Introduction To Theater (DRMA& 101) Syllabus
Seattle Community College District
Spring, 2012
Quick Links: The Basics – Contact Information, Prerequisites, Instructional Software,
Technical Requirements
Course Information – Course Description, Outcomes, Grading, Assignments,
Required Text
Policies – Communication, Email, Weekly Discussions, Other Discussions,
Quizzes, Late Work, Plagiarism, Disability Accommodations
Help – Technical Support, Writing Help
FAQ
Schedule
The Basics
Instructor:
Dawson Nichols
Email:
Please use the internal email (within Angel) for this course. If Angel is
temporarily unavailable, use my SCCD email:
gregory.nichols@seattlecolleges.edu.
(Gregory is my first name, but I never use it.)
Telephone:
206/934-0196
Office:
NSCC Library Building, 1236A
Office Hours:
By appointment.
Class Meeting
Times:
This class will take place entirely online. It is asynchronous, meaning there
are no specific times at which you must be online. You may do the work for
this course at any time of the day you like, provided you meet the deadlines.
Be aware that THERE ARE DEADLINES. This is not a correspondence
course that allows you to work at whatever pace you like; you are expected
to visit the course website daily and keep up with the work.
Prerequisites:
While there are no prerequisites for this course, I strongly recommend that
at the very least you've taken and passed English 101 or the equivalent.
This class requires a significant amount of reading and writing, and I expect
all writing to be at the college level.
Instructional
Software:
We are using ANGEL as our online courseware. To access our online course,
NSCC students should go to http://angel.northseattle.edu and SCCC
students should go to http://seattlecentral.angellearning.com/. Your
username and your password are the same: they are both your complete 9digit student ID number. If you have trouble logging on, please check the
Distance Learning office's troubleshooting information. If you can't solve
the problem that way, contact the Distance Learning office help desk. NSCC
Students can call (206)934-3738 or email them at distance@sccd.ctc.edu.
SCCC students can go to http://seattlecentral.edu/distance/index.php and
get live support. You should have access to the online class about 2-3 days
before the quarter starts.
Technical
Requirements:
This is an online course and it requires you to have access to an internetready computer along with the skills to use it. Aside from the basic
requirements
(http://www.virtualcollege.org/resource/mim_requirements.htm), this
course also requires that you physically attend three live theater
performances. Getting to these performances is your responsibility.
Course Information
Course
Description:
This class will introduce you to theater history, theory, and practice. The
class will also suggest to you that theater is not just something you attend;
theater is a way of knowing. We will read about theater in our textbook
and we will read and discuss plays as well. You will also go to see live plays
in your area and report back to the class. Written plays are merely
blueprints for live performance, and our aim is to reach a clearer
understanding of the live theatrical event as a form of communication.
It is the essence of theater that it happens in real time before a live
audience. This makes an online theater course rather difficult (if not
oxymoronic). The materials we read, view and discuss are important, but in
order to get a real understanding of theater you will have to step away
from your computer and go to an actual performance. Please be aware
that this is a requirement of this course.
Course
Outcomes:
This course has been designed to meet the following Essential Learning
Outcomes:
 Through our exploration of theater history, theory and practice, you
will learn facts, theories, and perspectives associated with the
discipline of theater.
 Through our analysis of specific plays and the cultures they depict,
you will gain intercultural knowledge and competence.
 Through creative writing and design assignments you will exercise
critical and integrative thinking by applying your knowledge and
skills.
Grading:
This course is graded on a 1000 point system, as follows:
11 Quizzes (20 points each, best 10 out of 11)
12 Discussions (1 original post for 10 points,
3 replies for 5 points each, & 5 points for
200
participating in other conversation threads)
3 Performance Analyses (80 points each)
1 Theatrical Design
Total
Percentage
96% or more
94%-95%
93%
92%
91%
90%
89%
88%
87%
86%
85%
84%
83%
82%
81%
80%
79%
78%
77%
76%
75%
74%
73%
72%
71%
70%
69%
68%
67%
66%
65%
64%
63%
62%
61% and
below
Letter
Grade
A
A
AAAAB+
B+
B+
B
B
B
BBBBC+
C+
C+
C
C
C
CCCCD+
D+
D+
D
D
D
DDF
Decimal
Grade
4.0
3.9
3.8
3.7
3.6
3.5
3.4
3.3
3.2
3.1
3.0
2.9
2.8
2.7
2.6
2.5
2.4
2.3
2.2
2.1
2.0
1.9
1.8
1.7
1.6
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.1
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.0
360
240
200
1000
Indication of
Performance
Exceptional
Above Average
Average
Acceptable
Only
Unsatisfactory
Assignments:
Readings from our textbook will take up more of your time in this course
than anything else. When building assignments for each week I
have allotted 8 minutes per page for reading. I suspect that most
of you will get through the reading much more quickly.
