackerman Library. <br />Learning Objectives: To survey current theories and available research materials documenting the theatre of the Greek, Roman and Medieval periods in Western Europe through exploration of its artistic, social, and cultural dimensions. By the end of the quarter, the student should have familiarity with the conventions of theatrical style of each period. <br />Teaching Method: Lecture/discussion. <br />Grading: Grading will be based on the following:<br />midterm examination: 30% <br />final examination: 35%<br />a research paper of publishable quality 30%<br />class involvement: 5%<br />total: 100%<br />Attendance Policy: Absences are permitted only in cases of extreme illness or personal emergencies. In a Theatre Department, the latter does not include production duties. <br />USG ESCORT SERVICE: 292 3322<br />This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request. <br />Academic Misconduct: <br />It is the responsibility of the Committee on Academic Misconduct to investigate or establish procedures for the investigation of all reported cases of student academic misconduct. The term Aacademic misconduct@ includes all forms of student academic misconduct wherever committed; illustrated by, but not limited to, cases of plagiarism and dishonest practices in connection with examinations. Instructors shall report all instances of alleged academic misconduct to the committee (Faculty Rule 3335-5-487). For additional information, see the Code of Student Conduct (http://studentaffairs.osu.edu/info_for_students/csc.asp).<br /><br />Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307, room 150 Pomerene Hall, www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm (a text only version is at www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm) to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. <br />http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/<br /><br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Theatre 871: Greek, Roman and Medieval Theatre, Autumn 2005 </span> p. 2<br />Class outline:<br />W 9/19 Introduction and parameters; background to Greek culture<br /><br />M 9/24 theories of origin both Greek and non Greek/barbaric; Ehrenreich, chapter 1. <br />W 9/26 Research materials: textual evidence: manuscripts & scholia; Ashby, chapter 1 <br /><br />M 10/1 Research materials: archaeological evidence; Ashby, chapter 2<br />W 10/3 Research materials: Iconographic evidence<br /><br />M 10/8 Research materials: Iconographic evidence, continued <br />W 10/10 Textual materials: plays. Familiarity is assumed by this date with all the surviving <br />texts of Aeschylos, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes<br /><br />M 10/15 Textual materials: fragments and inscriptions; Ashby, Chapter 3<br />W 10/17 Textual materials: fragments and inscriptions; Ashby, chapter 4<br /><br />M 10/22 Hellenistic archaeological remains; MIDTERM EXAMINATION PAPERS DUE<br />W 10/24 Hellenistic archaeological remains, continued; Ashby, chapter 5<br /><br />M 10/29 Hellenistic textual fragments; have read: the surviving play and fragments of Menander <br />W 10/31 Roman theatre: festivals and productions; Roman historiography; Vitruvius, Pollux, Livius Andronicus, and other exercises in hegemonic discourse; Ehrenreich Chapter 2.<br /><br />M 11/5 Roman textual materials; familiarity is assumed by this date with all surviving texts of Plautus, Terence, and Seneca<br />W 11/7 Imperial entertainment patterns: mimes, pantomimes, gladiatorial contests<br /><br />M 11/12 The impact of political, social, religious change; Augustine and the Church Fathers;<br />Concept of the "Dark Ages" and the survival of theatrical traditions; Winchester and liturgical drama, and the "Millenium Psychosis" ; Ehrenreich, Chapter 3.<br />W 11/14 Fleury and 12th century liturgical drama<br /><br />M 11/19 Secular forms and the Arras Plays; Passion and Corpus Christi Plays; have read by this date: Winchester Quem Queritis trope; Fleury Play of Herod; Adam de la Halle: The Play of Robin and Marion<br />W 11/21 Cycle drama; have read the York play of Noah's Fludde; The Anyplace play; professional troupes; have read Mankind; Pierre Pathelin<br /><br />M 11/26 Folkdrama and entertainment forms; pre Shakespeare or post triumphal entry? How many times does the Renaissance dawn?; Ehrenreich, Chapter 4<br />W 11/28 PAPERS DUE. Conclusions and summary. Evaluation.<br /><br />M 12/3 3:30 5:18 p.m.: Final ExaminationUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-89882921714969054002007-07-08T12:08:00.001-07:002007-07-08T12:08:42.009-07:00<span style="font-family:times new roman;font-size:130%;"><br />Theatre 675.01<br />Summer 2007 M-F 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.<br />July 9-20 2038 Drake Performance and Event Center<br />Instructor: Dr. Alan Woods woods.1@osu.edu<br />1433 Lincoln Tower 292-6614<br />office hours: MW 3-5 p.m. and by appointment<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">Title: Crones, Curmudgeons, and Living Treasures--Theatre and Aging.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;font-size:130%;"><br /><strong>Description: The History, Theory, and Literature of the Senior Theatre Movement.</strong> <br /><br />Senior Theatre--performance by and for those over 55 years old--is the most rapidly growing sector of recreational and avocational theatre in North America and Europe, with fully professional performance groups now emerging. This course explores the history of the emerging international Senior Theatre Movement from its beginnings in the post World War II era to the present, the application of studies in gerontology to the developing theory of Senior Theatre, and the growing literature of dramatic texts created for Senior Theatre from oral history, life narratives, and traditionally scripted drama. <br /><br /><strong>Learning Objectives</strong>: By the end of the course, the student will have gained a detailed knowledge of the growth, development, and current status of Senior Theatre, awareness of performance as both artistic and recreational activity, and familiarity with the Senior Theatre=s dramatic texts, both original and adapted for the particular needs of Senior Theatre practitioners. With Theatre 675b, The Practice of Theatre and Age, this course constitutes a concentration in senior theatre as part of the area of specialization in aging.<br /><br /><strong>Teaching Method</strong>: lecture/discussion.<br /><br /><strong>Assignments</strong><br /><strong><br /></strong>Each student will complete two short research reports, with the results presented orally in class. The oral reports will focus on (1) an analysis of three plays (ten minute, one act, full length) written for Senior Theatre groups, and (2) an existing professional, avocational or recreational Senior Theatre company. Each report should last about 15 minutes, and must include appropriate handouts.<br /><strong><br /></strong><br /><strong>Grading</strong><br /><strong></strong><br /> Grades will be determined by the quality of work completed, with individual assignments contributing as listed below<br /> Research Report 40%<br /> Research Report 40%<br /> Participation 10%<br /> total 100%<br /><br /><strong>USG ESCORT SERVICE 292-3322</strong> <br /><br />This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request. Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307 in room 150 Pomerene Hall to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. <br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">Class outline</span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;"></span></strong><br />M 7/9: introduction and theoretical background; gerontology and the realities of aging in America in the second half of the twentieth century; representation of older characters in plays; plays assigned<br />T 7/10: Stumbling/road blocks: strengths and limitations of performance by and for the aging ; have read Strimling, Introduction; Basting, chapter 1.<br />W 7/11: history: avocational/recreational beginnings; drama as therapy; have read Greenblatt, chapter 1, Vorenberg, introduction; survey of companies; companies assigned<br />R 7/12: history: Senior pride and the gray panthers; theatre as empowerment; consciousness raising; have read Basting, chapter 3; excerpts from I Was Young, Now I=m Wonderful<br />F 7/13: history: Senior drama recognized; American Theatre Association focus group; have read Cornish and Kase, Introduction. Play reports. <br /><br />M 7/16: history and literature: development of first strains of professionalism, development of oral history and self generated texts; have read Kaminsky, Introduction, in Myerhoff<br />T 7/17: history and literature: professional senior companies growth and maturity; efforts to expand repertory; have read Basting, Chapter 4; have read Lonergan<br />W 7/18: history and literature: senior centers and entertainment; the >dancing grannies=; international connections and contexts; Basting, chapters 2 and 8.<br />R 7/19: history and literature: specialization and niche groups; cross cultural and diversity issues; the market emerges; conferences, festivals, emergence of a professional association<br />F 7/20: history, theory and literature: have read Basting, conclusion; company reports.<br /><br /><strong>texts:</strong><br />Basting, Anne Davis. <em> The Stages of Age: Performing Age in Contemporary American Culture</em>. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan P, 1998.<br />Cornish, Roger, and C. Robert Kase, eds., <em>Senior Adult Theatre: The American Theatre Association Handbook</em>. University Park and London: Pennsylvania State U P, 1981.<br />Greenblatt, Fred S. <em>Drama With the Elderly: Acting at Eighty</em>. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1985.<br />Lonergan, Kenneth. <em>The Waverly Gallery</em>. New York: Grove Press, 2000.<br />Myerhoff, Barbara. <em>Remembered Lives: The Work of Ritual, Storytelling, and Growing Older</em>. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan P, 1992.<br />Strimling, Arthur. <em>Roots & Branches: Creating Intergenerational Theatre</em>. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2004.<br />Vorenberg, Bonnie L. <em>Senior Theatre Connections</em>. Portland: ArtAge Publications, 1999.<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:180%;">Plays</span></strong>:<br /><br /><strong>Ten minute</strong>:<br /><br />Sandra Dempsey: <em>Rosa’s Lament</em><br />Jim Gordon: <em>A Good Deed</em><br />Kathy Coudle King: <em>Brittle Bones</em><br />Douglas Stewart: <em>Final Exam</em><br />Nicholas Tasi: <em>Boxer<br /></em>Justin Warner: <em> Lunch Boat</em><br /><br /><strong>One Act</strong>:<br /><br />Martha Boesing: <em>Song of the Magpie<br /></em>Jay D. Hanagan: <em>Welcome Home</em><br />Maureen Brady Johnson: <em>Limbo<br /></em>Robert L. Kinast: <em>Salt in the Pepper Shaker</em><br />John Lordan: <em> Friendly Skies</em><br />Mary Steelsmith: <em>List of Honor</em><br /><br /><strong>Full length</strong>:<br /><br />Donald Drake: <em>The Passage</em><br />Joe Feinstein: <em>The Last of the Aztecs<br /></em>Judy Juanita: <em>Theodicy<br /></em>TheodicyJulia Perlstein: <em>PLINKO!; or, the Goddess of Static Cling</em><br />Lynn Snyder: <em>Older Than Dead</em><br />Nancy Zaman: <em>To Heir is Human</em></span><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-25011615018996618072007-06-04T20:24:00.002-07:002007-06-04T20:40:07.071-07:00Theatre 597 Syllabus<span style="font-family: times new roman;">Here's the syllabus for the summer offer<span style="font-family: times new roman;">ing:</span><br /><br /></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Theatre 597: Issues of the Contemporary World: Censorship as an Instrument of Public/Private Policy <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">5 </span><span class="spelle">cr</span><span class="grame"> hrs.</span> <span class="grame">U/G.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></span>Summer 2007<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span class="grame">MTWR 1:30-3:18 p.m.</span> 1048 Smith </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 121.5pt; text-indent: -121.5pt; font-family: times new roman;">Instructor: Dr. Alan Woods 1433 <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Lincoln</st1:PlaceName> <st1:placetype st="on">Tower</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>292-6614 <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="mailto:woods.1@osu.edu"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">woods.1@osu.edu</span></a></span> <span style=""> </span> <br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 121.5pt; text-indent: -121.5pt; font-family: times new roman;"> Office hours: MW 12:00 noon -1:00:p.m.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span class="grame">T 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.<span style=""> </span></span> a<span class="grame">nd</span> by appointment </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Prerequisite: second level writing course; cultural diversity course; 4th year status.<span style=""> </span>Not available for graduate credit for graduate students in the Department of Theatre.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Course Description: </b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Exploration of the ways in which censorship has been employed by governmental groups in both western and Asian societies as an instrument of public policy, or in response to pressure groups within those societies. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Course Objectives:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">1. To discover how different contemporary societies perceive the role of government in controlling what information citizens can freely access<span style=""> <br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span style=""></span>2. To study the interaction between cultures with differing (and often mutually exclusive) societal value systems<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> <br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span style=""></span>3. To explore the ways in which the cultures of contemporary societies have become interdependent, and some of the stresses that interdependence creates<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">4. To give students the opportunity to gain a richer comprehension of issues of censorship and governmental control in the contemporary world. