Welcome! Drama is a magical art. Magic happens when an artist uses words to express the joys and sorrows of the human condition. Magic happens when performance artists take those words and make them come alive on stage. The magic continues when people sit in a darkened theater and allow the artists to open our imagination by transporting us into the writer’s story.

During the semester, we'll explore many aspects of this magical art form, primarily by reading, studying, discussing and writing about exceptional plays and playwrights. We’ll learn more about what’s involved in the actual writing of a play, then what happens after the play is written by visiting with playwrights, acting companies, actors, and directors. You’ll also attend at least one play, lead some class discussions and possibly begin staging a play to see if we can create this magic ourselves.

• Read, discuss and analyze in writing 7 - 8 plays
• Research and present, with a group, information on an historical era
• Analyze different aspects of dramatic performance
• Attend and review a local dramatic production ($5 tickets will be made available for GEVA production of Death of a Salesman)
• Understand all disciplines involved in the dramatic art
• Prepare and present, with a group, a selected scene from a play
• Write a 7 - 10 page paper addressing issues from the performed scene/play

Participation: This is an interactive class; by that I mean we are all here to learn from each other so the focus will be on discussion, not lecture. So, to do well in this class, you must keep up with the reading. You will be asked to respond to all readings, complete formal and informal writing assignments, work in small groups, lead discussions, prepare presentations for the rest of the class and watch and respond to videos.

Journals: Each of you will be keeping a response journal in which you will make an entry for each work we read. You’ll be called on to read from your journal to help with discussion. You can also use your journals for quizzes and the mid-term exam. Your success in this class will be in direct proportion to your effort in this journal.

Requirements/Evaluation: