List of 8 items.

• Auditioner’s Tool Box

  Put together a personal repertory of strong skills, perhaps a monologue or a song. Based on exercise, practice, and research, find how you can showcase the best you.

• Costume Design for Production

  This class is a hands-on introduction to the world of theatrical design. Students work on the concept and costume design for Short Dramatic Pieces and the upcoming main stage performance. Script and character analysis, costume chart, research and sketching, choosing fabrics and color schemes, pulling stock pieces, and some work on the sewing machines are included. Explore the impact of age, class, race, status, and stereotyping on design.

• Dramatic Production

  Disciplined and daring, thought-provoking plays often reflect social and political issues or explore a particular dramatic literary style. Actors, assistant directors, stage managers, and designers are required to be part of the production process during Saturday work calls (15 hours total) building sets, lights, costumes, sound, and props, often student designed. Rehearsals, meant to be an exciting learning lab, are scheduled during D Block, at least one night a week and some Sundays. Past productions include Charandas Chor by Habib Tanvir, Confucius’ Disciples with the Shanghai Theatre Academy, Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights by Gertrude Stein, Street Scene by Elmer Rice, The Bathtub by Paul Schmidt, The Martyrdom of Peter Ohey by Slawamir Mrozek, Picnic on the Battlefield by Fernando Arrabal, Brecht’s Galileo, Emily Mann’s Execution of Justice, and Hellman’s The Children’s Hour.

• Lighting Design

  Get out the wrenches, lighting templates, gel color books, and scripts! Learn the basics of theatrical lighting design. Help design, hang, focus, and cue the lights for Fall Production or Short Dramatic Pieces. Become a lighting designer for the Student Directors’ Workshop, Student Designers’ Musical, Dance Concert, or PADD. Find out how they do it in the real world, in theatrical unions and in small, found theatres. Some time outside of class may be required to see or run shows.

• Musical Theatre Production

  Students who love to sing, dance, and perform (but may not have done so before) will be helped by a musical director who will guide them through the important process of stage and musical rehearsals and performances. All students enrolled in this class will have an opportunity to shine. There is usually collaboration with the Dance Department or student choreographers. The ensemble commitments and credits are the same as all main stage productions: 15 hours for Saturday production work (often student-designed) and rehearsals during D Blocks at least one night a week and some Sundays. Past productions include Three‐Penny Opera, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Into The Woods, Anything Goes, The Pirates of Penzance, The Pajama Game, Urinetown, Chess, and Dido and Aeneas.

• Scene Study and Directing

  Students will learn skills in the areas of acting, directing, and (if time permits), devising, by watching and reading a variety of materials and reflecting thoughtfully on an array of theories. Students will work independently and in collaboration to present/direct short scenes. Students will be exposed to a variety of styles of theatre/ performance to deepen their interpretive and creative skills. 

• Short Dramatic Pieces

  Short Dramatic Pieces is a perfect place to try out theatre. Students work on a variety of short pieces that are performed at the end of the module. This class is for the seasoned student who wants to work in depth on performance and develop as a performer or for the student who doesn’t have time for the bigger productions. It is also for students that never imagined themselves on stage and are curious about it. Some rehearsals may occur outside of class time.

• Stagecraft

  Be the force behind the scenes for the Spring Theatre Production and possibly a show in the Moir Theatre. This physical, hands-on class, allows students to build, paint, and put in scenery, as well as hang and focus lights. Students will learn how to use shop tools and lighting instruments safely and to use scenic paint and brushes correctly. When necessary, we tackle the basics of sewing and costuming, too.