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Background Statement:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">As culture becomes global, one response has been an increasing conservatism and nationalism, often expressed in efforts by governmental bodies to control or shape information. Those efforts frequently result in censorship (whether overt or covert), often defended on moral, cultural, political, or educational grounds. Worries about secular Western influences in fundamentalist Islamic countries which led to the banning of cable television in Iran, the concern about the imposition of American sexual freedom on Chinese youth which caused the Chinese government to ban a production of Eve <span class="spelle">Ensler’s</span> <i>The Vagina Monologues</i>, a Wisconsin <span class="spelle">superindentent</span> <span class="spelle">cancelling</span> the musical <span class="spelle"><i>Urinetown</i></span> to protect student morals, or efforts to block pornographic websites (defined in radically diverse ways) in American libraries, schools and homes--all are recent manifestations of beliefs that governments must regulate expression. However justified, such efforts often are met with fierce resistance and at least some measure of public debate. The course will explore selected examples of censorship, or attempts to establish censorship, in a variety of western and eastern cultures, to examine the issues that such efforts expose. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Course Requirements</b>:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Student participants will be organized into small research teams of 4-5 members each, and will explore specific instances of attempted censorship. The explorations will result in classroom presentations, a written report, and an annotated bibliography. Each individual student will also prepare a personal manifesto regarding his or her own response to the larger issue of the role of government in regulating information. Written reports may, at the students’ option, be submitted in the form of a webpage or in any other format which best serves the material; approval of the selected format is required by May 18<sup>th</sup>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Individual students will also write a peer evaluation of their colleagues on the research team, covering such elements as timeliness of contributions, ability to accomplish assignments, the usefulness of contributions, value of contribution to the overall project, willingness to participate in group project. Each student will also evaluate six presentations by other research teams. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Research teams will explore the any of following cases of censorship or attempted censorship; other cases may be chosen with permission of the instructor: </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">SEX ON STAGE AND IN PRINT:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><i>Whole World of Lesbian Sex</i> in <st1:state st="on">Arkansas</st1:State><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><i>The Vagina Monologues</i>, North America, <st1:country-region st="on">China</st1:country-region>, <st1:country-region st="on">India</st1:country-region>, <st1:place st="on">Europe</st1:place>, 1997-2005.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><i> Romeo and Juliet</i> in <st1:state st="on">Missouri</st1:State>, 2006<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span class="spelle"><i> Idomeneo</i></span> at <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on">Deutsche <span class="spelle">Oper</span></st1:City>, <st1:state st="on">Berlin</st1:State></st1:place>, 2006 </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">RELIGION ON STAGE AND IN ART: </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><i>Our Lady of the Tortillas</i> in Texas 2007<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>Christopher <span class="spelle">Durang</span>, the Roman Catholic Church, and <i>Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All <span class="grame">To</span> You</i>, St. Louis and elsewhere, 1980s.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><st1:city st="on"><i>Corpus Christi</i></st1:City>: Terrence McNally and a gay parable, <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place> and elsewhere, 1998-2005.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""></span><span class="spelle"><span style="color: black;">Gurpreet</span></span><span style="color: black;"> <span class="spelle">Kaur</span> <span class="spelle">Bhatti’s</span><b> </b><span class="spelle"><i>Behzti</i></span><i> </i>(<span class="spelle">Dishonour</span>), at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, 2004 <i>Jerry Springer, <span class="grame">The</span> Opera</i>, on stage and television, 2003-2006<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></span>Chocolate Jesus in New York</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> POLITICS</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">"<span class="spelle">Kucch</span> <span class="spelle">Bhi</span> Ho <span class="spelle">Sakta</span> <span class="spelle">Hai</span>" (Anything Can Happen) banned in <st1:country-region st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region> (2004)<span style=""> </span><span class="grame">Maulana </span><span class="spelle">Azad</span><span class="grame"> and the Gujarat Censor Board, <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">India</st1:country-region></st1:place>, 2003.</span><span style=""> </span><span class="grame"><i>Porgy and Bess</i> and cultural diplomacy, <st1:place st="on">Europe</st1:place> and the Soviet Union, 1952-56.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> SEX AND POLITICS</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Annie Sprinkle, Karen Finley, and Tim Miller: the NEA 4 updated, United States, 1990-2005.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> Burlesque, strip tease, and exotic dance, from the C. H. <span class="spelle">McCaghy</span> Collection, Lawrence & Lee Theatre Research Institute</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> EDUCATIONAL CENSORSHIP</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><i>Grease </i>in <st1:state st="on">Missouri</st1:State>, 2005; <span class="spelle"><i>Urinetown</i></span><i> </i>in <st1:state st="on">Wisconsin</st1:State> and <st1:state st="on">Pennsylvania</st1:State>, 2006, <i>Beloved </i>in <st1:state st="on">Kentucky</st1:State>, 2007, <span class="grame"><i>The</i></span><i> Crucible</i> in <st1:state st="on">Illinois</st1:State> and <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place>, 2006. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Bibliography</b>: </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Alpert, Hollis. <i>The Life and Times of Porgy and Bess: the Story of <span class="grame">An</span> American Classic</i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: Knopf, 1990.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> Angelou, Maya. <span class="spelle"><i>Singin</i></span><i>’ and <span class="spelle">Swingin</span>’ and Getting’ Merry Like Christmas</i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: Random House, 1976.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> B<span class="grame">arish, Jonas.</span> <span class="grame"><i>The Anti-Theatrical Prejudice</i>.</span> <st1:city st="on">Berkeley</st1:City>: U of <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place> P, 1981.<span style=""> </span><st1:place st="on"> Bolton</st1:place>, Richard, ed. <i>Culture Wars: Documents from the Recent Controversies in the Arts</i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: New Press, 1992.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> Hamilton, Marybeth. <i>When I’m Bad, I’m Better: Mae West, Sex, and American Entertainment</i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: HarperCollins, 1995.