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Theater and Dance


The Department of Theater and Danceprovides a range of opportunities for students to experience, create, and support performance. We are a community of artists who foster each student's creative, intellectual, and communicative powers within the larger context of a liberal arts education. The department offers a Theater Studies major and minor, a Dance major and minor, and a joint major in Playwriting with the Creative Writing Program.  

Theater Studies offers a liberal arts education that challenges and develops the student in our discipline through classroom and laboratory experiences. Classes explore the literature, history, design, performance, management, and technology of theater; while laboratory experiences allow students to apply classroom theory and actively participate in theater-making. The playwriting joint major brings together the disciplines of Theater Studies and Creative Writing in an innovative synthesis designed to educate playwrights both as writers and as theater professionals. Our faculty focuses on teaching and mentoring students in a variety of settings: small classes, individual consultations, workshops, undergraduate research, rehearsals, and performances. While diving into the various subfields of theater, students are encouraged to participate in hands-on opportunities outside of the classroom. Theater Emory offers a professional theater setting where undergraduate students work alongside faculty and community professionals. Our six Student Theater groups offer a collaborative and student-led environment to hone their skills. In both settings, students may engage as performers, directors, designers, stage managers, and more.  

The Emory Dance and Movement Studies Program creates vibrant explorations of movement for all skill levels, encouraging students to move freely, develop a mindful practice, create original work, and discover interdisciplinary connections. As one of the leading dance programs in the South, the program is an incubator for innovative, transformative dance making—fostering each student's creative, intellectual, and communicative powers within the larger context of a liberal arts education. The study of dance and movement is a serious academic discipline emphasizing artistry, discovering body-mind connections, and expanding body intelligence that will transfer into a variety of professions. A diverse and inclusive learning environment encompasses a range of dance styles through coursework, choreography, and performance. The study of dance and movement teaches critical life skills, including creative problem solving, discipline, collaboration, perseverance, leadership, adaptability, analysis, and compassion. Dive into a wide range of classes, including modern, ballet, jazz, hip-hop, Flamenco, Kuchipudi, and African dance, along with choreography and theory courses to prepare yourself for any career pursuits you choose. 

Visit the Department Website

Concentrations

Faculty

Chair
Michael Evenden
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Brent Glenn
Core

Courses

DANC 100-Level Courses

This course is designed for students with no or very minimal experience in ballet technique. Ballet I introduces students to the basic skills and terminology of ballet. The course includes barre exercises with an emphasis on alignment. Center work will include adagio, tendu, basic turns, petite allegro, and grande allegro in simple combinations. The course is designed to develop individual body awareness, strength, flexibility, and an appreciation of the art of ballet. May be taken up to three times for credit. Students are required to take this course at least two times before progressing to the next level and should secure the permission of the instructor before doing so.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed for students with no or minimal dance experience. It introduces dance technique and contemporary modern dance vocabulary. Emphasis will be placed on dynamic alignment, sensing and activating weight, developing coordination, and discovering body connections. Movement explorations take place on the floor, standing, and in sequences locomoting through space. Creative expression and musicality are integrated into class content. May be taken up to three times for credit. Students are required to take this course three times before progressing to the next level and should secure the permission of the instructor before doing so.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed for students with no or very minimal jazz dance experience. The course provides an introduction to articulating and expressing rhythms through stylized movement sequences, basic technical skills, and performance. Emphasis is on development of greater body awareness, strength, flexibility, coordination, musicality (especially syncopation), and improvisation. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An investigation of your body's potential to move without preconception. Explorations in a variety of improvisational forms emphasize group interplay, problem-solving, and inner listening in order to reveal new movement vocabularies and increase kinesthetic awareness. Required course for dance and movement studies majors and minors.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introductory seminar on a special topic in dance and movement studies.


Credit Hours
3
GER
FS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

DANC 200-Level Courses

Emory Dance Company is a professionally oriented performance company that exposes students to the diverse choreographic approaches of faculty, student and guest artist work, as well as historical reconstructions. Course admission is by audition. Students gain performance techniques, collaborative skills, and often contribute to the making of original choreography as they prepare for a fully produced dance concert. Simultaneous enrollment in a dance technique class is required. In addition, students gain experience in some of the technical aspects of dance concert production. Credit hours are assigned in accordance with the number of works in which a student participates. Evaluation procedures announced in class.