Quizzes are multiple choice or essay and cover readings in the class. The
best 10 out of 11 quiz scores will be used to calculate the quiz
grade.
Discussions are directed by topic questions and must be completed by the
date on which they are listed in the schedule. See Policies below
for more detailed information on how posts are graded.
Performance Analyses are analyses of live performances you see for this
class. The forms for these are available through the Resources tab
from the main Course page.
Theatrical Design for this class will be for Anna in the Tropics, which is
the last play we will read together. The form for this is also
available through the Resources tab from the main Course page.
Extra Credit is available by seeing one additional (fourth) live performance
and doing the appropriate Performance Analysis on it. Up to 50
points may be earned this way. Extra Credit assignments must be
turned in by noon on Monday of week 11.
Late Assignments are not accepted unless they have been prearranged and
approved. See Late Work below under Policies.
Required Text:
The Creative Spirit: An Introduction to Theater, 5th Edition, by
Stephanie Arnold. This text is available in an online version through
Coursesmart.com. At the time of this writing, the online version was $67.75
(I know it’s a lot, but it’s the only text you need for this course and it’s $60
less than the printed version). To purchase the online version, use the
following link:
Arnold, Stephanie, The Creative Spirit: An Introduction to Theatre, 5th
Edition,
http://www.coursesmart.com/givecoursesmartatry?xmlid=0077332989&_
_instructor=1859585
Of course, the physical textbook works too. Page numbers are the same.
Policies
Communication: Because this class takes place entirely online, it is extremely important that
you check in with your account at least once a day. Even if you are ahead
on your assignments, there may be announcements, so log on daily. I will
check the course and my email at least once a day too, so we should stay in
fairly constant contact.
Please write in standard English when you post to discussion groups or
email me. Use full sentences with correct punctuation and avoid stream-of-
consciousness writing. Compose your thoughts and write clearly. Texting
acronyms are not allowed. If you think it’s important that everyone know
how funny you thought something was, write it out, don’t just throw an ‘lol’
at the beginning of your sentence.
Finally, remember that we want to create an open and welcoming forum for
everyone to share their ideas. Please avoid being hostile or overly critical
toward anyone in class. This includes joking – even mock sarcasm can be
hurtful. It’s fine to disagree with someone, but do so respectfully.
Netiquette rules are outlined at:
http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html
Please follow these rules except for number 7, which indicates that some
flaming is acceptable. NO FLAMING is acceptable in this class.
Email Policy:
For assistance with this course you should use the internal email system. I
will respond to these emails within 24 hours, Monday through Friday –
usually much faster. (Note that if you email me Friday afternoon, I may not
get to that email until Monday morning. Sorry, but my sanity depends on
weekends free from emails.) If you haven’t received a reply from me in the
specified amount of time, go ahead and use my SCCD account
(gregory.nichols@seattlecolleges.edu), but please put ‘DRMA 101’ in the
subject line so that I can track your email.
Weekly
Discussions:
Discussions can be accessed either through the appropriate weekly folder in
the Lessons tab or through the Discussions tab.
The aim of these discussions is to harness the intellectual power of
everyone involved with the class in order to obtain a deeper understanding
of the material. This is the part of the course that most closely
approximates the kind of daily discussion that would be had in a physical
classroom, and I expect each of you to engage in discussions seriously. Read
the other posts in the discussions and respond to the ideas presented there.
This is not simply a forum for you to express your own ideas. Share your
ideas, but then read other people’s ideas and interact with them. Respond,
question, discuss.
Generally you should plan to spend 2.5 hours cumulatively on each
discussion. You should spend more time reading than writing, but it is your
writing that I will assess. To ensure that you get full credit for discussions,
make sure you follow these rules:
You must participate in every discussion. Participation means
engaging with the conversation on at least 4 days and producing
at least one substantive original post (10 points) and three
substantive responses to other students’ posts or responses (5
points each). Another 5 points will be awarded for your interaction
beyond the above-mentioned posts. Responses should specifically
refer back to what the other student has said. Participation in any
discussion should begin with a substantive original post. (You can
still read other people’s posts to get ideas first, if you like.)