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span class="spelle"> Heins</span>, Marjorie. <i>Not In Front of the <span class="grame">Children :</span> "Indecency," Censorship, and the Innocence of Youth. </i><st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New <span class="grame">York</span></st1:State></st1:place><span class="grame"> :</span> Hill and Wang, 2001.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> Hunter, James Davison. <i>Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">America</st1:country-region></st1:place></i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: Basic Books, 1991.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> Levine, Judith. <span class="grame">“Kids.</span> <span class="grame">Theater,” <i>The Nation</i> 284:2 (January 8/15, 2007), 32-6.<span style=""> </span></span> Levinson, <st1:place st="on">Nan</st1:place>. <span class="grame"><i>Outspoken: Free Speech Stories</i>.</span> <st1:city st="on">Berkeley</st1:City>: U of <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">California</st1:place></st1:State> P, 2003. <span class="spelle"> Sova</span>, Dawn B. <i>Banned Plays: Censorship Histories of 125 Stage Dramas</i>. <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New York</st1:State></st1:place>: Facts on File, 2004.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> West, Mae. <span class="grame"><i>Three Plays by Mae West</i>, ed. Lillian </span><span class="spelle">Schlissel</span><span class="grame">.</span> <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">New <span class="grame">York</span></st1:State></st1:place><span class="grame"> :</span> <span class="spelle">Routledge</span>, 1997.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> <b>Additional Course Guidelines:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">1. All written work must be submitted in processed form or via e-mail. Handwritten work will not be accepted.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">2. Course material will be available online, via the course webpage. Instructions on how access the course webpage will be distributed in advance of the course via e-mail, and during the first class session. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Texts:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">General texts will be available online, on the course webpage; hard copies will be available on reserve through the Ohio State University Libraries. Additional copies will be available in the reading room of the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute, 14th floor of <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Lincoln</st1:PlaceName> <st1:placetype st="on">Tower</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Research projects will require the use of primary source materials which may have limited availability, due to their nature. The types of research materials each topic entails, and their availability, will be made clear at the beginning of the term. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Grading Scale:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Your grade will be based on a combination of the following:<span style=""> </span> <br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">research</span> project oral report: <span style=""> </span>60 points<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <span class="grame"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">research</span> project written report: <span style=""> </span>60 points<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <span class="grame"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">research</span> project annotated bibliography: 20 points<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">peer evaluations: <span style=""> </span>17 points<span style=""> </span> <span class="grame"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">personal</span> manifesto: preliminary draft 10 points<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <span class="grame"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">personal</span> manifesto: final version 20 points <span style=""></span><span style=""></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Evaluation of Research teams: 12 points</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: 200 </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Grading Points:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> A 185 and above A- 180-184 B+ 174-179<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span> <span style=""> </span>B 166-173 B- 160-165 C+ 154-159 <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>C 146-153 C- 140-145 D+ 130-139<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>D 120-129 E 119 and below </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307, room 150 <span class="spelle">Pomerene</span> Hall, <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm</span></a></span> (a text only version is at <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm%29"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm)</span></a></span> to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"> This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">USG ESCORT SERVICE: 292-3322. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><b>Class Schedule:</b> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">M 6/18: backgrounds: definitions of types of censorship, discussion of reasons for efforts to censor <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""></span><span style=""></span>T 6/19:<span style=""> </span>governmental and public policy issues; formation of research teams; have read Hunter, introduction; <st1:place st="on">Bolton</st1:place>, Chapter 1. W 6/20: history of censorship in the west, Classic through early <span class="grame">Medieval</span> periods; assignment of research project topics; <span class="spelle">Barish</span>, chapters 1-3. <span class="grame">Personal manifesto preliminary draft due.<span style=""> <br /></span><span style=""></span><span style=""></span></span>R 6/21: history of censorship in the west, Medieval through Renaissance periods; <span class="spelle">Barish</span>, chapter 4. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">M 6/25: history of censorship in the west, post Renaissance.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>T 6/26: censorship in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries<span class="grame">.. <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></span>W 6/27: history of censorship in the east;<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>R 6/28: case study: Mae West. West: <i>Sex</i>, <span class="grame"><i>The</i></span><i> Drag</i> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">M 7/2: case studies: the Lord Chamberlain in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">England</st1:country-region></st1:place>, 1747-1968; Socialist Realism in the Soviet Union<br /><span style=""></span>T 7/3: case study: the Motion Picture Code in the United States, 1934-1955.<span style=""> </span>W 7/4: <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">INDEPENDENCE</st1:place></st1:City> DAY! NO CLASS! <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>R 7/5: student reports: groups 1-2 </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">M 7/9: student reports: group 3-4 <span style=""> <br /></span>T 7/10: student reports: groups 5-6<span style=""> </span><span style="">W 7/11: student reports: groups 7-8 </span><span style=""></span><span style=""><br /></span>R 7/12: student reports: group 9-10 </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;">M 7/16 student reports: group 11-12; final report format approval by this date.