Credit Hours
1 - 2
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course for music and dance students to study Argentine tango in Buenos Aires will intersect scholarly studies of tango history and culture with performance practice. It will provide an authentic, holistic learning experience for students to understand how theory and practice inform each other. Music and dance majors and minors only, or by permission of instructor with letter of recommendation by a music or dance professor.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • MUS 211

Students will study a technique dance form learning the basic techniques and style of the form. The material may be further explored through historical, cultural and political perspectives. This course culminates in a performance or lecture demonstration.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course will introduce a variety of African Dance styles and movement forms from the West and Central African countries. Students will understand the relationship of culture and tradition in these regions, and study the technical components of each dance form.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Flamenco reflects a way of life through rhythmic footwork, fluid upper body movements, and music of guitar, singing, and percussion. This course emphasizes the Spanish Gypsy culture and its forms of group support and expression. Students analyze its origins and evolution.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course introduces students to the basics of Kuchipudi, an Asian Indian classical dance form of South India based on dance dramas that tell a story. Students will gain familiarity with hand gestures, foot movements, rhythmic syllables, and how to use combinations of these to express themselves through dance. This course culminates in a performance or lecture demonstration.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course traces the development of Western concert dance from 19th century Romantic Ballet to the present. Emphasis will be placed on the development of American modern dance, post modern dance, and current trends and dance artists. This course is required for all dance and movement studies majors and minors. Students wishing to enroll must be a declared dance and movement studies major or minor, or obtain permission of the instructor.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed for students who can demonstrate an understanding of and familiarity with basic ballet vocabulary. Includes barre exercises with a continued emphasis on alignment. Center work will include adagio, tendu, turns, petite allegro, and grande allegro in simple combinations. The course is designed to develop individual body awareness, strength, flexibility, musicality, and an appreciation of the art of ballet. At least 2-3 semesters in Ballet I and consultation with the instructor are required before entry into this course. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Students learn the basic skills and techniques of street dance styles (such as breaking, popping, locking, house, new jack, and krumping) and examines hip-hop dance/culture as a social, concert, and commercial form. The course contextualizes the physical practice with lectures and discussions.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course builds on the technical skills introduced in Dance 123R. Emphasis is placed on centering, core support, breath support, full articulation of the body in three-dimensional space, fully integrating concepts of parallel and rotation, and the interplay of stability and mobility. At least three semesters in the Contemporary Modern Dance I and consultation with instructor is required before entry into this course. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course includes further development of skills introduced in Jazz Dance I with greater emphasis on style, performance, and technique. More technically challenging movement sequences will be introduced and students will be expected to individualize movement at a beginner/intermediate level. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course increases the students' physical capacities through study and implementation of principles of physical fitness with the objective of improving dance performance. Somatic practices and exercise systems are introduced through guest lectures. Students are introduced to anatomical and physiological issues that are common among dancers.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Somatic movement education builds a relationship between the body and mind by guiding the mover through a process of full body integration. A variety of somatic practices may be covered, including Bartenieff Fundamentals, Iyengar-based yoga, and core movement training. Somatic practices can be applied to everyday activities and performance, affecting levels of confidence and encouraging authenticity.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course explores hip-hop dance/culture via lectures and movement sessions. It facilitates cultural self-awareness and tools for self-expression by considering race, sexuality, class, authenticity, and gender within hip-hop to delineate how it unifies people across racial and ethnic barriers.


Credit Hours
3
GER
ETHN
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Introduction to Dance is an overview of dance as an expressive art form, a symbolic language, and an integral aspect of world cultures. The course is designed to help students grasp a range of cultural, aesthetic, and bodily worlds from which dance is born. Course work enables students to develop intuitive and verbal skills which allow them to articulate about movement and its meaning. This is supported by direct physical experience in various dance forms, styles, genres, and through exploring the creative process.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A theoretical and practical understanding of the process involved in conceiving and executing a stage design and the interrelationship of the various design disciplines.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 230

This course will provide a framework for observing, analyzing, notating, and understanding movement as an expressive, communicative form. Movement literacy skills are demonstrated through the body by building relationships between Body, Space, Shape, and Effort. By utilizing Rudolph Laban's Movement Analysis system (LMA), emphasis is placed on embodying movement intention and discovering context and meaning in stylistic patterns of movement. Required course for dance and movement studies majors.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A lecture/laboratory course on how artists accomplish their work in the face of changes in values, government mandates, and the economy. .


