Course Schedule and Catalog

Long Title: THEATRE TECHNOLOGY

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to materials, tools, and standard theatre production techniques. Theory and practice of lighting equipment and controls, scenic building and painting techniques, creation of props, sound support requirements, and running crew during performance. Lab hours required.

Long Title: THEATRE TECHNOLOGY: COSTUME CONSTRUCTION

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to the materials, tools, and standard techniques of costume/clothing construction. Lab hours required. Special Permission of Instructor is required for Seniors to register.

Long Title: INTRODUCTION OF ACTING

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory

Credit Hours: 3

Description: This is a class in the basic terminology and craft of acting. It will encompass voice and movement training, as well as basic technical theatre terminology and vocabulary for the actor. The course work will progress from ensemble/group work and individual exercises/ monologues to scenes. Space in classes is limited. Registration does not guaratee a place in class. The class roster is formulated on the first day of class by the individual instructor.

Long Title: INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE DESIGN

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to the theory and practice of theatre design. Exploration of the principles and elements of design as they apply to scenery, lighting, and costumes with an emphasis on text analysis and research. Students will complete and present a variety of projects.

Long Title: ACTING I

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to the fundamentals of acting through the exploration of actor training techniques based on the theories of Stanislavsky, Strasburg, Adler, and Hagen, emphasizing the actor's primary tools- voice, body, emotional life, and imagination. Final project is performed on stage for an audience.

Long Title: ACTING II

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 301 or permission of instructor

Description: Text analysis for the actor with particular emphasis on a thorough investigation of given circumstances and dramatic action. Students will work on scenes from Ibsen to contemporary playwrights. Play to be determined based on number of students enrolled.

Long Title: INTRODUCTION TO THEATRE

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: A survey course of the art and theory of the theatre through an examination of dramatic literature from the Greeks through the modern era. The course will also explore the craft of the theatre as it is practiced today. Requires attending several theatre productions at theatres in Houston. Cross-list: ENGL 390.

Long Title: COSTUME DESIGN

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 300

Description: Advanced examination of the principles of costume design. Students will read and analyze a variety of plays in different periods and styles and then, based on text analysis and research, complete and present design projects using different rendering techniques. The role of the costume designer in collaboration with directors, actors, and other designers will also be explored.

Long Title: LIGHTING DESIGN

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture/Laboratory

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 300 or permission of instructor

Description: Exploration of the role that lighting plays in a production and the lighting designer's place as an artist in the collaboration process. Emphasis on the practical application of the controllable properties of light as they apply to theatre. Students will be required to complete a variety of projects including light labs responding to music and collaboration with Rice Dance Theatre on Spring production.

Long Title: SCENIC DESIGN

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 300 or permission of instructor

Description: Advanced examination of the principles of scenic design including research, rendering, technical drawing, model construction, text analysis and the role of the scenic designer in collaboration with directors, actors, and other designers. Students will read and analyze a variety of plays in different periods and styles, and then, based on text analysis and research, complete and present design projects.

Department: English

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE, INTERIORS, AND CLOTHING FOR THEATRE DESIGNERS ***** Survey of the major period styles of buildings, homes, furnishings, and clothing from ancient Egypt through the 20th century including a critical analysis of the interdependent nature of the evolution of design and the relationship to the cultures in which they were created. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: ACTING III: THE SPOKEN TEXT

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 301

Description: An exploration of language as one of the actor's primary means of communication and expression. The student will analyze, rehearse, and perform scenes from the work of William Shakespeare. Instructor Permission Required. Recommended prerequisite(s): ENGL 321.

Long Title: DIRECTING I

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 301 or permission of instructor

Description: An introductory course exploring the tools and craft of the stage director. Students will learn how to analyze dramatic text and will gain a fundamental knowledge of the director's basic skills, including composition, picture, movement, rhythm, and pantomimic dramatization. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 303 or 300.

Long Title: DIRECTING SHAKESPEARE

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 301

Description: Staging Shakespeare's plays for modern audiences: learning to speak the lines "trippingly off the tongue", analyzing textual clues, and researching the period to find correlations to contemporary society in the process of active rehearsal. Students will work with THEA 310 to stage a final scene. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 310.

Long Title: VOICE AND SPEECH FOR THEATRE

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Development of an expressive speaking voice through awareness and overcoming physical and vocal habits and limitations, including alignment, relaxation, breath support, resonance, tone and projection. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 301.

Long Title: MOVEMENT FOR STAGE

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Description: Introduction to body dynamics and coordination through partner exercises, physical stretching and conditioning, ensemble movement, full body awareness, focus, centering, breath support, action and counter-action, precision, and economy of effort. Recommended prerequisite(s): THE

Long Title: ACTING FOR FILM

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Lecture

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 102 OR THEA 301

Description: This course provides an introduction to the art of acting on camera. It emphasizes specific techniques of speech, movement, character development, and the creation of relationships as they relate to the recorded medium (film, television, commercials, industrial films). The elements of study include proper voice placement, appropriate acting styles, and subtlety in performance. Student performances will be videotaped for study.

Long Title: SPECIAL PROBLEMS: TECHNICAL PRODUCTION

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Independent Study

Credit Hours: 1 TO 6

Description: Independent study. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 303. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: THEATRE PRODUCTION

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Studio

Credit Hours: 1 TO 6

Description: Admission to class requires either an audition, or porfolio review with the director and/or production manager. Possible roles include actor, asistant director, stage manager, assistant stage manager, designer, and technical support in scenery, costumes, lighting, or sound. Auditions will be held the first week of classes. Repeatable and variable credit. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: SPECIAL PROBLEMS: HISTORY, LITERATURE

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Independent Study

Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 303

Description: Independent study. Recommended prerequisite(s): THEA 321 Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: SPECIAL PROBLEMS: DIRECTING, DESIGN

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Independent Study

Credit Hours: 1 TO 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 301 AND THEA 312 or permission of instructor

Description: Independent study. Repeatable for Credit.

Long Title: SPECIAL PROBLEMS: ADVANCED TOPICS

Department: *Visual and Dramatic Arts*

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Independent Study

Credit Hours: 1 TO 3

Prerequisite(s): THEA 303 OR THEA 301 OR THEA 300

Description: Independent study. Repeatable for Credit.