Creative Dramatics is an integrative process that develops imaginative thought and creative expression in children. Through the use of movement, pantomime, improvisation, story dramatization and group discussion, children acquire language and communication skills, social awareness, problem-solving abilities, self-concept enhancement, and an understanding of theatre. Rather than an attempt to create professional child actors, the goal of Creative Drama is to guide a child to self-fulfillment through the process of theatre techniques. After analyzing the work of theorists in the field, students will learn to create and implement drama exercises for the classroom and foster an environment where youngsters can feel comfortable to work creatively and think critically.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This studio-based class is taught at the David Brunetti Studio and is part of a partnership with the Yip Harburg Foundation. The goal for the student is to learn a step-by-step process for bringing emotionally alive, theatrical acting to the singing of songs. Student will learn, by doing and observing, about the relationship of acting to singing. They will develop a technique that will allow them to be engaged emotionally while singing; this technique can also be applied to non-musical theater work. Students will begin the development of a repertoire of songs which can later be used for auditioning and performance purposes. Students MUST request permission to take this course by emailing Cindy Bates at Cynthia.Bates@sunyempire.edu.

Attributes: Liberal

In this course, students will learn how to analyze, adapt, and perform literature in a range of genres and styles. The student will choose selected poetry, short story excerpts, and nonfiction materials as source material for developing a series of short solo performances. Students will be encouraged to incorporate an experimental use of movement, sound, music and visual elements in the staging process. The study will examine relevant concepts, practices, and processes of interpretation and performance. The performer’s position as cultural critic and/or ethnographer will be addressed. NOTE: Students may take either the introductory or advanced version of this course, but not both. Prerequisites: None.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This course supports students in creating a dramatic work for the stage. We will spur the playwriting process by reading plays and theoretical texts, participating in weekly work-in-progress readings by their peers, and analyzing and critiquing these works as well as those of established playwrights.

Attributes: *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This introductory independent study will support the student in the construction a dramatic solo work for the stage, culminating in a work-in-progress reading that the student will perform or direct.

Attributes: Liberal

This advanced independent study will support the student in the construction a dramatic solo work for the stage at the advanced level, culminating in a work-in-progress reading that the student will perform or direct.

Attributes: Liberal

This course will support the student in writing a dramatic work for the stage at the introductory level, spurring the playwriting process by reading plays and theoretical texts, and culminating in a final work-in-progress reading.

Attributes: *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

Students have the opportunity to develop individualized studies with their mentor in Performing Arts (ARTP). Please contact your mentor/advisor for more details.

This course is an exploration of the history and major theories in the field of performance studies. Students will attend and analyze diverse cultural and social performances in a range of urban spaces. We will investigate topics including performing arts, popular entertainments, rituals, play, games, and performance in everyday life. Social, political, and ethical concerns of practitioners and scholars in this field will be considered.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

In this course, students learn, explore and develop skills in a range of techniques of theatre games, improvisation and clowning, which can be incorporated into performance improvisation, playbuilding, group and community building, and can also be used as tools in social change, personal growth and education.

Attributes: Liberal

In this study students will work together to identify, analyze and write about individual areas of experiential learning gained through the study and practice of performing arts, whether gained in the studio, in rehearsal, performance or in independent study. Students will share these efforts with each other and offer peer support, helping each other to identify and articulate the learning gained through the learning embedded in experience that sometimes feels ephemeral, intuitive or instinctual. (This study may be used to fulfill educational planning with mentor approval.)

Attributes: Liberal

In this course, students will gain experience in the ways in which the tools of theatre can be used to engage communities in dialogue and create change, and in really thinking about the historical and theoretical contexts of the field. The course will address issues ranging from social justice to health education to conflict resolution. NOTE: Students can take the introductory or advanced version of this course, but not both.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

Students have the opportunity to develop individualized studies with their mentor in Performing Arts (ARTP). Please contact your mentor/advisor for more details.

In this course, the student will develop, design, and present a solo performance work. Starting with a preferred medium such as memoir writing, choreography, photography, music, sound, etc., the student will develop a solo piece while incorporating additional elements. Materials, processes, and practices will be explored that are relevant to student’s project. The history of performance will be investigated to provide a frame of reference for the student's own work. We will consider how solo performance may be used to explore social, political, and cultural issues. The course will culminate in an informal presentation of the student's solo work-in-progress. Prior to taking this course, students should have a background in one or more art disciplines.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This course will investigate the history, theory, and development of physical theatre in Europe and the U.S. The influence of Eastern theatre traditions and contemporary dance on physical theatre training and practice in the United States and Europe will be addressed. We will consider how physical theatre may be used to explore social, political, and cultural issues. Prior to taking this course, students should have some practical and/or critical understanding of theatre and/or dance.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This studio-based class is taught at the David Brunetti Studio and is part of a partnership with the Yip Harburg Foundation. The goal for the student is to work at the advanced level to deepen the process of bringing emotionally alive, theatrical acting to the singing of songs, begin to work on character, to act and sing duets, and develop an advanced level repertoire for audition and performance. Students MUST request permission to take this course by emailing Cindy Bates at Cynthia.Bates@sunyempire.edu.

