DRAMA 201 B: Plays and Styles

DRAMA 201B: Plays and Styles
School of Drama, University of Washington,
Autumn 2018, MWF, 11:30am-12:50pm
Hutchinson Hall 130

Instructor: Shelby Lunderman
Contact: Shelby84@uw.edu
Office: Hutchinson Hall 301
Office Hours: Mondays, 9:30-11:30

Course Description:

Introduces theatre practitioners to the principles of play construction, to the process of reading and conceiving plays for production, and to the basic vocabulary of artistic styles through which plays are produced.

Course Objectives:

- To acquire tools for productive script analysis, for use in acting, directing, and design.
- To identify and differentiate the structures and genres of a range of dramatic texts.
- To critically compare plays within a genre, and also compare scripts with live performance.
- To effectively communicate thoughts and analysis in the classroom.
- To construct a well-argued, fully-developed analytical paper reflecting these objectives.

Course Discussion Statement:

The comfort of every student to speak up, discuss, and debate healthily is vital to a successful classroom. Due to the nature of the texts read, historical moments discussed, and plays seen in this course, however, some difficult topics and conversations may emerge. These topics might be triggering for a number of reasons, touch painfully on trauma, and/or discuss contested essentialisms. As such, mutual respect, listening, and patience with opposing views and these difficult issues will be necessary at all times.

Any profane, derogatory, and/or threatening behavior towards any anyone—lecturer, guest, other student(s), passerby, etc.—will NOT be tolerated at any point before, during, or after class. Violating this code will result in an immediate loss of participation points, removal from class for the day in necessary, being required to meet outside of class to discuss compassionate behavior, etc.

Put simply: be respectful, be courteous, be a good human, and always seek to understand someone else’s position, even if you are coming from a position of unknowing or disagree.

COURSE CONTENT

Required Texts (Must Purchase):

- Script Analysis for Actors, Directors, and Designers, 5th Edition, James Thomas
- In the Blood, Susan-Lori Parks
- Disgraced, Ayad Akhtar
- Far Away, Caryl Churchill

 Required Texts (Provided via Canvas):

- Selections from A Student Guide to Play Analysis, David Rush
- Hecuba, Euripides (Translated by James Morwood)
- The Frogs, Aristophanes (Translated by Paul Roche)
- Between Riverside and Crazy, Stephen Adly Guirgis
- The Pillars of Society, Henrik Ibsen (Translated by Paul Schmidt)
- Spring’s Awakening, Frank Wedekind (Translated by Eric Bentley)
- Assassins, Stephen Sondheim
- Ubu Roi and the Truth Commission, Jane Taylor
- Incident at Vichy, Arthur Miller

Required Production:

UW School of Drama’s Incident at Vichy

- Between Saturday, October 20^th and Sunday, November 4^th, there are 12 available showtimes to see.
- Each student will receive a discount card to see the production.
- Failure to see the show will result in a failing grade on the paper.

Grading/Assignment Breakdown:

Quizzes: We will have ten short-answer, quizzes throughout the quarter covering the plays assigned for the day’s class. The quizzes are meant to be check-ins regarding students’ understanding of the basic plot of the play regarding the assigned versions/translations of the texts. (15 points each)

Responses: We will have five in-class Responses throughout the quarter. Each will cover one of the different styles discussed in the course. They may include visual and/or written components and incorporate relevant discussions, plays, and readings. The structure is meant to prepare students for the long-form essays on the Midterm and Final Exams. (20 points each)

Phase 1 of Final Paper: Each student will submit a one-page draft of their paper to Canvas by 11:00am on October 11^th discussing the thematic concerns and plot of Arthur Miller’s Incident at Vichy as observed through their own, individual reading of the play. Students must also bring a hardcopy of completed assignment to class. (50 points)

Final Paper: Each student will submit a 3-4 page paper building upon Phase 1 to Canvas by 11:00am on November 9^th discussing the production of UW School of Drama’s Incident at Vichy as it relates to their original analysis. Students must also bring a hardcopy of completed assignment to class. (150 points)

Midterm & Final Exams: The exams will cover the plays and genres through a mix of short, identification questions, as well as long essay-format questions. Exams cannot be made-up or scheduled for another time. (150 points each)

Final Project: Small groups of students will each propose a fictitious season for the School of Drama considering the plays, genres, and conversations of the quarter. The Final Project grade will include an in-class proposal worksheet, a final oral presentation, and a PowerPoint. The Final Project presentations will take place during Finals Week and cannot be made-up or scheduled for another time. (150 points)

Participation: All students are expected to regularly attend and actively participate in class. Participation points can be earned through discussion, small-group work, and the variety of other activities this quarter. Failure to participate, talking during class, roaming the Internet on your laptop, playing on your phone, etc. will result in a loss of participation points and severely hinder your overall grade. (100 points)

Extra Credit: Extra Credit opportunities will arise in small amounts throughout the quarter. They will be offered to all students present. Should an opportunity extend outside of class hours, expanded announcements will be made.