Credit Hours
3
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 243
  • ARTHIST 243
  • MUS 243

This is a dance composition course designed to allow the student to discover new ideas about movement in a nurturing and experimental environment. Students develop and perform solo studies with an emphasis placed on the development of personal movement vocabulary, phrase building, and the exploration of choreographic tools. Discussion, critiquing, and descriptive writing about their choreographic processes will supplement direct physical work. Required course for dance and movement studies majors and minors. Must be a declared dance and movement studies major or minor, or permission of instructor.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
DANCE 150R or PE_OX 151 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

Students learn to balance the practical and theoretical aspects of lighting design--technical knowhow, artistic vision, communication skills (drafting, drawing, charting), collaboration, and organizational skills. Students are expected to have some knowledge of concert dance and theatrical methods.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

DANC 300-Level Courses

A study of the history and forms of musical theater in America since the turn of the twentieth century.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 314

This course continues to reinforce and build upon the skills learned in Ballet II. More emphasis is placed on style and execution of movement at an intermediate level. Movement sequences become more intricate. A more extensive movement vocabulary is introduced. At least 2-3 semesters in Ballet II and consultation with the instructor are required before enrolling in this course. May be taken up to six times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course develops techniques of street dance styles and examines hip-hop dance/culture. Students dive deeper into their artistry by engaging in the cultural laws of hip-hop--innovation, creativity, and individuality, to raze traditional hierarchical systems of power and promote respect for all.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
DANC 222R or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed for students who are ready to deepen technical practices. Emphasis is placed on the student's technical proficiency and versatility. This course encourages intermediate students to become articulate performers by developing groundedness, musicality, sophisticated use of three-dimensional space, partnering, and ensemble work. Consultation with instructor is required before enrolling in this course. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
2
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course includes further development of skills introduced in Jazz Dance II with greater emphasis on style, performance and technique. More technically challenging movement sequences will be introduced and students will be expected to individualize movement at an advanced level. Course material may include components of Broadway, lyrical, hip hop and other entertainment-based dance forms. May be taken up to three times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course develops communicative, leadership, and creative skills while preparing the student for his/her role as a dance educator. Movement is developed as a kinesthetic tool for learning. Content includes the history of dance education, educational theories, development of original lesson plans, and practical teaching experiences in the Atlanta community.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Drawing on critical Indian dance studies, this course traces the complicated histories of Indian dance, focusing on the intersections of gender, caste, aesthetics, and race. The course reimagines the histories of "classical" Indian dance, both in India and on the transnational stage


Credit Hours
3
GER
ETHN
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • MESAS 334

Drawing on critical Indian dance studies, this course traces the complicated histories of Indian dance, focusing on the intersections of gender, caste, aesthetics, and race. The course reimagines the histories of "classical" Indian dance, both in India and on the transnational stage


Credit Hours
4
GER
CWE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • MESAS 334W

This course is designed for dancers, movers, and aspiring movement practitioners to develop a deeper anatomical understanding of the body and to explore anatomical relationships through movement, somatic practices, and neuromuscular exercises.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • HLTH 369

This course will be conducted as a professional workshop. During the semester students will be required to produce a series of critical articles covering a wide spectrum of fields from music to books, to dance, to theater and the visual arts. Class sessions and assignments will be devoted to nurturing the requisite skills needed to become a successful reviewer or critic. The seminar will include talks by faculty from Journalism, Dance, Music and Theater Studies, as well as visiting professional critics.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 340

This course will be conducted as a professional workshop. During the semester students will be required to produce a series of critical articles covering a wide spectrum of fields from music to books, to dance, to theater and the visual arts. Class sessions and assignments will be devoted to nurturing the requisite skills needed to become a successful reviewer or critic. The seminar will include talks by faculty from Journalism, Dance, Music and Theater Studies, as well as visiting professional critics.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 340W

Students will utilize skills acquired in Choreography I. Choreography II emphasizes deeper exploration and understanding of the elements of space, time, and energy in group works. This course meets twice a week, with an additional evening lab for viewing and critiquing works in progress. Students participate in many aspects of the production process.