<span style=""> </span><br />T 7/17 student reports: group 13-14<span style=""> </span><span style=""><br /></span>W 7/18: censorship: revisited; summary and conclusions; final reports submitted or mounted on webpage <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span class="grame"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: times new roman;"><span class="grame">F 1:30 p.m.</span> Final exam scheduled; personal manifesto final version due</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-1693836237297352432007-06-04T20:24:00.001-07:002007-06-04T20:24:37.290-07:00Theatre 597 sUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-38193913127284044522007-04-22T17:10:00.000-07:002007-04-22T17:15:03.629-07:00Theatre 597 in June; Theatre and Aging seminars in July<span style="font-family: times new roman;">Theatre 597, the course in censorship, will be offered during the first term of Summer Quarter, beginning in June and running through July. The syllabus is below, after the Theatre 533; there will be some changes in report topics to reflect the continuing efforts to censor material, but the structure of the course and the requirements will remain pretty much the same, with some tweaking.<br /><br />And Theatre 675a and 675b, our two seminars on Theatre and Aging, will be offered in July as a two-week intensive. More details at www.osuseniortheatre.blogspot.com<br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-22442768565882411452007-03-23T16:32:00.000-07:002007-04-22T17:10:02.461-07:00Theatre 533: coping with a required course<span style="font-family:times new roman;">This is the third in a one-year, three-quarter, sequence of courses that survey the literature and history of western theatre, and fills several requirements for Theatre majors. The course itself is not required--majors have a range of courses which satisfy the lit/hist requirement. So there's not a built-in audience, which is just as well. In any event, this is my approach for Spring 2007:<br /><br /></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Theatre 533:<span style=""> </span>Theatre Repertory III:</b><span style=""> </span>Survey of representative theatre and drama since the rise of Realism.<span style=""> </span><span style="" lang="EN">Shattering the Norm:<span style=""> </span>expanding theatre beyond commercial Broadway/West End productions and interests</span><span style=""> </span>MW 11:30 a.m. – 1:18 p.m.<span style=""> </span>DR 2068</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Instructor:</b><span style=""> </span>Dr. Alan Woods, 1433 <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Lincoln</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Tower</st1:placetype></st1:place><br /><span style=""> </span><a href="mailto:Woods.1@osu.edu"><span style="color:#000000;">Woods.1@osu.edu</span></a><span style=""> <br /> </span>Office hours:<span style=""> </span>M 9:00 – 11:00 a.m.<br /><span style=""> </span>T<span style=""> </span>1:00 – 3:00 p.m.<span style=""> </span>and by appointment</p> <p style="margin: 6pt -0.5in 6pt 0in;"><o:p></o:p><b style="">Course Description:</b><br /><span style="" lang="EN">The course will explore efforts – sometimes violent, sometimes subtle -- to expand the concept of “theatre” over the course of the twentieth century from a professional commercial entertainment industry to </span>something capable of expressing<span style="" lang="EN"> artistic, political, social, and ethnic concerns.<span style=""> </span>We will also s</span>urvey the changing definition of reality in theatrical performance, through an exploration of performance conventions, theatrical texts, theories of acting and design, theatre architecture, and the shifting role of the audience.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><b style="">Course Objectives:</b><br />1. To discover how the concept of the real has shifted over the past century or so.<br />2. To study the ways in which theatrical conventions adjust to shifts in hegemonic structures<br />3. To explore the ways in which the tensions between experimentation and commercialism both benefit and harm the role of theatrical art in society<br />4. To give students the opportunity to gain a richer comprehension of the interrelations among cultural, commercial, social, and political currents shaping the nature of theatrical performance.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p><b style="">Background Statement:</b><br />All theatrical performance is a lie:<span style=""> </span>the audience knows that it’s fictive; we know that the handsome man we see at <st1:placename st="on">Lincoln</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Center</st1:placetype>’s Vivian Beaumont Theatre is not really nineteenth-century literary critic Vissarion Belinsky in nineteenth-century <st1:city st="on">Moscow</st1:city>, but an actor named Billy Crudup who’s on a <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Manhattan</st1:place></st1:city> stage in 2007.<span style=""> </span>But we agree to accept the fiction as reality – a process often called “the willing suspension of disbelief” – for the sake of an evening’s entertainment.<span style=""> </span>The highest praise for an enjoyable performance is to call it “realistic.”<span style=""> </span>That’s been true for most Western theatre since the fifth century B.C.E.<span style=""> </span>But what is accepted as “real” shifts and changes over time.<span style=""> </span>Thus we will explore how that concept has shifted over the twentieth century and into the first decade of the twenty-first, and what have been some of the reasons for the shifting.<span style=""> </span>And we’ll also explore how theatrical experimenters have sought to find new ways to express reality, as well as efforts to escape the narrow constraints that commercial and audience perceptions of “realism” place on artists.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Course Requirements:</b><br />It is assumed that participants will complete readings as assigned; readings and due dates are listed on the course schedule below.<span style=""> </span>Most readings can be found in the required texts; several additional readings will be available on the course’s Carmen site (<a href="http://www.carmen.osu.edu/">www.carmen.osu.edu</a>), which also has various other course materials.<span style=""> </span>Each participant will submit short papers exploring the conventions at play in three radically differing theatrical experiences in central <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Ohio</st1:place></st1:state> over the course of the quarter; guidelines on Carmen.<span style=""> </span>Specific experiences must be approved in advance.<span style=""> </span>Each participant will also complete a research project, exploring some aspect of the issues raised in the course.<span style=""> </span>An oral report on the research will be given during the final two weeks of the term;<span style=""> </span>a final research report will be submitted at the Final Examination.<span style=""> </span>The research topic must be approved via a proposal due April 25<sup>th</sup>.<span style=""> </span>The format of the final research report must be approved by May 21<sup>st</sup>.