COURSE POLICIES

Grading Policies:

Each student can only make-up TWO quizzes or responses throughout the quarter for either excused or unexcused absences (illness, sleeping too late, family trips, etc.). Use these “freebees” diligently. You have up to one week after the quiz or free-write is given in class to make-up it up during office hours or during a scheduled time. After that week, your grade on the assignment will be a zero. (Your two make-ups will be tracked in Canvas.)

If you have a grading question and/or concern, please follow the following procedure:

- First, wait until the assignment has been returned. Questions regarding grades before the physical assignment has been handed back will not be answered.
- Once you have received the assignment back, read all the comments and the rubric.
- If you still have questions, feel free to stop by my office hours to discuss your assignment. Please bring your assignment, my notes, and any rubrics in order to have the most productive meeting!
- PLEASE NOTE: I have a 24-hour waiting period after assignments are returned before I will schedule a meeting.

Late work will be accepted for a penalty of 10% per day for up to 3 days. In the case of legitimate emergencies, please contact me at the earliest possible moment via email. All emergencies will be considered on a case-by-case basis pending proper documentation.

Additionally, all my grades are final and non-negotiable. If you feel a genuine error has been made on one of your assignments, feel free to talk to me. Otherwise, efforts for additional points will kindly be disregarded.

In-Class Technology Policy:

You may use laptops or tablets to take notes and/or access the readings during class. If you wish to make/take a call or to send/receive a text, please step outside until you are done, as phone use is disruptive to the class.

Use of technology, however, is a privilege. If I notice you are surfing the internet or texting for non-class purposes, I reserve the right to ask you to take hand-written notes for the remainder of the quarter.

Plagiarism:

Plagiarism occurs whenever someone uses the ideas or writings of another as their own without giving due credit. According to the Committee on Academic Conduct (1994, p. 23), a student commits plagiarism by:

- Using another writer’s words without proper citation. If you use another writer’s words, you must place quotation marks around the quoted material and include a footnote or other indication of the source of the quotation.
- Using another writer’s ideas without proper citation. When you use another author’s ideas, you must use a citation to indicate where this information can be found.
- Citing your source but reproducing the exact words of a printed source without quotation marks. This makes it appear as though you have paraphrased rather than borrowed the author’s exact words.
- Borrowing the structure of another author’s phrases or sentences without crediting the author from whom it came.
- Borrowing all or part of another student’s paper or using someone else’s outline to write your own paper.
- Using a paper writing “service” or having a friend write the paper for you. Regardless of whether you pay a stranger or have a friend do it, it is a breach of academic honesty to hand in work that is not your own, or to use parts of another student’s paper.

Plagiarism and/or cheating will result in a zero for the assignment for all parties involved.

Vericite:

Vericite is a web-based system that allows student papers to be submitted and checked for plagiarism. The system compares student papers with sources available on the Internet, select commercial article databases, and papers submitted at UW or other institutions using Vericite.

Student Code of Conduct:

-The School of Drama encourages an environment of academic integrity and mutual respect. As a member of this learning community, students should read and follow the behavioral expectations identified in the University of Washington Student Conduct Code. http://www.washington.edu/students/handbook/conduct.html. The UW Student Conduct code oversees both academic and behavioral conduct of students.

All incidents of alleged academic misconduct are reported to the Associate Dean for Academics who will investigate the situation. Academic misconduct reviews will adhere to the policies outlined in the Student Conduct Code and managed by the Office of Community Standards and Student Conduct: http://depts.washington.edu/cssc/

 Writing Centers:

Should you feel the need to seek external help or guidance in your writing, I recommend two of the writing centers on campus:

- http://www.depts.washington.edu/clue/writingcenter.html
- http://depts.washington.edu/owrc 

Disability Access & Accommodations:

Your experience in this class is important to me. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please communicate your approved accommodations to me at your earliest convenience so we can discuss your needs in this course.

If you have not yet established services through DRS, but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but not limited to; mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts), you are welcome to contact DRS at 206-543-8924 or uwdrs@uw.edu or disability.uw.edu. DRS offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities and/or temporary health conditions.  Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructor(s) and DRS.  It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law.

Grading Scale:

A 4.0 950-1000
A 3.9 940-949
A- 3.8 930-939
A- 3.7 920-929
A- 3.6 910-919
A- 3.5 900-909
B+ 3.4 880-899
B+ 3.3 860-879
B+ 3.2 840-859
B 3.1 820-839
B 3.0 800-819
B 2.9 790-799
B- 2.8 780-789
B- 2.7 770-779
B- 2.6 760-769
B- 2.5 750-759
C+ 2.4 740-749
C+ 2.3 730-739
C+ 2.2 720-729
C 2.1 710-719
C 2.0 700-709
C 1.9 690-699
C- 1.8 680-689
C- 1.7 670-679
C- 1.6 660-669
C- 1.5 650-659
D+ 1.4 640-649
D+ 1.3 630-639
D+ 1.2 620-629
D 1.1 610-619
D 1.0 600-609
D 0.9 590-599
D- 0.8 580-589
D- 0.7 570-579 (Lowest passing grade)
F 0.0 0-569 (Failure or Unofficial Withdrawal. No credit earned)

Should the syllabus change for any reason, you will notified immediately.