Credit Hours
5
GER
HAP
Requisites
This course requires DANC 250 AND DANC 150 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

This course supports students who are continuing to create original choreographic work for the Emory Dance Company after successfully completing Choreography I and II. The lab is designed to provide ongoing feedback during the creative process.


Credit Hours
2
GER
None
Requisites
This course requires DANC 350 AND DANC 250 AND DANC 150 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

Course based on selected topics in dance or movement studies. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Course based on selected topics in dance or movement studies. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

DANC 400-Level Courses

This course continues to reinforce and build upon the skills learned in Dance 321R. More emphasis is placed on style and execution. Combinations increase in intricacy and a larger dance movement vocabulary is introduced. Course work may include pointe work and variations. At least two semesters in Ballet III and consultation with the instructor are required before enrolling in this course. May be taken up to nine times for credit.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Designed for advance dance students who can demonstrate a consistent repertoire of technical skill absent of fundamental body issues. Class material challenges the student's technical and performance range and develops a sophisticated understanding of movement concepts.


Credit Hours
2
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed for advanced dancers who demonstrate consistent technical knowledge within the jazz dance genre. Class material will range in style from broadway to contemporary.


Credit Hours
1
GER
PE
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course explores the practical, aesthetic, and current issues of the performing arts as they relate to the development of individual artists and the communities that support their work. Focus areas include arts advocacy, grant writing, and the arts as a reflection of contemporary culture.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 429

This course explores the practical, aesthetic, and current issues of the performing arts as they relate to the development of individual artists and the communities that support their work. Focus areas include arts advocacy, grant writing, and the arts as a reflection of contemporary culture.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • THEA 429W

This course examines ballet through the lenses of gender and sexuality. Students will engage with dance studies, feminist theory, and queer theory to consider ways the performing ballet body materializes and functions aesthetically, culturally, and politically on the Western concert stage.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • WGS 454

This course examines ballet through the lenses of gender and sexuality. Students will engage with dance studies, feminist theory, and queer theory to consider ways the performing ballet body materializes and functions aesthetically, culturally, and politically on the Western concert stage.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • WGS 454W

In this course, students will analyze popular films from the 1940s to present day, documentaries, social media posts, and television series to examine how media simultaneously portrays and constructs cultural representations of ballet through the tropes of pleasure and pain.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • WGS 455

In this course, students will analyze popular films from the 1940s to present day, documentaries, social media posts, and television series to examine how media simultaneously portrays and constructs cultural representations of ballet through the tropes of pleasure and pain.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • WGS 455W

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed performance projects or perform in honors projects under faculty supervision and evaluation. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 2
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed technical production projects in dance under faculty supervision. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed historical and/or theoretical research projects under faculty supervision. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed internship projects under faculty supervision. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Must be taken in addition to the major requirements. Open by permission to candidates for honors in their senior year.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Must be taken in addition to the major requirements. Open by permission to candidates for honors in their senior year.


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Must be taken in addition to the major requirements. Open by permission to candidates for honors in their senior year.


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed pedagogical projects in dance under faculty supervision.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed choreographic projects under faculty supervision. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Provides students with an opportunity to explore individually designed projects under faculty supervision and evaluation. May be repeated for credit when project varies.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

THEA 100-Level Courses

A theoretical and practical initiation to theater as a collaborative art. Includes script analysis as well as basic instruction in acting, improvisation, stage design, and play direction.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introductory course on the principles and practice of the actor's craft.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A theoretical and practical initiation to technical theater. Practical assignments will be oriented toward mounting productions staged by Theater Emory.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introductory seminar on a special topic in theater studies.


Credit Hours
3
GER
FS
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

THEA 200-Level Courses

A required course for all majors and minors. Students undertake a substantial technical theater responsibility in a Theater Emory production (e.g. light or sound operator, costume crew, running props backstage, etc.)