You must post on at least 4 days each week. Constant contact with these
discussions gives continuity to our course and keeps you involved
with the material. Every discussion is open for at least 5 weekdays,
but when they are open on weekends you may post then as well.
You will only receive credit for 1 substantive post to any discussion on
a single day. Again, this means that you must engage with each
discussion on at least 4 days to receive full credit, so starting
discussions early is essential. Don’t put it off.
Four of your posts must be substantive. In order to receive full credit for
a substantive post, it must contribute to the discussion in some way.
Random thoughts and off-topic comments will not count. One and
two sentence posts, while appropriate for general discussion, will
not count for substantive posts. Discuss the ideas in the textbook
and the plays. Specific references and quotes are strongly
encouraged, as these ensure that you are on topic. Proper use of
terminology and key concepts is also beneficial. Finally, make sure
you are engaging in dialogue, not just monologue. (See the end of
this syllabus for examples of what I mean by substantive.)
Your posts must be coherent. Again, use proper English and compose
your thoughts, don’t just spew.
Your posts must have a clear and informative title. Don’t be clever or
sarcastic in your title. “Joe Turner is a Dumb Play” is not a good title.
You are welcome to have this opinion, but we want informed
discussion, not knee-jerk reactions and inarticulate chatter.
“Flawed Dramatic Structure of Joe Turner” is better because it lets
your potential reader know what your criticism will concentrate on.
Discussions will close at 11:55 pm on the due date in the schedule, after
which no further postings will be permitted. Plan accordingly.
I will monitor discussions and participate at times, but I will not be involved
with every conversation thread. Mainly I will be making sure that
discussions stay on topic, prompting you to investigate some things more
deeply or urging you to look at something from a different perspective.
These discussions are where you will learn from and create knowledge with
your fellow students. As in a physical classroom, my primary role is to set
up the circumstances in which learning is likely to take place and then to
guide you through the process. So I am the coach, but you are the ones
playing the game. I will read almost everything and I will be providing
feedback in the form of discussion grades and written responses, but don’t
get worried if I haven’t responded to your posts in a while. I’m still here.
One final note on discussions. There is a tendency for students to treat
online classes like correspondence courses. This is not a correspondence
course. The online mode is convenient, but just like live classes, it requires
daily participation. As an online student you must have a great deal of selfdiscipline so that you don’t fall behind. Discussions have proven to be a
difficult aspect of the course for many students, not because the discussions
are hard but because they require frequent contributions. Please be aware
of this.
I don't want to sound like big brother, but you should know that Angel
allows me to see your activity in this course. When I am grading these
discussions I am given not only the texts of all of your posts, but also the
dates and times of the posting, how long you spent online, how many people
replied to your posts and whether you responded to those replies, etc. In
other words, it is relatively easy for me to see how seriously you are taking
these discussions. So... please take part.
Some reminders:


You can only get credit for 1 substantive post on a single day. This
means that if you only visit a discussion once, the most you can earn
is 15/30. It doesn't matter if you submit 20 posts that day, you'll still
get 15/30. The reason is because these are meant to be
DISCUSSIONS, not monologues. I get frustrated when 10 people reply
to someone's post and that person never returns to see what they
said or answer their questions.
Don’t aim for the minimum number of posts – 4 is not enough. As it
says above, you are required to submit 4 SUBSTANTIAL posts – but ,
this will only get you 25/30. To get the other 5 points you must
participate in more general discussion - short posts that agree,
disagree, ask for clarification, etc. Again, this is meant to be a
CONVERSATION.
Other
Discussions:
In addition to the assigned discussions there are two other discussions in
the Discussions tab.
Open Discussion – This discussion area is for whatever you’d like. You
may use this space to recommend plays to each other, to
collaborate on assignments, whatever. I would appreciate it if
your discussions were in some way pertinent to the subject matter
of the class, and I certainly will not allow anything inappropriate
here. However, this is the area where you can focus on interests
that may not be coming up enough in other discussions.
Design Project – This discussion will open up during the second half of
the quarter as we begin preparing for your final project. Many of
you may want to collaborate with one another, and this is an area
where you can exchange ideas and resources, ask questions, and
otherwise help one another on this final project.
Quizzes:
All quizzes are available for 48 hours and close at 11:55 pm on the due date.