<span style=""> </span>Guidelines for the research topic proposal and final report format are on Carmen.<span style=""> </span>.<span style=""> </span>Research projects should employ primary sources.<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Additional Course Guidelines:</b><br />All written work must be submitted in processed form or via e-mail. Handwritten work will not be accepted.<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Texts:</b><br />Most plays are in William B. Worthen’s <i style="">The Harcourt Brace Anthology of Drama</i>; historical background is provided by assigned chapters from the Brockett and Hildy <i style="">History of Theatre</i>.<span style=""> </span>General texts are available at the usual bookstores; additional copies are on reserve through the Ohio State University Libraries. Additional copies will be available in the reading room of the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute, 14th floor of <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Lincoln</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Tower</st1:placetype></st1:place>. Some texts will be available only at the TRI or through Carmen; these are identified on the Class Schedule<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 265.5pt; text-indent: -265.5pt;"><b style="">Grading Scale:</b><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 265.5pt; text-indent: -265.5pt;">Your grade will be based on a combination of the following:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 265.5pt; text-indent: -265.5pt;">Conventions in central <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Ohio</st1:state></st1:place> performances:<span style=""> </span>3 @ 20 points: <span style=""> </span>60 points<span style=""><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 265.5pt; text-indent: -265.5pt;"><span style="">R</span>esearch project oral presentation:<span style=""> </span>60 points<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 265.5pt; text-indent: -265.5pt;"> research project written report: <span style=""> </span>60 points</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 409.5pt; text-indent: -409.5pt;"><span style=""></span>active participation in class sessions: <span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>20 points</p> <p class="MsoNormal">TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: <span style=""> </span>200<br />Grading Points:</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> A 185 and above <span style=""> </span>A- 180-184 <span style=""> </span>B+ 174-179<br /> B 166-173 <span style=""> </span>B- 160-165 <span style=""> </span>C+ 154-159<br /> C 146-153 <span style=""> </span>C- 140-145 <span style=""> </span>D+ 130-139<br /> <span style=""> </span>D 120-129 E 119 and below</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307, room 150 Pomerene Hall, <a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm"><span class="SYSHYPERTEXT"><span style="color:#000000;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm</span></span></a> (a text only version is at <a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm%29"><span class="SYSHYPERTEXT"><span style="color:#000000;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm)</span></span></a> to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Class Schedule:<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 3/26<span style=""> </span>Introduction<br />W 3/28<span style=""> </span>have read Henrik Ibsen<i style="">:<span style=""> </span>A Doll House</i> 1879<br /><o:p> </o:p><br />M 4/2<span style=""> </span>have read Lottie Blair Parker:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Way Down East</i> 1898~; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 16<br />W 4/4 <b style="">submit venue for Conventions Paper 1;</b> have read Anton Chekhov:<span style=""> </span><i style="">The Cherry Orchard</i> 1904</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 4/9<span style=""> </span><b style="">Conventions Paper 1 due; </b>have read Bernard Shaw:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Major Barbara</i> 1905; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 17<br />W 4/11 <b style="">submit venue for Conventions Paper 2;</b> have read Eugene O’Neill:<span style=""> </span><i style="">The Hairy Ape</i> 1922</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 4/16 <b style="">Conventions Paper 2 due; </b>have read Lillian Hellman:<span style=""> </span><i style="">The Children’s Hour</i> 1934; revised 1952*; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 19<br />W 4/18<span style=""> </span>have read Ena Lamont Stewart:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Men Should Weep</i><span style=""> </span>1947*</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 4/23<span style=""> </span>have read Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Inherit the Wind</i><span style=""> </span>1955*; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 31<br />W 4/25<span style=""> </span><b style="">Research Topic proposal due;</b> have read Harold Pinter:<span style=""> </span><i style="">The Homecoming</i> 1965</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 4/30<span style=""> </span>have read Brian Friel:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Translations</i> 1980; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 23<br />W 5/2<span style=""> </span><b style="">submit venue for Conventions Paper 3;</b> have read Sam Shepard:<span style=""> </span><i style="">True West</i> 1980</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 5/7<span style=""> </span><b style="">Conventions Paper 3 due; </b>have read August Wilson<i style="">:<span style=""> </span>Fences</i> 1985; Brockett and Hildy Ch. 24<br />W 5/9<span style=""> </span>have read Jack Davis:<span style=""> </span><i style="">No Sugar</i><span style=""> </span>1985<br /><o:p> </o:p><br />M 5/14 have read Liz Lochhead:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off<span style=""> </span></i>1987*<br />W 5/16<span style=""> </span>have read Timberlake Wertenbaker:<span style=""> </span><i style="">Our Country’s Good</i> 1988<o:p><br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">M 5/21<span style=""> </span>have read <st1:street st="on"><st1:address st="on">Carlos Murillo: </st1:address></st1:street><i style="">dark play, or stories for boys</i> 2007*<br />Research Reports; <b style="">Research Format Proposal Due</b><br />W 5/23<span style=""> </span>have read Ken Weitzman: <i style="">As If Body Loops </i><span style="font-style: italic;"></span>2007*; Research Reports</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>M 5/28<span style=""> </span><b style=""><i style="">Memorial Day; no class</i></b><br />W 5/30<span style=""> </span>Summary and Conclusions; </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>W 6/6<span style=""> </span>11:30 a.m. – 1:18 p.m.<span style=""> </span>Final Examination Scheduled; <b style="">Final Research Report Due by 1:18 p.m.