In this course students explore the question "what is performance?" and how this informs their understanding of an increasingly mediated and globalized world. They examine the broad spectrum of performance in its many forms including theater, dance, visual art, performance art, everyday life, folklore, rituals and celebrations, and protests as well as the processes of each. Students apply readings on performance theory to performance events and sites on campus and beyond. In addition, they engage in an in-depth exploration of both global and intercultural performances and the growing international importance of this field.

The creation of theater is a synthesis of text, performance, and visual imagery. This course explores how the visual aspect of theatrical design affects the way an audience perceives, feels, and responds to text and action. Students learn to use line, mass, color, and texture to communicate metaphoric and thematic ideas as they relate to the overall theatrical experience. They examine how forms of art, architecture, and music use these tools to influence and transform the audience, and build on this foundation to create a design vocabulary for theater. Students discuss how clothing, adornment, and body language influence the way individuals perceive others and present themselves. As a culminating project, students learn the fundamentals of collaborative creation, and design scenery and costumes for a work of dramatic literature. Required of all majors. No previous art or theater training is required.

An introduction to the technical aspects of live theater, exploring both traditional and modern approaches, this course provides a look "behind the curtain" to reveal the secrets of theater magic. Topics include the stage and its equipment, materials, and construction of scenic and property items, lighting, sound, projections, rigging, and backstage organization. All students participate in the preparation and presentation of theater and dance productions. Due to the hands-on nature of this course, 30 hours of outside class time are required and scheduled individually.

This introductory course explores the ever-evolving world of digital media in the performing arts, where technology, creativity, and communities converge. Students will be trained on the holistic and collaborative process from storyboarding to technical execution, specifically as it relates to live entertainment. We’ll examine the history, current landscape, and emerging technologies in projection and video design.

Devising is a contemporary performance-making practice that declines the traditional single author/choreographer/director/script model of theater in favor of a collaborative approach to generating themes, content, forms, and aesthetics for creating performance. In this hybrid course students learn about devising practices, theories, and politics through the exploration of how performance companies work in this generative space, and explore devising techniques to practice these methodologies in action.

This course considers the intertwining of theatre and performance with things. Theatre productions often rely on and make deft use of objects. Costumes and scenery can transform actors and stages, conjuring other times and places. Props can drive the action of the play or reveal the nuances of a character. Performances can also leave material traces as numerous theatre scrapbooks, souvenirs, fan mail, and reviews might attest. Objects can disclose their makers’ and users’ values, relationships, and the memories that haunt and hold onto them. We will explore how theatrical things – the material culture of theatre and performance -- can offer important perspectives on queerness, race, disability, migration, displacement, collectivity, care, and memory. We will also examine how theatre and performances can use objects to shape spectatorship, to recall histories of objectification and exhibition, and to work toward preservation, repair, and worldmaking.

A dramaturg contributes a wide variety of theatrical knowledge—literary, historical, critical, and practical—to the process of producing a play. The dramaturg’s function in a theater company is to ask and answer questions, small and large, about everything from the meaning of a single word in a text, to the meanings of the text as a whole. The dramaturg must also understand the requirements of production such as acting, directing, and design. This class will examine how dramaturgs can synthesize and communicate this knowledge and understanding to the artists producing the play and to the audiences watching it.

This course presents in-depth study of the creative and practical tools used by set designers to visually enrich and shape the theatrical experience. Students study a history of theatrical architecture and design, focusing on how they have shaped the uses of stage space and the vocabulary of modern scene design. Classes build on aesthetic fundamentals developed in THEA 130, and examine in greater depth the relationship between set designers and theatrical texts. Practically, students learn fundamentals of theatrical drafting, perspective and scale drawing, and model making. This course is recommended for students with an interest in the visual and emotional impact of effective scene design on drama and performance. Recommended background: Students are encouraged to contact Professor McDowell to discuss their previous art training and experience before registering for the course. Prerequisite(s): THEA 130, 132, or an individual portfolio review.

This course introduces the practical and artistic elements of theatrical lighting design. Through hands-on experience, students will become familiar with the tools and equipment typically used in contemporary stage lighting. As they engage in the creative process, students will explore color theory, form, movement, and composition. Prerequisite(s) or corequisite(s): THEA 105, 130, or 132.

In theater, as in life, clothes often "make the man." This course focuses on the myriad aspects of personality, position, and state of mind created and enhanced for stage characters by the art of costume design. Emphasis is placed on analyzing play texts and bringing characters to life. The course builds on aesthetic fundamentals developed in THEA 130, and offers further instruction in costume research, figure drawing, and sketching and painting skills used to present costume design information. This course is recommended for students with an interest in the visual and emotional impact of effective design on drama and performance. Recommended background: Students are encouraged to contact Professor Mc Dowell to discuss their previous art training and experience before registering for the course. Prerequisite(s): THEA 130 or an individual portfolio review.