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

The close reading of plays with a view to production. Exercises and projects explore how a text emerges in performance from the combined perspectives of actors, directors, designers, and audience.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

The close reading of plays with a view to production. Exercises and projects explore how a text emerges in performance from the combined perspectives of actors, directors, designers, and audience.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

General history of the theater from its origins through the Renaissance, focusing on representative dramatic works and on the influence of actor, staging, and audience.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 215

General history of the theater from French neoclassicism through the twentieth century, focusing on representative dramatic works and on the influence of actor, staging, and audience.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 216

An introduction to the challenges of acting scenes. This process-oriented course will focus on the development of character relationship through principles of objective, circumstance, habit, activity, age, and emotion.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
This course requires THEA 120 OR THEA_OX 121 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

A systematic approach to the art of acting a speech that tells a story. Students develop several narrative speeches of audition length. Topics include setting the scene and characterization; gesture, movement and space; sound sense; fades, builds and the architecture of a speech; creating inner conflict with opposites.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
This course requires THEA 120 OR THEA_OX 121 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

An overview of voice and diction for actors. Through group exercises and individual instruction, students will learn techniques to achieve proper breath support, vocal production, vocal range, and articulation necessary for stage performance.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A course designed for the physical actor. This laboratory-focused course will explore and develop a variety of processes unique to the construction of the actor's physical form and coordination. Topics include center, balance, kinesthetics, and rhythm in the context of stage combat, mime, clowning, and physical relationship in scene work.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
THEA 120 or THEA_OX 120 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

A theoretical and practical understanding of the process involved in conceiving and executing a stage design and the interrelationship of the various design disciplines.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 230

A lecture/laboratory course on how artists accomplish their work in the face of changes in values, government mandates, and the economy. .


Credit Hours
3
GER
HSC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ARTHIST 243
  • DANC 243
  • MUS 243

Prerequisites: Theater 210 or a 200-level or higher acting course, or permission of instructor. A theoretical and practical introduction to the art of staging plays, including script analysis, rehearsal techniques, and presentation of scenes.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HA
Requisites
THEA 210 or THEA_OX 210 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite
Cross-Listed
None

This course is designed to deepen student engagement with theatrical works in progress and experimentation through observation, constructive response, and presentation of individual or collaborative projects. Course offered in conjunction with Theater Emory's new work series "Breaking Ground"


Credit Hours
1
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Beginning level workshop in playwriting, dramatic writing and/or new play development.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses on special topics in theater at the 200-level. This course may be repeated.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses on special topics in theater at the 200-level. This course may be repeated.


Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

THEA 300-Level Courses

A consideration of several of Shakespeare's plays and the possibilities and problems of staging. A related laboratory covers acting issues in detail, including: scansion, emphasis, and shaping; gesture, movement, and space; soliloquy; images and antitheses.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A history of the American theater and its plays, including consideration of the actor, staging, audience, and their influence on the development of American theatrical art, performance style, and dramatic literature.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A study of the history and forms of musical theater in America since the turn of the twentieth century.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 314

A systematic reading of a group of plays from a major period. Course will focus on the style and historical context of the period.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A systematic reading of a group of plays from a major period. Course will focus on the style and historical context of the period.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A systematic reading of plays through dramatic structure as genre, exploring such major forms as tragedy or comedy.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A systematic reading of plays through dramatic structure as genre, exploring such major forms as tragedy or comedy.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A consideration of the work of a major theatrical figure (dramatist, director, designer).


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

The course is an introduction to traditional Chinese drama, from the13th to the 20th century. We will focus on drama as literature but we will also explore the social, material, and performative dimensions of theater, including modern-day stage adaptations of traditional plays.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • CHN 319
  • EAS 319

The course is an introduction to traditional Chinese drama, from the 13th to the 20th century. We will focus on drama as literature but we will also explore the social, material, and performative dimensions of theater, including modern-day stage adaptations of traditional plays.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • CHN 319W
  • EAS 319W

Advanced work on character and relationship through a variety of approaches.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
This course requires THEA 221 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

Each actor works on two substantive roles, with an emphasis on generating and shaping thematic through-lines.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
THEA 221 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

Skills required for speaking Shakespeare's verse include scansion, emphasis, sound sense, rhythm, phrasing, and shaping. Other topics include the staging conventions of Shakespeare's original productions, approaches to the psychology of his characters, acting imagery, and playing opposing energies.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
This course requires THEA 120 or equivalent transfer credit as a prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

A continuation of THEA 224 Movement for the Actor, this is a variable topic course in Stage Movement Technique for the advanced actor. May include Combat, Mask, selected Period Styles and Text, Mime and Pantomime, Gestured Storytelling, and Physical Relationship


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
THEA 224 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Advanced work on scenes in a variety of period styles. Topics include center, sticking point, kinesthetics, fashion and manner, mask, language/text work, characterization, and status.