<o:p></o:p></b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-44418533036922469532007-03-17T19:37:00.000-07:002007-03-17T19:51:01.028-07:00Theatre 597 Wraps Up Winter 2007<span style="font-family: times new roman;">The term's over, all work in, grades assigned and reported. In general, good work done. A preponderance of As and A-s with only a smattering of grades in the B range, and the usual odd C or failing grade. Although the students had the option of mounting a webpage as the final report, only one of the research groups did so; the results are at </span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif;"><a href="http://chrismindless44149.tripod.com/index.htm" target="l">http://chrismindless44149.tripod.com/index.htm</a> --a report on the censorship problems Christopher Durang had/is having with <span style="font-style: italic;">Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All To You</span>.<br /><br />One side note, which has to do with my own advancing age and the changing world we live in--these students are pretty hard to shock. They've grown up with an openness (or blatantness) about sex and language which is very different from my teenage years a half century ago. So many of their research reports about efforts to censor various things were marked by the students' bemusement, and difficulty in really getting why the material was so offensive to some. Haven't yet figured out a way to find out what they find offensive, in the main.<br /><br />And one effect of the changes <span style="font-style: italic;">mores<span style="font-style: italic;">--</span></span>when the Department did <span style="font-style: italic;">Our Town</span> during this past quarter (and I was cast in a couple of small roles to add some age to the cast!), I realized that there's now a problem: our student audience, for the most part, hasn't any idea what Mrs. Webb is talking about in the wedding scene when she talks about how barbaric the whole system is, how she wasn't able to bring herself to say anything to Emily, and she went into 'it' totally unprepared herself. Of course she's talking about sexual intercourse; for the current crop of young people, that a young woman could reach her wedding day being entirely ignorant of the mechanics of sexual relations, is literally incomprehensible. Most of the students in the cast of <span style="font-style: italic;">Our Town</span> had no idea what the speech was about; imagine how bewildered the student audience was?<br /><br />Overall, the course was a terrific experience for me as the instructor. I'll find out the student perspective when the students' evaluations are made available to me!<br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8628478080745156247.post-38033823554249789072007-03-05T11:42:00.000-08:002007-03-05T11:54:48.723-08:00Theatre 597: CensorshipA "capstone course," meant to be a senior seminar that also satisfies the advanced writing assignment. Taught for the second time in Winter, 2007--with some 56 students enrolled. Why so many in a 'seminar'? There aren't many of these courses on the books yet, and, of course, censorship has its own attraction. The syllabus:<br /><br />Theatre 597: Issues of the Contemporary World: Censorship as an Instrument of Public/Private Policy<br /><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">5 cr hrs. U/G.<br />Winter 2007<br />TR 1:30-3:18 p.m. 0160 McQuiggg<br /><br />Instructor: Dr. Alan Woods<br /> 1433 Lincoln Tower 292-6614<br /> </span><a href="mailto:woods.1@osu.edu"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">woods.1@osu.edu</span></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> <br /> <br />Prerequisite: second level writing course; cultural diversity course; 4th year status.<br />Not available for graduate credit for graduate students in the Department of Theatre.<br /><br />Course Description: <br />Exploration of the ways in which censorship has been employed by governmental groups in both western and Asian societies as an instrument of public policy, or in response to pressure groups within those societies.<br /><br />Course Objectives:<br />1. To discover how different contemporary societies perceive the role of government in controlling what information citizens can freely access<br />2. To study the interaction between cultures with differing (and often mutually exclusive) societal value systems<br />3. To explore the ways in which the cultures of contemporary societies have become interdependent, and some of the stresses that interdependence creates<br />4. To give students the opportunity to gain a richer comprehension of issues of censorship and governmental control in the contemporary world.<br /><br />Background Statement:<br />As culture becomes global, one response has been an increasing conservatism and nationalism, often expressed in efforts by governmental bodies to control or shape information. Those efforts frequently result in censorship (whether overt or covert), often defended on moral, cultural, political, or educational grounds. Worries about secular Western influences in fundamentalist Islamic countries which led to the banning of cable television in Iran, the concern about the imposition of American sexual freedom on Chinese youth which caused the Chinese government to ban a production of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, a Wisconsin superindentent cancelling the musical Urinetown to protect student morals, or efforts to block pornographic websites (defined in radically diverse ways) in American libraries, schools and homes--all are recent manifestations of beliefs that governments must regulate expression. However justified, such efforts often are met with fierce resistance and at least some measure of public debate. The course will explore selected examples of censorship, or attempts to establish censorship, in a variety of western and eastern cultures, to examine the issues that such efforts expose.<br /><br />Course Requirements:<br />Student participants will be organized into small research teams of 4-5 members each, and will explore specific instances of attempted censorship. The explorations will result in classroom presentations, a written report, and an annotated bibliography. Each individual student will also prepare a personal manifesto regarding his or her own response to the larger issue of the role of government in regulating information. Written reports may, at the students’ option, be submitted in the form of a webpage or in any other format which best serves the material; approval of the selected format is required by May 18th. <br />Individual students will also write a peer evaluation of their colleagues on the research team, covering such elements as timeliness of contributions, ability to accomplish assignments, the usefulness of contributions, value of contribution to the overall project, willingness to participate in group project.<br /><br />Research teams will explore the any of following cases of censorship or attempted censorship; other cases may be chosen with permission of the instructor:<br /><br />SEX ON STAGE:<br />Olga Nethersole’s trial for obscenity in Clyde Fitch’s <em>Sapho</em>, New York, 1900.<br />Maude Allan, <em>Salome</em>, and libel in London, 1918.<br /><em>The Vagina Monologues</em>, North America, China, India, Europe, 1997-2005.<br /><em>Naked Boys Singing</em>, Milwaukee and elsewhere 2005<br /><em>Spring Awakening</em>, off and on Broadway, 2006-2007—and before<br /><br />RELIGION ON STAGE:<br />Christopher Durang, the Roman Catholic Church, and <em>Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All To You</em>, St. Louis and elsewhere, 1980s.<br /><em>Corpus Christi</em>: Terrence McNally and a gay parable, New York and elsewhere, 1998-2005.