Quizzes take 30 minutes or less to complete, but each quiz must be
completed in one sitting. Some quizzes are multiple choice and some
require short answer essays. If a quiz can be taken more than once it will
specify this in the instructions. Please note that quizzes open on the day
before they are due.
Late Work:
As a rule, late work is not accepted. Most assignments have hard due dates
and the Angel system will not accept late submissions. In highly unusual
circumstances (HIGHLY unusual) I will consider allowing students to turn
in late materials, but be aware that technical difficulties are not unusual
circumstances. Plan ahead. All assignments can be turned in early.
Waiting until the last possible moment is courting disaster, and I cannot
make accommodations for last minute computer problems. Again, plan
ahead.
It does sometimes happen that the Angel system goes down. When this
happens, the Distance Learning office will inform me and we will make
necessary adjustments to due dates.
Plagiarism:
Don’t do it. Using ideas of any kind from sources other than your own mind
without citing where you acquired the idea is plagiarism. This includes
cutting and pasting from online sources, even if you shift a few words
around. It’s okay to use outside sources, just give them proper credit. If you
don’t and you choose to plagiarize you will receive 0 points on the
assignment and a formal report will be filed with the college requesting
disciplinary action. You will not be given a warning. This policy aligns with
the policies found in the NSCC Student Handbook
https://northseattle.edu/about-north/publications and the SCCC Student
Handbook http://seattlecentral.edu/stu-lead/StudentHandbook.pdf.
Disability
If you have a disability of any kind that will affect your work in this class,
Accommodations: please get documentation from NSCC’s Disability Services so that we can
make the necessary accommodations. They can be reached at:
http://www.northseattle.edu/services/disability/
or
http://seattlecentral.edu/disability-support/index.php
I will do everything I can to work with you and to make the class and class
content accessible for you. This is done privately, and I do not disclose your
disability or accommodations to anyone. You are not required to use your
accommodations, but I recommend that you do. They are there for a reason,
and we both want you to be as successful as possible.
Help
Technical
Support:
If you are new to online learning, orient yourself by poking around
http://www.virtualcollege.org/ (for NSCC students) or
http://seattlecentral.edu/distance/index.php (for SCCC students). They
have a lot of information, including tutorials and FAQ.
If you are still having difficulty with Angel or the Distance Learning system,
please contact the Distance Learning staff:
NSCC Office Assistants: 206-934-3738 or Email: Distance@sccd.ctc.edu
SCCC Assistance: 206-934-4060 or Email: dislrn@sccd.ctc.edu
Writing Help:
The Loft is NSCC’s campus language lab/writing center, located on the top
floor of the library. One of the best services The Loft offers is free tutoring!
The tutoring sessions last 30 minutes, are held on a first-come first served
basis, and can help you with reading, writing, & grammar. They also do
ONLINE TUTORING. For more information:
https://northseattle.edu/tutoring/loft-writing-center
Although there are no papers assigned in this class, I do expect clear,
organized, and concise writing in your Performance Analyses and your
Theatrical Design final project. I strongly suggest you use the Loft to help
you polish your writing. I am also happy to help, but I have other
responsibilities to attend to as well. And this is their specialty, so use them.
SCCC also offers writing help through their tutoring program. See
http://seattlecentral.edu/academic-assistance/tutoring.php.
FAQ
How much time
will this take?
As with real-world courses, the expectation with online learning is that you
will spend approximately 15 hours per week on each course. This includes
your text and play reading, your play attendance, your participation in
online discussions, and completing your assignments. You may find that
some weeks require a bit more work, some a bit less. I expect that the
majority of students will get through the assignments for most weeks in
substantially less than 15 hours.
Will you know
who I am?
Yes. I will make every effort to get to know each person in the class, and I
expect that you will get to know one another as well. Some of the first week
is devoted to creating an online community so that we aren’t just streams of
bits to one another. For our online class experience to be a positive one, we
need every person to engage and be part of our online community. As the
quarter moves forward you will find students who tend to agree with you,
others who hold very different opinions – just as you would in a physical
classroom. I encourage you to see yourself not as an anonymous shadow in
cyberspace, but as an important and vital individual in our community of
learners.
Are grades
based on effort
or
improvement?
No. Grades in this class are based on content. There is no way for me to
ascertain how much effort students are putting into this class. Reading and
typing speeds alone vary so much that I simply cannot credit effort.
Assignments are graded according to how well they fulfill the published
requirements.
