Theatre Arts 11 - Spring 2005 Caterisano
LAB REQUIREMENT/CREATIVE PROJECTS
The Theatre Arts Department is committed to the concept that one of the best ways to learn about theatre is to do it. Theatre Arts l1 students are therefore encouraged to become active in some phase of theatrical production while they are enrolled in this course. Every student must do actual production work (or creative project work) for the minimum of 20 hours.
Often, the Theatre Arts Department does not have enough lab assignments for all of the students in Theatre Arts 11. Therefore, in addition to the crew options for the course, the department is offering a series of creative project options (listed below) in order to fulfill the lab requirement. In order to pass Theatre Arts 11, you must complete either the crew option or the creative project option.
During the first week of class, you will have an opportunity to express your preference as to the type of production work or creative project you would like to do and the time period in which you would like to do it. Since educationally valid activities are not always available at all hours, however, the department will assign you to a definite time and activity, based insofar as possible upon your preference. Since only a limited number of crew options are available, these assignments will be made by the department.
Please note the following rules which will apply to crew work if you choose it as your lab option.
l. You will be expected to maintain a record, on time cards provided by the Theatre Arts Department, of the actual hours you work. These must be initialed at the end of each lab session by the supervisor of that activity. At the end of the term, you will be responsible for turning this time card in to your instructor.
2. Your instructor will contact the supervisor(s) under whom you did your lab work to receive a report on its quality. Talent is not required, but you are expected to be serious, cooperative, and oriented toward completing in as professional a manner as possible the tasks assigned you. The quality of your work is more important than the quantity of hours in assigning your grade.
4. Once you have been assigned to an activity and a time, attendance is mandatory. A genuinely unavoidable absence may be made up later by arrangement with the supervisor of that activity.
5. Once you have begun your 20-hour assignment, you are expected to complete it. Should you desire to change assignments for any reason, arrange with your instructor for the necessary approvals before you discontinue attendance.
6. Acting is not included in your lab options because it depends upon your being cast in a role by the director. You are encouraged to audition. Should this happen, and should you desire to discontinue other lab requirements because of it, see your instructor for approval.
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DESCRIPTION OF LAB HOURS
FRONT OF HOUSE: Work in this area combines experience in publicity and box office, with the added possibility of ushering. The 20-hour requirement will vary slightly, but as a guideline one should expect approximately 8 hours in publicity, 8 in box office, and 4 in ushering (or 10 and 10 if ushering is not included)
Each area has its own experienced crew head, who will be available to assist you in the learning of skills and techniques and in the successful completion of your assigned tasks. There is also a student Arts Administration Assistant who is knowledgeable in all areas of front-of-house and will be available to help you.
Students will have the opportunity to help in planning the publicity campaign, to produce graphic artwork, to prepare news releases, to distribute posters and other publicity materials, and to design and execute publicity banners.
The details of operating the box office and the handling of ticket sales will be taught by the box office manager.
Under the supervision of the House Manager, some of the students on the Front of House crew may also be expected to be familiar with the play and to devise and execute innovative, visually interesting expressions of the play’s ideas in lobby display cases.
Since there is less to be learned in ushering than in other areas, only a small portion of the lab hours may be earned here.
Front-of-house operation is extremely important to the success of the play and to the continuing success of the theatre; skills acquired here can obviously be easily transferred to other theatres and arts organizations.
Note that there is some variation in the times of these activities. Publicity can be very flexible except for poster and flyer distribution times; box office (hours to be chosen from noon-5 p.m., Mon.-Fri.) can be spread over a three-week period; and ushering is obviously evening work during the performance periods. Students should be sure that the crew heads are aware of any time conflicts at the first lab meeting. Students with heavy afternoon conflicts should not choose this area.
WARDROBE: Duties include organizing dressing rooms before dress rehearsals begin, assisting the crew head and production cast during dress rehearsals and performances, performing any needed repairs or laundry as necessary, and helping with complete strike of the costumes when the show closes. If you are on the wardrobe crew, you will must arrange your schedule to make yourself available from the cue to cue on TBA until the final performance on TBA. Your immediate supervisor will be the student wardrobe mistress/master for the current show. It is likely that you will log more than 20 hours for this assignment and receive extra credit.
LIGHTING: Hanging and focusing lights needed for mainstage productions. Operating those lights for rehearsal and performances. Your supervisor will be the student lighting crew head. Because the light hanging session is a concentrated work process, students assigned to this crew must have afternoons free between 2:00 - 5:00 pm for the weeks of TBA.
PROPS: Making or borrowing the necessary props for the next show. Your supervisor will be the student properties master/mistress. Some members of the props crew will be acquired to acquire or make props; others will be required to serve as the props running crew during dress rehearsals and performance. If you are on the props running crew you must be available from the cue to cue on TBA. It is likely that you will log more than 20 hours for this assignment and receive extra credit.