<br />Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti’s <em>Behzti </em>(Dishonour), at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, 2004<br /><em>Jerry Springer, The Opera</em>, on stage and television, 2003-2006<br /><br />POLITICS<br />"Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai" (Anything Can Happen) banned in Pakistan (2004)<br />Maulana Azad and the Gujarat Censor Board, India, 2003.<br /><em>Porgy and Bess</em> and cultural diplomacy, Europe and the Soviet Union, 1952-56.<br /><em>Paradise</em> in Cincinnati, 2002.<br /><em>My Name is Rachel Corrie</em>, London 2005, New York 2006<br /><br />SEX AND POLITICS<br />Annie Sprinkle, Karen Finley, and Tim Miller: the NEA 4 updated, United States, 1990-2005.<br />Burlesque, strip tease, and exotic dance, from the C. H. McCaghy Collection, Lawrence & Lee Theatre Research Institute<br /><br />EDUCATIONAL CENSORSHIP<br /><em>Grease</em> in Missouri, 2005; <em>Urinetown</em> in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, 2006.<br /><br />Bibliography:<br /><br />Alpert, Hollis. <em>The Life and Times of</em> Porgy and Bess<em>: the Story of An American Classic</em>. New York: Knopf, 1990.<br />Angelou, Maya. <em>Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting’ Merry Like </em>Christmas. New York: Random House, 1976.<br />Barish, Jonas. <em>The Anti-Theatrical Prejudice</em>. Berkeley: U of California P, 1981.<br />Bolton, Richard, ed. <em>Culture Wars: Documents from the Recent Controversies in the Arts</em>. New York: New Press, 1992.<br />Callis, Ann Everal. “Olga Nethersole and the Sapho Scandal.” M.A. Thes. Ohio State University, 1974.<br />Cherniavsky, Felix Benjamin. <em>The Salome Dancer : the Life and Times of Maud Allan</em> Toronto : McClelland & Stewart, 1991.<br />Hamilton, Marybeth. When I’m Bad, I’m Better: Mae West, Sex, and American Entertainment. New York: HarperCollins, 1995.<br />Heins, Marjorie. <em>Not In Front of the Children : "Indecency," Censorship, and the Innocence of Y</em>outh. New York : Hill and Wang, 2001.<br />Hoare, Philip. <em>Oscar Wilde's Last Stand: Decadence, Conspiracy, and the Most Outrageous Trial of the Century</em>. New York : Arcade Pub, 1998.<br />Hunter, James Davison. <em>Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America</em>. New York: Basic Books, 1991.<br />Levine, Judith. “Kids. Theater,” <em>The Nation</em> 284:2 (January 8/15, 2007), 32-6.<br />Levinson, Nan. <em>Outspoken: Free Speech Stories</em>. Berkeley: U of California P, 2003.<br />Sova, Dawn B. <em>Banned Plays: Censorship Histories of 125 Stage Dramas</em>. New York: Facts on File, 2004.<br />West, Mae. <em>Three Plays by Mae West</em>, ed. Lillian Schlissel. New York : Routledge, 1997.<br /><br /><br />Additional Course Guidelines:<br />1. All written work must be submitted in processed form or via e-mail. Handwritten work will not be accepted.<br />2. Course material will be available online, via the course webpage. Instructions on how access the course webpage will be distributed in advance of the course via e-mail, and during the first class session.<br /><br />Texts:<br />General texts will be available online, on the course webpage; hard copies will be available on reserve through the Ohio State University Libraries. Additional copies will be available in the reading room of the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute, 14th floor of Lincoln Tower. <br />Research projects will require the use of primary source materials which may have limited availability, due to their nature. The types of research materials each topic entails, and their availability, will be made clear at the beginning of the term.<br /><br />Grading Scale:<br />Your grade will be based on a combination of the following:<br /> research project oral report: 60 points<br /> research project written report: 60 points<br /> research project annotated bibliography: 20 points<br /> peer evaluations: 20 points<br /> personal manifesto: preliminary draft 10 points<br /> personal manifesto: final version 20 points <br /> active participation in class sessions: 10 points<br />TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: 200 <br />Grading Points:<br /> A 185 and above A- 180-184 B+ 174-179<br /> B 166-173 B- 160-165 C+ 154-159<br /> C 146-153 C- 140-145 D+ 130-139<br /> D 120-129 E 119 and below<br /><br />Any student who feels s/he may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss specific needs. Please contact the Office of Disability Services at 292-3307, room 150 Pomerene Hall, </span><a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/welcome.htm</span></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> (a text only version is at </span><a href="http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm)"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">www.ods.ohio-state.edu/textonly/index.htm)</span></a><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. <br /><br />This syllabus is available in alternative formats upon request.<br />USG ESCORT SERVICE: 292-3322.<br /><br />Class Schedule:<br /><br />R 1/4: backgrounds: definitions of types of censorship, discussion of reasons for efforts to censor<br /><br />T 1/9: governmental and public policy issues; formation of research teams; have read Hunter, introduction; Bolton, Chapter 1. <br />R 1/11: history of censorship in the west, Classic through early Medieval periods; assignment of research project topics; Barish, chapters 1-3. Personal manifesto preliminary draft due.<br /><br />T 1/16: history of censorship in the west, Medieval through Renaissance periods; Barish, chapter 4.<br />R 1/18: history of censorship in the west, post Renaissance.<br /><br />T 1/23: censorship in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries..<br />R 1/25: history of censorship in the east;<br /><br />T 1/30: case study: Mae West. West: <em>Sex</em>, <em>The Drag</em><br />R 2/1: case studies: the Lord Chamberlain in England, 1747-1968; Socialist Realism in the Soviet Union<br /><br />T 2/6: case study: the Motion Picture Code in the United States, 1934-1955.<br />R 2/8: 1. <em>Urinetown</em> in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, 2006. 2. <em>Grease</em> in Missouri, 2005<br /><br />T 2/13 3. Spring Awakening, off and on Broadway, 2006-2007 ­and before 4. <em>Nip and Tuck</em><br />R 2/15 5. The Vagina Monologues, North America, China, India, Europe, 1997-2005. 6. <em>Corpus Christi</em>: Terrence McNally and a gay parable, New York and elsewhere, 1998-2005.<br /><br />T 2/20 7. <em>Naked Boys Singing</em>, Milwaukee and elsewhere 2005 8. <em>South Park</em><br />R 2/22 9. <em>Paradise</em> in Cincinnati, 2002. 10. Olga Nethersole’s trial for obscenity in Clyde Fitch’s <em>Sapho</em>, New York, 1900.<br /><br />T 2/27 11. Christopher Durang, the Roman Catholic Church, and <em>Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All To You</em>, St. Louis and elsewhere, 1980s. 12. <em>My Name is Rachel Corrie</em>, London 2005, New York 2006 </span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">R 3/1 13. Censorship in Agentina 14. <em>Jerry Springer, The Opera</em>, on stage and television, 2003-2006 </span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">T 3/6 15. Burlesque, strip tease, and exotic dance, from the C. H. McCaghy Collection, Lawrence & Lee Theatre Research Institute </span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;">R 3/8 censorship: revisited; summary and conclusions; final reports submitted or mounted on webpage<br /> <br />M 3/12: 1:30 p.m. Final exam scheduled; personal manifesto final version due<br /> </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0