Attributes: Liberal

In this course, students will learn how to analyze, adapt, and perform literature in a range of genres and styles. The student will choose selected poetry, short story excerpts, and nonfiction materials as source material for developing a series of short solo performances. Students will be encouraged to incorporate an experimental use of movement, sound, music and visual elements in the staging process. The course will examine relevant concepts, practices, and processes of interpretation and performance. The performer’s position as cultural critic and/or ethnographer will be addressed. Students should have advanced-level critical thinking and writing skills.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This course surveys the development of avant-garde performance, aesthetics, and culture from the late nineteenth century to beginning of the twenty-first century. Students will learn about seminal figures and innovative practices in modernist movements including Symbolism, Expressionism, Futurism, Constructivism, and Surrealism. We will explore the exciting world of early twentieth-century cabaret and follow its progression in major cities throughout Europe. Our investigation of postmodernist art and performance in the late twentieth-century will address the evolution of avant-garde theatre, Happenings, Fluxus, body art, and performance art. Throughout, students will consider contested definitions and theories of performance while reflecting on the social responsibility of performance history scholars. Prior to taking this course, students should have some practical and/or critical understanding of the arts.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This course is an exploration of popular music in relation to social movements and cultural change, primarily in the United States, from the early decades of the twentieth century to the present. We will consider the importance of music and song in modern American culture, focusing on songs that have contributed to the development of labor, civil rights, peace, and feminist movements. Students will learn about musical artists who have emerged as voices of opposition, articulating issues of race, class, and gender. Throughout, we will examine the tensions between the music of activism and its production and consumption. (Students should take either the introductory or advanced version of this course but not both.)

Cross-listed with MUSC 3035.

Attributes: American History Gen Ed, Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, *US History & Civ Engmt Gen Ed, Liberal

This course supports students in creating a dramatic work for the stage at the advanced level. We will spur the playwriting process by reading plays and theoretical texts, participating in weekly work-in-progress readings by their peers, and analyzing and critiquing these works as well as those of established playwrights.

Attributes: *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

Students have the opportunity to develop individualized studies with their mentor in Performing Arts (ARTP). Please contact your mentor/advisor for more details.

This course will investigate the materials, methods, and processes used in developing performance art and installation projects. The student will create a performance art or installation work, drawing on prior experience in one or more aesthetic practices, while exploring new forms and approaches. The student will learn about the history of Live Art practices and original works that integrate performance with installation, media arts, and socially engaged art practices. Prior to taking this course, students should have some practical understanding of the arts.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This course will investigate some of the exciting theoretical and practical work that theater and performance artists have written about over the past 100+ years. It is important to remember that “theories” are always based in “practice” and that “practice” is also grounded in “theory.” This interesting cyclical relationship between theory and practice will inform the work completed. We will consider the social, political, and ethical concerns of practitioners and scholars in this field. Prior to taking this course, students should have some practical and/or critical understanding of the arts.

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

In this study students will work together to identify, analyze and write about individual areas of experiential learning gained through the study and practice of performing arts, whether gained in the studio, in rehearsal, performance or in independent study. Advanced level students will share these efforts with each other and offer peer support, helping each other to identify and articulate the learning gained through the learning embedded in experience that sometimes feels ephemeral, intuitive or instinctual. (This study may be used to fulfill educational planning with mentor approval.)

Attributes: Liberal

This advanced independent study will support the student in the construction a dramatic solo work for the stage at the advanced level, culminating in a work-in-progress reading that the student will perform or direct.

Attributes: Liberal

This course will support the student in writing a dramatic work for the stage at the advanced level, spurring the playwriting process by reading plays and theoretical texts, and culminating in a final work-in-progress reading.

Attributes: *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

This advanced independent study will support the student in the revising and further developing a solo musical, telling the story in a one-person show through song and text, culminating in a work-in-progress reading with music that the student will perform or direct. Prerequisite (must complete before registering): experience in music composition or songwriting

Attributes: Liberal

How can the tools of theatre be used to engage communities in dialogue and to move toward a more just world? Students will gain experience in applied theatre – theatre that engages issues ranging from social justice to heath education to conflict resolution. We will look at the work of Augusto Boal, Paolo Freire, the Federal Theatre Project and others who have developed relevant theories and practices. Students will learn to develop strategies to respond to particular settings, issues, and concerns, to critically examine the underlying assumptions of this work, and to think about the historical and theoretical contexts of the applied theatre field. We will examine how these and other concepts and strategies inform performative responses to and interventions in times of crisis, and how such work combines affect (aesthetics and emotional impact) with effect (social impact).

Attributes: Arts Gen Ed, *The Arts Gen Ed, Liberal

Students have the opportunity to develop individualized studies with their mentor in Performing Arts (ARTP). Please contact your mentor/advisor for more details.