Theatre Arts 140 (Tentative)
Ethnicity and Gender on the American Stage
Dr. John Blondell
Spring 2012
MWF 11:30-12:35 Porter Hall 110 and 115 (Studio and Seminar Room)
Phone – 565-6778. E-mail: blondell@westmont.edu
Office Hours – M/W 2-4; T/R 10-11:50
Introduction
“…Now I want
Spirits to enforce, art to enchant;
And my ending is despair,
Unless I be relieved by prayer,
Which pierces so that it assaults
Mercy itself and frees all faults.
--The Tempest, Epilogue, William Shakespeare
From the earliest moments of human history, people have represented the joys
and vicissitudes of human life through literature, theatre, dance, painting, sculpture, and
music. Though the various literary and artistic forms have diverse purposes, they share
the potential to deepen and enliven people’s understanding of what it means to be human,
and offer distinctive insights into how people formulate, make sense of, and at times
challenge the nature and shape of reality. According to the quote from The Tempest
found above, Shakespeare believes that aesthetic enjoyment is necessary to the human
spirit. Located at the end of his last play, the speech can be thought of as a kind of “last
word” regarding what Shakespeare finds important about life. Like Shakespeare,
Westmont believes that the literary, performing, and plastic arts are important to a fully
rounded educational experience. In the Theatre Arts Department, we believe that the
study of Theatre and Drama is a sure way to become more lively, sensitive, and
expressive individuals, while becoming conversant in the history, theory, and practice of
the field. Finally – but significantly – aesthetic enjoyment is one way that people
participate in the ongoing process of Creation, and receive the innumerable gifts that
stream from God.
American Moment, American Voices
This course satisfies the Performing and Interpreting the Arts component of
Westmont’s General Education program. The course focuses on, and explores various
ways, that representative 20th and 21st century American writers confront issues of
ethnicity and gender in plays written for American playing, presentation, and reception.
Where several of the department’s courses focus on the past, or at least use past traditions
and structures to tell us something about contemporary American art and culture, this
course looks at the present moment, and the various voices that shape and reflect
American perspectives on contemporary American culture. Taught from a Christian
perspective, the assembled plays question, probe, and disclose various views of American
identity, shaped by ethnic influences and gender roles.
The course has two central components. One component includes reading,
discussion, and writing about the central subject, as it is tackled by some of the country’s
most significant dramatists. The other component involves a creative and performative
element, where students encounter and embody “the other” through collaborative
research and performance projects. Both components, in different ways, develop
sympathy, humility, and compassion as called to by scripture. Ultimately, the purpose of
the course is to develop students’ knowledge and experience of American ethnic and
gender identities, as represented by the art of the stage, and become more conversant in
the issues, problems, challenges that animate much of American thought and art.
Outcomes
Using Anna Deveare Smith’s Twight: Los Angeles, students will research, create, and
present a performance centered on ethnicity and gender issues.
Students will explain the importance of gender and ethnic issues in plays by 20th and 21st
century American dramatists.
Readings
The reading and performance list for the course includes the following plays:
Trifles, by Susan Glaspell
Machinal, by Sophie Treadwell
The Emperor Jones, by Eugene O’Neill
Twilight: Los Angeles, by Anna Deveare Smith
Fire in the Mirror, by Anna Deveare Smith
Oleanna, by David Mamet
How I Learned to Drive, by Paula Vogel
36 Views, by Naomi Iizuka
Fences, August Wilson
Topdog/Underdog, Susan Lori Parks
Anna of the Tropics, Nilo Cruz
The Double Helix, Tony Kushner
Assignments and Readings
M Jan 9
W Jan 11
F Jan 13
Introduction to the Course,
Trifles, Susan Glaspell
Trifles, Susan Glaspell
M Jan 16
T Jan 17
W Jan 18
F Jan 20
No Class, Martin Luther King Holiday
Machinal, Sophie Treadwell
Machinal, Sophie Treadwell
The Emperor Jones, Eugene O’Neill
M Jan 23
W Jan 25
F Jan 27
The Emperor Jones, Eugene O’Neill
Scenes: Glaspell, Treadwell, O’Neill
Discuss Scenes
M Jan 30
W Feb 1
F Feb 3
Introduce Research Performance Project
Twilight: Los Angeles, Anna Deveare Smith
Twilight: Los Angeles, Anna Deveare Smith
M Feb 6
W Feb 8
F Feb 10
Fire in the Mirror, Anna Deveare Smith
Fire in the Mirror, Anna Deveare Smith
Rehearse Piece
M Feb 13
W Feb 15
F Feb 17
Rehearse Piece
Rehearse Piece
Rehearse Piece
M Feb 20
W Feb 22
F Feb 24
No Class, President’s Holiday
Rehearse Piece
Rehearse Piece
M Feb 27
T Feb 28
W Mar 29
F Mar 2
Rehearse Piece
Perform: The Edge: Ethnicity and Gender in SB
Discuss Project