Are there any
exceptions to
your “no late
assignments”
policy?
No.
If I miss a
discussion post,
can I make it
up?
No. Discussions are meant to be interactive, and posting something after
the conversation is over would be pointless. Making extra posts in other
discussions doesn’t help either because grades are given for each
discussion. Just stay up with it.
What if I lose
internet access?
Having reliable access to the internet is your responsibility. “I couldn’t get
online” is not an acceptable excuse.
If I absolutely
have to be away
from computers
or the internet
for a while, is
there anything I
can do?
Plan ahead. Most assignments can be done in advance. Discussions have
open periods that allow some flexibility. As with any course, this one
demands your presence.
Well, okay, two.
1. If something catastrophic has happened in your life, of course I can
make some accommodation. But it REALLY has to be catastrophic.
Please don’t make me be cold-hearted about this – don’t even ask
unless it’s a serious and documentable disaster. If it’s just that your
cousin had the flu and you had to help out… sorry, that doesn’t cut it.
2. If a serious problem is coming up in your life AND you let me know
at least 5 days in advance, I may be willing to extend a deadline.
Here again, however, be aware that the problem has to be severe,
unexpected, and unavoidable. Projects in other classes, root canals,
divorce court hearings – these are predictable events and I expect
you to work around them without special accommodation.
Schedule
All readings are from The Creative Spirit: An Introduction to Theater, 5th Edition by
Stephanie Arnold. The page numbers are the same whether you are working with the
physical or online version of the text. Assignments and readings are due on the day they
are listed.
I STRONGLY suggest you print out a copy of the schedule and refer to it often so that you will
stay up to date with assignments.
Week 1
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Reading Due
Assignments
Due
Discussions
Reminders
1
Consider
auditioning for
NSCC production –
2:30pm or 6pm.
Monday & Tuesday
Orient yourself to the course
Ch. 1, pp. 1-24
View PowerPoint
– Introduction to
Performance
Ch. 2, pp. 25-44
Quiz 1 on Ch. 1,
Powerpoint, &
Syllabus
Thursday
Friday
Week 2
Reading
Assignments
Monday
Ch. 3, pp. 45 – 58
& Appendix, pp.
481-483
PP – Thinking
Theatrically
(Introductions)
2
(Mimesis)
Schedule
yourself to
see a
realistic play
in week 3 or
4 to analyze
in week 5.
Tuesday
Quiz 2 on
Chapters 2, 3, &
Powerpoint
Wednesday
Thursday
3
(Joe
Turner’s
Come
and
Gone)
Joe Turner’s
Come and Gone,
pp. 59-95 & Ch. 3,
pp. 96-110
Quiz 3 on Play
Friday
Week 3
Reminders
Reading
Assignments
Reminders
Monday
Go see a
realistic play
– don’t put it
off.
Ch. 4 & 5, pp. 111160
Tuesday
Quiz 4 on
Chapters 4 & 5
Wednesday
Thursday
4
Friday
Week 4
Reading
Monday
Ch. 7 & 8, pp. 197219
Thursday
Friday
Week 5
Monday
Tuesday
Reminders
Performance
Reviews are
due next
week – make
sure you see
a show.
And the Soul
Shall Dance, pp.
220 – 248 & Ch. 8,
pp. 249-262
Review Appendix,
pp. 481-483
Reading
5
(Realism)
Quiz 6 on Play
See a realistic
performance by
Sunday – you’ll
need to be able to
write about it in
next week’s
discussion.
Assignments
6
(Yamauchi)
(Performance
Smorgasbord)
Reading
Ch. 9 & 10, pp.
264-293
Performance
Analysis Due
Assignments
8
Quiz 7 on
Schedule
yourself to
see a nonrealistic play
in week 5 or
6 to analyze
in week 7.
Reminders
This week
you are
working on
the live
production
that you went
to see.
Next week’s
play is long –
consider
beginning
early.
7
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Week 6
Monday
Assignments
Quiz 5 on
Chapters 7 & 8
Tuesday
Wednesday
(Actors
&
Directors)
(Nonrealisti
c Theater)
Reminders
Schedule
yourself to
see a play in
week 7 or 8
to analyze in
week 9.
Chapters 9 & 10
Wednesday
Angels in
America, pp. 294338 & Ch. 10, pp.
339-347
Thursday
Friday
Week 7
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Reading
Quiz 8 on Play
See a nonrealistic
performance by
Sunday – your
second
Performance
Analysis is due
next Friday.