Credit Hours
4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This class explores camera acting, including making the transition from stage to screen. Through on-camera exercises, collaborative projects, and screenings, actors will gain the tools they need to perform in a film, web or television shoot with greater confidence, clarity and freedom.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
FILM 376 or THEA 221 or THEA 222 or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
  • FILM 326

An introduction to the theory and practice of costume design. Includes script analysis from a visual perspective as well as exercises to develop basic design skills.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introduction to the theory and practice of scene design. Includes historical research, script analysis from a visual perspective, and exercises to develop basic design skills.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introduction to the theory and practice of lighting design, including script analysis from a visual perspective as well as classroom and practical exercises.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An introduction to the theory and practice of sound design, including script analysis and practical exercises in analog and digital sound.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Basic techniques of scenic painting in theater and film in step-by-step projects. The role of the scenic artist. How to communicate with a scenic designer. How to comment constructively on your own work and that of class mates.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course will be conducted as a professional workshop. During the semester students will be required to produce a series of critical articles covering a wide spectrum of fields from music to books, to dance, to theater and the visual arts. Class sessions and assignments will be devoted to nurturing the requisite skills needed to become a successful reviewer or critic. The seminar will include talks by faculty from Journalism, Dance, Music and Theater Studies, as well as visiting professional critics.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 340

This course will be conducted as a professional workshop. During the semester students will be required to produce a series of critical articles covering a wide spectrum of fields from music to books, to dance, to theater and the visual arts. Class sessions and assignments will be devoted to nurturing the requisite skills needed to become a successful reviewer or critic. The seminar will include talks by faculty from Journalism, Dance, Music and Theater Studies, as well as visiting professional critics.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 340W

Prerequisite: Theater 251 or permission of instructor. Includes continued script investigation of a major play, visualization, actor coaching, and analysis of the throughlines of characters in the play.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Directors will work on the conception and execution of several projects. The showcase will involve design and technical elements. Prerequisites: THEA 250: Directing I and a 200-level or higher acting course.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

An ensemble will intensely research, explore, develop, produce, and perform a collaboratively created bare-bones production. The stylistic focus will vary with each offering. The course is a continuation of skills developed in 100 and 200 level courses.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Survey of the field of theatre-making that is centered on our ecological crises. Students will examine how drama is being used to bring awareness to environmental issues including extinction, climate change, environmental justice, and sustainability.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Taught in Spanish, cross-list between Spanish and Theater Studies. Students deepen their understanding of the Spanish language and Hispanic cultures through script analysis, memorization, character development, in-class exercises, writing assignments, physical and vocal embodiment and performance.


Credit Hours
3
GER
IC
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • SPAN 330

Development of modern drama from the late nineteenth century to 1950, including dramatists such as Ibsen, Shaw, Yeats, Synge, O'Neill, and Williams.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 365

Development of modern drama from the late nineteenth century to 1950, including dramatists such as Ibsen, Shaw, Yeats, Synge, O'Neill, and Williams.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 365W

Selected works of the contemporary theater since 1950, including dramatists such as Beckett, Bond, Fornes, Gems, Pinter, Shepard, and Wilson.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 366

Selected works of the contemporary theater since 1950, including dramatists such as Beckett, Bond, Fornes, Gems, Pinter, Shepard, and Wilson.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 366W

This course will introduce autobiographical, self-revelatory, and autoethnographic styles of therapeutic theater. Students will create an original autobiographical therapeutic performance using drama therapy techniques.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • HLTH 367

An introduction to the field of drama therapy and the theories/principles involved in its practice. An overview of the history of drama therapy, main approaches/theories, and ethical considerations are also included. Students will also engage in experiential drama therapy exercises and reflection.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • HLTH 368

Prerequisites: 200-level theater class or permission of instructor. A workshop for the creation of new works by actors, designers, directors, and writers. Projects may include performances created from improvisation, adaptations of fiction or nonfiction, experimentation with classics, and self-scripted monologues.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Every year. Intermediate level workshop in writing plays.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENGCW 372R

Every year. Intermediate level workshop in writing plays.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENGCW 372RW

Intensive workshop in writing plays for advanced students.