The history of dress and human adornment includes political, sexual, economic, and cultural factors, often entwined in subtle or ephemeral ways with the aesthetics of what we consider fashion. This course, which is conducted in a survey format, begins with early Greek culture and continues into the current era, examining not just physical appearance, but these other factors that have driven the myriad changes in the history of dress throughout Western culture.

This course looks at the significant and constitutive role of modern and contemporary American drama in American cultural history. The class will particularly focus on how these plays explore race and ethnicity. We will look at these plays in their cultural contexts, noting how they examine settler colonialism, immigration, and racism, while also working toward preservation, repair, and worldmaking. Playwrights whose work we will examine include James Ijames, Lorraine Hansberry, Mary Kathryn Nagle and Lloyd Suh.

In this course, students will learn how to write plays by…writing plays. The goal is for students to write boldly, quickly, and theatrically, and to begin to understand and manage their creative process. Students will read and discuss contemporary plays to understand the choices playwrights make about character, setting, plot, and theme. Time will be spent on learning how to give and receive feedback following the Liz Lerman critical response process. Students will turn in new pages of dialogue nearly every week, and over the course of the semester will structure their own revision process, resulting in a written piece of dramatic work. Previous playwriting experience is not required.

An introduction to the art of directing, with an emphasis on creative and aesthetic problems and their solutions. Students learn the essential processes used by a director and deepen their awareness of contemporary directors and practices. The course offers a basic understanding of fundamental directorial technique: script analysis, staging, collaboration with performers, and approaches to contemporary drama. The course is both theoretical and practical, involving readings, rehearsal observation, theater exercises and directing scenes.

This experiential course offers an in-depth exploration of the craft of acting. Using several different acting techniques, students undertake exercises to strengthen connection, relaxation, objective, emotional openness, and moment-to-moment availability. The course emphasizes ensemble-building techniques to deepen cooperative skills. Students explore various methodologies and apply them to the preparation of their contemporary scene work.

This course is a combination of theory and practice, which examines the history of musical theater, from the Golden Age of musicals to today, and emphasizes this American contribution to the social, literary and performing arts, while also introducing students to the process of embodying character while singing. The goal of this course is to help students better appreciate, analyze, and evaluate musical theatre and its performance practices through the use of required reading, videos of live performances as well as discussions of compositional and vocal techniques used for each work studied. The performance aspect of this course will be highlighted with a participation in a live or online final presentation at the end of the semester. No previous stage or singing experience necessary.

Students examine the nature and working of the human voice. They explore ways to develop the voice's potential for expressive communication with exercises and the analysis of breathing, vocal relaxation, pitch, resonance, articulation, audibility, and text performance. This is a dynamic and highly experimental performance-based course. No previous experience is required. Recommended background: one course in acting, performance, or public speaking.

An introduction to the exercises and principles of classical Pilates. This physical training course uses the Pilates method and complementary conditioning techniques to develop core strength, alignment, and flexibility. This course is designed for physical performers, but useful for bodies of all kinds. One-half credit is earned.

Working under faculty direction, students perform major roles in departmental productions as a performer (290A); stage manager, associate stage manager, technician (290B); designer, dramaturg, assistant director (290C). One-half credit is earned. May be repeated.

A stage manager’s role and responsibility is to ensure clear communications, logistics, and safety throughout the entire production process, from pre-rehearsal preparation to post-performance breakdown. This fundamental course investigates theater making from the point of view of a stage manager while focusing on three essential roles: communication within a production team, facilitating a space that allows for creative exploration, and maintaining the artistic integrity of the show. Students will explore the best practice strategies or the “how to” lead an authentic equitable theatrical process. Recommended background: DANC/THEA 105, THEA 130, or 132.

Process & Production is an experiential course that offers an in-depth exploration into the process of creating departmental productions directed by faculty or guest artists which occur each semester. Students will deepen their understanding of collaboration and have the opportunity to participate in a variety of theater-making roles such as acting, choreography, design, devising, directing, dramaturgy, stage management or technical theater. This course allows students to learn about innovative theater practices and to apply techniques from other curricular work. In addition to daily rehearsals the creative team of students will meet weekly to discuss their process, reflect on readings and participate in workshops on topics related to the field such as intimacy/consent-based practices, anti-racist practices, safety and cultural competency. Students will complete a written reflection and portfolio about their process and production experience.

Immersive Media Installation is an advanced interdisciplinary creative production course that guides students through theoretical and technical frameworks for combining sound, video, and live performance in the conceptualization of an artwork. Students will exhibit their work in Bates’ new Immersive Media Studio (“IMStudio”) located in Coram. This studio allows for artwork to be exhibited utilizing multiple projections and speakers to create immersive media architectures. Readings/viewings and discussion support students' understanding of intermedia creative practices in varied contexts. Weekly workshops support technical learning. Students will create two major creative projects through the term: one as a class collaboration, and one in small teams. Students will also learn about the process of media installation, media exhibition, will document their work and write a short artist statement, offering tools for professional artistic development.

