Only four-year students are subject to a theatre and dance requirement. That requirement can be fulfilled either by taking the half-course THDA-200 (Perception and Performance) before spring term of the senior year, or by completing any of the department’s full-course offerings, with the exception of THDA-380 or THDA- 381. A variety of experiences is available. Some courses result in performance or technical projects, some study theory, and some do both. Theatre students are encouraged, though not required, to supplement their class work by participating in any of the numerous productions mounted each year. A comprehensive dance program in ballet and modern dance is offered through the athletic program taught by dance faculty Judith Wombwell and Erin Strong for students with little experience up to pre-professional track dancers and including a performing company, The Andover Dance Group. Curricular offerings in dance are available through the Department of Theatre and Dance. All courses in theatre and dance, if failed, cannot be made up by an exam.

THDA-200 Perception & Performance
(F-W-S) (one-half course)
Two single class periods and one double period, with one hour of outside class preparation each week. This experiential class will involve students in an exploration of how human beings perceive universal conditions and respond through performance. The course will explore the collaborative process and give students an opportunity to experience and understand a dramatic event. Ritual, character, and story will serve as focal points for sections of our discovery while we introduce different theatrical styles and each of the various elements of complete technical theatre. Throughout the course students will be made aware of how the theatre comments on the historic conflicts of an age or reflects the human condition. Focusing on theatre as a performing rather than a literary art, all concepts in the course will be developed through experiential exercises, culminating in a short performance.

THDA-210 Introduction to Acting
(F-W-S)
Four class periods. Open to all classes, this course is designed for students with little or no acting experience. By doing exercises in movement and voice production, reading, improvisation, and scenes, a student who is curious about the theatre may determine whether he or she has ability or interest in acting while learning something of the process of characterization, the major responsibility of the actor. The emphasis is on the variety of acting experiences rather than on a polished final product. (Mr. Heelan)

THDA-270 Lighting
(W)
Four class periods. The course will introduce the student to the art of lighting design while also providing an opportunity to observe light in nature, art, stage, screen, and created environments. The course will allow the individual to gain applied practical understanding regarding the color theory of light, the psychology of color and light, and controllable qualities of light. The design process will be utilized as a method of dramatic interpretation. Artistic expression will be achieved through practical use of lighting instruments, laboratory projects, experiments, and school productions when applicable. (Mr. Murray)

THDA-280 Costuming
(F)
Four class periods. An introductory exploration into the areas of costume design and costume construction, this course will highlight primary design elements utilized in costume design for the stage and screen, i.e., line, color, tone, texture, movement, mood composition, balance, and focus. The course will examine historical period silhouette and the art and craft of the stage costume. Practical experience will be given in areas including construction, flat patterning, draping, and fabric manipulation.

THDA-290 Scene Design
(S)
Four class periods. This course will introduce the student to the elements that inform the scenic designer’s choices (the theme and mood of a script, lines of action, focus, constraints, whimsy) and discuss methods of formulating cohesive, functional, and effective design for a show. The student will be introduced to many materials and techniques available to a designer for realizing his or her ideas as a physical product. Special attention will be spent on the process of the design concept: collaboration, formulation, presentation, discussion, evaluation, and reworking. Students will be graded on both design projects and classroom participation. This is a seminar class that relies upon the open and frank exchange of ideas to stimulate creativity.

THDA-330 Theatre Theory and History
(F)
Four class periods. Open to Seniors and Uppers. Lowers may enroll with permission of the instructor. We will trace the role of theatre in Western culture from the Greeks to the present American stage, focusing on how important artists broke through theatrical plateaus, creating new forms to communicate with their audiences. The vehicles for our lecture, discussion- based journey might include plays and writings by Aeschylus, Shakespeare, Moliere, Strindberg, and Miller; designs from the Romans, the Elizabethans, Reinhardt, Craig, Appia, and Mielziner; and theorists such as Aristotle, Stanislavsky, Brecht, Beck, and the Bread and Puppet Theatre. A major term project will wrap up the course with students’ thoughts on how to push beyond present plateaus to reestablish the vitality of theatre for our culture today.

THDA-360 Introduction to Directing
(W)
Four class periods. Since directing plays is the most complex of theatrical tasks, this course will focus on methods to unlock the life of a script in the realization of production. Studies will include historic styles and productions, emphasizing their staging. Students will learn the dynamics of floor plans and their effect on blocking, the potentials for lighting and its effect on mood, the importance of rhythm and spectacle, and strategies to harness them. While no class on directing can function without including discussion of the actor’s craft, this class will only touch on this area, which will be further developed in Theatre 510. Prerequisite: Theatre 210, 270, 280, or 290, or permission of the instructor.

THDA-380 Technical Production
(F-W-S)
Five class periods. This is a practicum course in which students work on the technical elements for faculty-directed dance and theatre productions being produced by the department in that term. Skills learned will depend on the requirements of the particular show. Some lab hours to be arranged outside of class time. Note that THDA-380 does not fulfill the Theatre and Dance requirement.

THDA-381 Scenic Construction
(not offered in 2007-2008)
Five class periods. Students learn and practice fundamental theatrical scenic construction techniques. Specific topics covered are shop, stage, and power tool safety; how to read and build from technical drawings; platform and flat construction; doors and windows; safe legging and support techniques; rigging systems; and scene painting. In-class instruction is supplemented by readings from The Stagecraft Handbook, by Daniel Ionazzi. Note that THDA-381 does not fulfill the Theatre and Dance requirement.

THDA-400 The Creative Self
(S)
Students will create a multimedia performance piece using improvisation techniques. Students will learn a variety of different techniques integrating movement, text, sound, visual components, and personal stories. The class will study the development of performance art through this century starting with the Dada movement, the Bauhaus theater, the beginnings of modern dance, the post-modern movement, happenings, and Butoh, ending with the contemporary performance art scene.No prerequisite required. The class will be geared toward Uppers and Seniors; Lowers may enroll with permission of the instructor.

THDA-420 Public Speaking
(F-W-S)
Four class periods. The course has a dual objective: to learn how to speak easily in front of others, and to learn how to construct a speech and perform the speech in English. Students give prepared speeches on a variety of topics.

THDA-510 Advanced Acting and Directing Workshop
(S)
Four class periods. Enrollment by permission of the instructor. This course, for both the actor and the director, investigates tools to create a character on stage. We will learn to analyze a character and to unlock the toolbox of an actor. Students will take turns between acting and directing scenes after thorough analysis of the material. Course projects will include showing one’s work as both actor and director to an actual audience. The total time requirement for this course (class time plus homework) may exceed the standard nine hours per week.

THDA-520/1 Play Production
THDA-520/2
THDA-520/3
By audition only. This course is comprised of the performance of a significant work by an important playwright. Recent choices include The Diviners, The Nerd, The Merchant of Venice, and Violet. Students will study the text and work with a faculty director to realize the play in full production. While all Lowers, Uppers, and Seniors are eligible, this course is designed as a synthesis experience to apply skills learned in other courses. Play Production may be taken as a sixth course only if the student has no grade below a “4” in the previous trimester. Students must be enrolled in Play Production in order to participate in any major role. The total time required for this course (class time plus homework) may exceed the standard nine hours per week.

ENGL-593 Play Writing
See description under English 593.
Note that Play Writing is an English department offering and does not fulfill the Theatre and Dance requirement.