Assignments
9
(Angels In
America)
Reminders
This week
you are
working on
the second
live
production
that you went
to see.
Reminders
Second
Performance
Analysis Due
Friday
Week 8
Monday
Reading
Ch. 12 & 13, pp.
371-412
Quiz 9 on
Chapters 12 & 13
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Week 9
Monday
10
(Structure &
Genre)
Ch. 6, pp. 161-193
Quiz 10 on
Chapter 6
Reading
Anna in the
Tropics, pp. 450480
Reminders
Assignments
Quiz 11 on Play
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Week 10
Assignments
11
(Design)
Director’s
Concept
Submitted
Reading
Assignments
12
(Reviewing
Anna in the
Tropics)
See a final
performance
by Sunday –
your final
Performance
Analysis is
due next
Friday.
Reminders
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Week 11
Monday
Third
Performance
Analysis Due
Reading
Assignments
This week
you are
working on
the third live
production
that you went
to see.
Remember to
also be
working on
your Design
Project for
Anna in the
Tropics due
next week.
Reminders
Last day to
turn in Extra
Credit.
Your Design project is due on Friday, June 15, at noon.
You do not have a final exam in this class.
Congratulations, you made it!
Discussion Examples
These examples come from a previous class’s discussion on theatrical realism.
Original Post
Good Example – The example below is good because it reflects deep thought on the
subject. It uses terms from the text (‘fourth wall,’ ‘Poetic Realism,’ ‘Stanislavsky’)
and includes an example. The author wanders in his point a bit and gets a little
unclear at the end, but for the purposes of discussion this would receive full credit.
I think the essence of realism is to create an event that the audience can relate to on a personal level by
removing the fourth wall, not necessarily to make the events that occur 100% realistic. As long as the
audience can still picture themselves in the shoes of the protagonist or see themselves in the story lines, then
the spirit is intact. Take for instance Poetic Realism. In "Death of a Salesman" we move inside the minds of the
characters and shift between past and present. While this isn't how things work in the real world, it still
represents realism because the characters portrayed are very human and relateable in every sense, maybe
even more so because the extra depth through which we view them.
One of my favorite pieces of acting was by Leonardo Dicaprio in "The Basketball Diaries". His portrayal of a
heroin addict fallen from grace was unbelievably realistic, yet there were many unrealistic portions of the
movie like flashbacks and things like that. Although real life doesn't move the way it does in the movie, it
almost created a sense of hyperrealism where we enter the protagonists mind instead of just watching and
only experience the most dramatic portions of his life. This doesn't mean it isn't a great example of realism on
film. I think Stanislavsky would be proud.
Not So Good Example – The example below simply recounts what the text says. It
is confusing and it doesn’t add anything to the conversation. Also, it is too short to
be considered substantive. This would not receive full credit.
Even though there are different types of realism, it all has one main idea and that is that their is some truth
there. Whether it be European Realism or American Realism or Poetic realism the one thing they all have in
common is that their are realistic scene that happen in everyday life. Realism isn't necessarily behaving like
you would when people aren't around because even then you could be acting.
Reply Post
Good Example – The example below is good because it refers back to the ideas contained
in the original post and expands on them. Here again the author wanders in her point a bit
and gets a little unclear at the end, but for the purposes of discussion this would receive full
credit.
I agree with your distinction between what is being portrayed by the actor as opposed to maybe how the actor
is actually acting. To depict a real character, you have to act, you have to be stylized, you have to be
something other than yourself, which is essentially unreal. But in what you are portraying, the story you are
telling, that is what is considered to be realistic or not, and that is where you can begin to judge the realism of
the play, not necessarily the realism of the actor.
So I like how you said realism is a style. It definitely isn't as simple as "acting like normal", because realism,
the portrayal of realistic events and people, can be taken in so many different ways. Like Denzel, by the way
you describe the film, it sounds like he got into his character, attacked the character's sense of normality from
multiple angels to accurately portray Alonzo in the style of realism.
Not So Good Example – The example below simply agrees with the original post.
Agreement is fine, but a substantive post would dig into the subject deeper. (How is
film realism different from theater realism, for example.) This post would
contribute to a student’s general discussion participation grade, but it would not
receive credit for a substantive response.
I really like that you take a different look at what realism is compared to the majority of the class. Realism is
definately something that differs from theater to movies et cetra.