In Advanced Playwriting, students will refine their writing and revision skills, offer and receive feedback through the Liz Lerman critical response process, read and respond to critical essays, and begin the transition to live performance. This writing- and discussion-driven course will also deepen students’ understanding of Aristotelian plot structure and its derivatives, as well as non-Western narrative structures by challenging students to explore and create bold, imaginative work. The basic elements of playwriting will be supplemented by explorations of form, language, character, structure, and space as innovated by contemporary playwrights. Students will complete a written body of dramatic work. Recommended background: THEA 240.

Students deepen their craft of directing by experimenting with a variety of storytelling techniques for the stage. Class work focuses on the study and practice of the directing process, in which students expand their ability to develop an approach to a dramatic text, work with designers and actors, and explore generative theater making. Throughout the course there is a sustained focus on the collaborative process and examination of contemporary directors and their work. Students direct a ten-minute play to conclude the semester. Recommended background: THEA 250.

Students, in consultation with a faculty advisor, individually design and plan a course of study or research not offered in the curriculum. Course work includes a reflective component, evaluation, and completion of an agreed-upon product. Sponsorship by a faculty member in the program/department and permission of the chair are required. Working under faculty direction, students may select: THEA 360 A Stage Management; THEA 360 B Assistant Director; THEA 360 C Dramaturgy; THEA 360 D Directing; THEA 360 E Assistant Design in the Area of Focus; THEA 360 F Design.

Students deepen their craft of acting by exploring the techniques of Constantin Stanislavski, Michael Chekhov, Lloyd Richards and various other acting practitioners. Class work focuses on a psycho-physical acting approach, in which students expand their imagination, explore their impulses, and creatively integrate their bodies and voices. The course emphasizes ensemble-building techniques to strengthen cooperative skills. Throughout the course there is a sustained focus on text analysis; this practice is used to identify actions, given circumstances and objectives, ultimately leading to options and choices for the actor. Learned techniques are to be applied in all studio performances: an assigned scene and a student chosen monologue. Prerequisite(s): THEA 261.

Theater Makers students who elect this option structure their written work around a creative project designated by the department in acting, design, directing, dramaturgy, playwriting, stage management or technical theater. Theater Studies/Dramaturgy students who elect this option focus on scholarly research and writing. It offers them the opportunity to explore topics in theater and performance studies, dramatic literature, theater history, the theoretical and social dimensions of performance, or other appropriate areas of scholarly interest.

Theater Makers students who elect this option structure their written work around a creative project designated by the department in acting, design, directing, dramaturgy, playwriting, stage management or technical theater. Theater Studies/Dramaturgy students who elect this option, focus on scholarly research and writing. It offers them the opportunity to explore topics in theater and performance studies, dramatic literature, theater history, the theoretical and social dimensions of performance, or other appropriate areas of scholarly interest.

The course will cover historical dress, (cross)gendered dressing, the levels of formality and seasonal patterns using a selection of vintage kimono. We will engage in kimono dressing, the visible mending technique sashiko, and the practice of preserving textiles with indigo dye. In addition, the course will address the issues related to Orientalism, cultural appropriation, and sustainability.

This interdisciplinary course examines the questions, concepts, and potential surrounding puppets through a combination of hands-on work and play with puppets, discussion, readings, and viewings of puppet performances. Readings and other materials offer perspectives on what puppets are, how they interact with audiences, and what makes puppet performance a distinct forum for exploring questions about bodies and identities. Students test these ideas together using actual puppets to see how theory and practice collide. The course concludes with a collective project using puppets to engage with the community at Bates and beyond. Conducted in English.

Scene painting relies on visual illusion to achieve realism, and scenic painters must master creating two-dimensional works on a large scale that are seen at great distances. In this course students are introduced to a broad array of tools and techniques to turn paint and canvas visually into wood, marble, ornate stone carving, trompe l'oeil-virtually anything that exists in three dimensions. Projects are designed to be cumulative, building skills that can be incorporated into individually chosen final projects.

A study of Hungarian and Czech history, politics, and theater since about 1945. Our focus is on the impact on theater of the cataclysmic social and political changes in Central Europe since the Hungarian uprisings of 1956. Other seminal events bearing on this study are the Prague Spring of 1968, the collapse of the Soviet bloc in 1989, and the subsequent rebuilding of politics and culture in the region up until today. In conjunction with our study of history, politics, and drama, students read an array of secondary sources on the social and cultural history of post-war Central Europe. Classes will be conducted as discussions, led by the Bates instructors and Hungarian, Czech, and other Central European artists and scholars. Students maintain a journal describing and analyzing the plays, readings and other academic materials studied. Recommended background: one course in European studies, theater, or politics.

Students, in consultation with a faculty advisor, individually design and plan a course of study or research not offered in the curriculum. Course work includes a reflective component, evaluation, and completion of an agreed-upon product. Sponsorship by a faculty member in the program/department, a course prospectus, and permission of the chair are required. Students may register for no more than one independent study during a Short Term.