SOUND: Responsibilities vary from show to show. Duties may include search for music and/or sound effects, recording and editing of master and backup tapes and CDs, cueing, and serving as sound running crew head for all dress rehearsals and performances. Students interested should consult show director for details.
COSTUME CONSTRUCTION: Involves the building and/or altering of costumes for the current production. Students who select this lab options should be prepared to work between 2:00-5:00 PM at least one afternoon per week in order to log 20 hours before the dress rehearsals begin. Costume shop afternoons TBA.
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DESCRIPTION OF CREATIVE PROJECTS
If you choose the Creative Project option, you will be expected to complete the project you have chosen in adherence to guidelines agreed upon with the professor for your section of Theatre Arts 11.
DIRECTOR’S PREPARATION: Compose a pre-production director’s prompt book for one of the plays to be read in this course. At minimum your prompt book should include a director’s concept statement, pertinent historical, biographical, and special topics research, as well as an analysis of the play’s given circumstances, characters, important ideas, and dramatic action. Consult your instructor for the appropriate format for your promptbook
ACTING: With a partner (and your instructor’s approval), prepare and perform in class an extended scene (at least 10 minutes) from one of the plays we read this term. Two weeks prior to the scene presentation, you will turn in an analysis of your character in terms of superobjective and given circumstances for the entire play. You will also hand in unit objectives, beat objectives, and a physical/psychological analysis of the character in the scene you are performing as well as a written character biography based on information from the play.
COSTUME/SET DESIGN: Select one of the plays discussed this term and conceive of a production concept and design for the costumes and scenery. Design work will be limited to Xeroxes or collages of images. You must have a preliminary meeting to discuss your design concept with your instructor one month prior to your presentation. Once you have researched the worlds of costume and scenery, assemble your designs for a 15 minute presentation to your class. You may choose to work in collage form, in a pictogram format or any other style that suits the needs of your production and you. You may also choose to include an image that serves as the defining visual metaphor of the production. Your work needs to be compiled and presented in a finished, neat and logical manner. All items must be securely adhered to the format.
**ADDITIONAL PLAY REVIEW: In addition to the review(s) assigned by your instructor, write an 8 - 10 page extra review of a theatrical production. While meeting all criteria for other review assignments, you must also investigate this play’s critical history, previous productions, and author. Your research must serve as part of your review with appropriate footnoting and bibliography included. You must check with your instructor to make sure that the production you choose is appropriate for the completion of the assignment
**REHEARSAL ATTENDANCE: Attend at least 10 hours of rehearsals for The Miser. If you choose this option, you must begin immediately by attending one of the audition sessions for the play. Since your presence affects the work of the cast and crew, while you are watching rehearsals, you may not do homework, sleep, et cetera. You should attend rehearsal for no more than 1 1/2 hours at a time; variety is much more important than just getting the hours over with. Therefore, you should attend all phases of preparation including read thrus, blocking, scene work, polishing, technical, director’s notes, and dress rehearsals. It is your responsibility to keep up with the rehearsal schedule and space your visits to allow for observation of each separate phase of the work. In every case, you MUST observe interactions between the director and the actors and crew. Don’t simply watch a runthrough of a scene or act without ALSO observing the notes given by the director. You should be interested in how they observe problems and what they attempt to do to solve the problems. You are to make observations about the interactive nature of the theatre PROCESS. You will hand in a detailed journal that evaluates the work, atmosphere, techniques, difficulties, progress, and different stages you observed during the rehearsal process. In addition to recording what you saw in rehearsal, the journal should place heavy stress on your analysis of the rehearsal process. WHAT have you learned about how directors, actors, designers and technicians interact to produce good theatre? If this last requirement is not met, significant penalties will be deducted from your grade
**PLAYWRITING: Write a 15 - 30 minute one-act play. You should compose your play according to your best understanding of dramatic action, character development, and the theatrical conveyance of ideas. You must have a preliminary meeting with your instructor to discuss your initial ideas of action, character, construction, and setting. A first draft of the play is due on 1 May; a meeting with the instructor to discuss revisions of the draft will be scheduled at that time; and a revised version of the script must be handed in on the last day of class. Lateness will result in deduction from your grade.
STUDY GUIDE: Prepare a study guide for one of the plays we read this term that would introduce the play to high school audiences. The guide would include: an introduction designed to make the play appeal to high school audiences, a detailed synopsis of the play, pertinent details about the playwright’s life, performance history, the literary/historical background of the play, 5 classroom activities to prepare for seeing the production, and 10 discussion questions. Xeroxed or other visual materials might also be used to enhance the guide’s appearance
PUBLICITY: Prepare a publicity campaign to market one of the plays we read this term as though it were part of the Furman Theatre season. This should include a poster, press release, program design, high school fact sheet, bulk mail postcard, photo shoot schedule, and strategies for getting newspaper coverage plus 5 additional means for gaining public awareness for the performance. These marketing ideas should be described fully; you will want to describe the kind of audience you hope to sell the play to and show how each of your strategies could be implemented using a crew of 10 students who have 8 hours of labor to offer over a three week period.