Oleanna, David Mamet
M Mar 5
W Mar 7
F Mar 9
Oleanna, David Mamet
How I Learned to Drive, Paula Vogel
How I Learned to Drive, Paula Vogel
M Mar 12
W Mar 14
No Class, Spring Holiday
No Class, Spring Holiday
F Mar 16
No Class, Spring Holiday
M Mar 19
W Mar 21
F Mar 23
36 Views, Naomi Iizuka
36 Views, Naomi Iizuka
Scenes: Mamet, Vogel, Iizuka
M Mar 26
W Mar 28
F Mar 30
Discuss Scenes
Fences, August Wilson
Fences, August Wilson
M Apr 2
W Apr 4
F Apr 6
Topdog/Underdog, Susan Lori Parks
Topdog/Underdog, Susan Lori Parks
Easter Holiday
M Apr 9
W Apr 11
F Apr 13
Easter Holiday
Anna of the Tropics, Nilo Cruz
Anna of the Tropics, Nilo Cruz
M Apr 16
W Apr 18
F Apr 20
The Double Helix, Tony Kushner
The Double Helix, Tony Kushner
Scenes: Wilson, Parks, Cruz, Kushner
M Apr 23
W Apr 25
Discuss Scenes
Final Discussion
Final Exam:
Notes on Assignments:
Note: Westmont has identified eight important goals as foundational for our work as a
college. These standards include Christian Understanding, Diversity and Global
Awareness, Critical and Interdisciplinary Thinking, Competence in Written and Oral
Communication, Active Societal and Intellectual Engagement, Research and Information
Literacy, Physical and Emotional Health, and Creative Expression. It has also created a
rigorous General Education program that is intended to foster intellectual vitality,
Christian character, and commitment to service that will last a lifetime. The General
Education program is comprised of a range of courses intended to develop and explore
expertise in a variety of different disciplines and methods of inquiry.
This course satisfies what Westmont has described as one of the “Common Inquires” of
its General Education program – Performing and Interpreting the Arts. According to the
Westmont catalogue, “Courses satisfying this requirement develop students’
understanding of the fine arts and performing arts, including music, visual arts, theatre, or
dance. Such courses develop and expand perceptual faculties, develop physical practices
integral to the art form, and explore critical principles which guide artists in the area.”
Requirements
There are three major requirements for the course. Grade percentages are as follows.
Midterm Project
Scene Work
Two Five-page Essays
Final Exam
Class Participation
30%
20%
20%
20%
10%
Midterm Research Performance Project:
At midterm, students will perform an original piece of theater, generated by students
through an interview process with Santa Barbara residents. Using the work of Anna
Deveare Smith as model and inspiration, students will conduct a series of interviews in
which they collect stories for ultimate theatrical performance. Students will then create a
piece of original theatre, whereby they enact stories collected through and by the
interview process. The performance will be held one-time only, for an invited audience,
in the new space in Porter Theatre.
Scene Work:
Students will prepare, rehearse, and perform one scene from representative plays studied
through the semester. Performances of scenes occur three times during the course of the
semester, January 25, March 23, and April 20
Essays:
There are two 5-page essays required for the course. The first essay focuses on issues of
gender and ethnicity, emerging from plays from the early 20th century – Trifles,
Machinal, and The Emperor Jones. The second essay focuses on issues of gender and
ethnicity, emerging from plays from the late 20th and early 21st century, and include How
I Learned to Drive, 36 Views, Fences, or Anna of the Tropics.
Final Word:
Our work this semester brings together two kinds of knowledge – that developed
cognitively through conversation, lecture, discussion, reading, and study; and the other
developed experientially through scene work and the creation of an original piece of
theatre. The purpose is to develop awareness, knowledge, and sensitivity, and to be able
to discuss and identify important issues in gender and ethnicity, and to encounter those
issues directly, through enactment and embodiment. I am very excited for this course,
and look forward to working with you on it very much.
Notes and Policies:
Students who have been diagnosed with a disability (learning, physical or
psychological) are strongly encouraged to contact the Disability Services office as early
as possible to discuss appropriate accommodations for this course. Formal
accommodations will only be granted for students whose disabilities have been verified
by the Disability Services office. These accommodations may be necessary to ensure
your full participation and the successful completion of this course. Please contact Sheri
Noble, Interim Coordinator of Disability Services (x6186, snoble@westmont.edu) as
soon as possible.
Essays are due on the dates indicated. There will be no exceptions to this policy.
Attendance Policy: Students are allowed a total of three (3) unexcused absences
for the semester. 4 unexcused absences will result in failure of the “Class Participation”
portion of your grade. 5 unexcused absences will result in failure in the course.