Credit Hours
3
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Intensive workshop in writing plays for advanced students.


Credit Hours
4
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

This course introduces students to ethnographic fieldwork methods and explores through both case study analysis and class-based ethnodrama processes how applied theater and performance (theater, dance, and spoken word) can be used to present anthropological insights and ethnographic material.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ANT 377

This course introduces students to ethnographic fieldwork methods and explores through both case study analysis and class-based ethnodrama processes how applied theater and performance (theater, dance, and spoken word) can be used to present anthropological insights and ethnographic material.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XAW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ANT 377W

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Spring. workshops, and panel discussions with faculty, guest artists, and alumni, in addition to attendance at arts events.


Credit Hours
1
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Variable credit. Prerequisite: permission of department. Special projects, research, and readings under the direction of a faculty member.


Credit Hours
1 - 12
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Special projects, research, and readings under the direction of a faculty member culminating in written work.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

THEA 400-Level Courses

A seminar, capstone to the theater studies major, covering major critical texts that interrogate the nature of the theatrical event.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
(THEA 130 or THEA_OX 130) and THEA 210W and (THEA 215 or THEA_OX 215) and (THEA 216 or THEA_OX 216) or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

A seminar, capstone to the theater studies major, covering major critical texts that interrogate the nature of the theatrical event.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
(THEA 130 or THEA_OX 130) and THEA 210W and (THEA 215 or THEA_OX 215) and (THEA 216 or THEA_OX 216) or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
Cross-Listed
None

This course explores the practical, aesthetic, and current issues of the performing arts as they relate to the development of individual artists and the communities that support their work. Focus areas include arts advocacy, grant writing, and the arts as a reflection of contemporary culture.


Credit Hours
3
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 429

This course explores the practical, aesthetic, and current issues of the performing arts as they relate to the development of individual artists and the communities that support their work. Focus areas include arts advocacy, grant writing, and the arts as a reflection of contemporary culture.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • DANC 429W

Explores skills to effectively and successfully combine singing, facial expression, gestures, interpretation, movement, and interaction with other performers without tension and self-judgment. Repeatable without music major credit. Instructor approval required


Credit Hours
2
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • MUS 443R

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater at the 400-level.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
HAP
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Individual courses designed to introduce students to special topics in theater at the 400-level


Credit Hours
1 - 5
GER
HAPW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A tutorial designed primarily to assist honors candidates in preparing their projects. Students will be approved for Honors in Playwriting 494R when the principal focus of the project is the development and/or production of an existing script.


Credit Hours
3
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 494R

A tutorial designed primarily to assist honors candidates in preparing their projects. Students will be approved for Honors in Playwriting 494RW when the principal focus of the project is writing a new script.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
  • ENG 494RW

An individualized writing seminar, this course is designed to guide Honors candidates in Theater Studies through the processes of scholarly and artistic research relevant to their individual honors theses.


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Variable credit. Prerequisites: qualification for honors and consent of department. A supervised project in any area of theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Theater Studies majors and minors may receive variable credit (1-8 hours) for supervised theater internships approved by the department. Components of an internship include an application, meetings with faculty mentor, and a short paper with documentation of work.


Credit Hours
1 - 8
GER
XA
Requisites
Any THEA 2## course as prerequisite
Cross-Listed
None

Special projects, research, and readings under the direction of a faculty member.


Credit Hours
1 - 4
GER
XA
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

Special projects, research, and readings under the direction of a faculty member culminating in written work.


Credit Hours
4
GER
XAW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A supervised project in any area of theater.


Credit Hours
1 - 12
GER
None
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None

A supervised project in any area of theater ending in a written paper.


Credit Hours
4
GER
CW
Requisites
None
Cross-Listed
None