71 courses with the subject REN, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
REN 500SHAKESPEARE3
This course designs to make all holders of the degree fully conversant with the fundamentals of Shakespeare, including the major themes and narratives of his plays and poems, the basics of prosody, early English staging, the main issues of textual transmission, and the facts surrounding the life of the author. Required for MLitt core; must be taken in first fall term. 395
This course introduces students to basic methods of research into early English drama, particularly in service of the MLitt degree thesis. Students also learn conventions of academic writing as needed. Assignments derive in part from components of the research paper required for REN 500. Required for MLitt core; must be taken in first fall term.
DRAMA & THEATRE HIST This course stresses the institutional and commercial auspices of early English drama - its place, its space, and its occasions - against the backdrop of major developments in theatre history. Elective for students who have not completed a theatre history survey course. Offered annually. Cross-listed with undergraduate THEA course.
This course builds on warm-up, breathing, resonance, articulation and text work to give actors vocal range, endurance, and melody. Text work includes poetry, improvisation, group exploration of language, and the performance of monologues. Elective. Offered annually.
This course will introduce students to a variety of acting techniques from among Stanislavski, Uta Hagen, Laban, Alexander, Bogart, Grotowski and others. Emphasis will be placed on improvement of basic skills through character analysis and scene study, towards the synthesis of mind, voice, and body, and the understanding of acting as a collaborative art. 2021-22 Catalog
Intended for students with some previous experience in acting and/or directing. This course will focus on a cohort group of actors and directors on two plays: one by Shakespeare, one from the wider canon of Renaissance dramatic literature. 398
Independent inquiry directed by a faculty member on a topic relevant to the MLitt student's program and/or thesis. A directed inquiry is strongly recommended for all students in the summer or semester prior to the MLitt thesis project. Approval of faculty supervisor and program director is required. Elective. Offered every term.
A company of student actors, directors, teachers, and dramaturges work together to devise an original performance piece based on, inspired by, or using an extant early modern text.
& ARCHITECTURE A chronological, stylistic analysis of art, architecture, book illumination, visual culture, and connoisseurship in England from medieval beginnings until the death of Shakespeare. Students explore the sources for art made in England and that imported from the continent. Course emphasizes unique qualities of art in England. Special focus on art and architecture that
This course explores the relationship between audiences and performance, looking in unique depth at the psychology of audiences, at an audience's needs and expectations, at the ways in which dramatists include (or exclude) an audience, and at the uses (and abuses) of a visible audience. Using the resources of the Blackfriars stage and performances, prospective directors gain practical experience in the care and handling of audiences. Elective. Offered as needed. Available for audit. 2021-22 Catalog
This movement class is designed to build an understanding of how one learns physical skills, how to develop physical analysis tools for self and other's movement, and how to develop physical skills.
Students focus on performing stage combat that is both safe and dramatically effective. The course offers a physical vocabulary in one or more techniques: unarmed, single sword, rapier and dagger, broadsword, quarterstaff, or knife. At the discretion of the instructor, students can qualify for Skills Proficiency Testing with the Society of American Fight Directors on the last day of class. This course may be taken more than once, as different weapon proficiencies are featured, cyclically. Elective. Offered twice annually in fall and summer terms.
Usually taught by a guest director, this course introduces students to the artist's directing style or to a major directorial approach to the staging of early modern plays in contemporary theater. Building on the foundational skills learned in REN 531, such exposure allows advanced students to develop their directorial styles and methods. Elective. Offered annually in spring terms.
This practicum course focuses on developing the skills of dramaturgical thinking in conversation with early modern drama. Students will work with plays by Shakespeare and will also engage with continental drama, plays in translation, and contemporary adaptations of early modern texts. Students will gain hands-on experience in the component skills of research and production dramaturgy and will deploy their understanding in public-facing scholarship and engagement with a variety of audiences. This course emphasizes creative collaboration and is required for MLitt core. Offered annually in fall terms for second year MLitt students.
This course combines an historical focus on the playwriting culture of early modern England with practical experience creating plays within the period's theatrical conventions. Stresses collaboration in both its historical and practical emphases. Elective. Offered as needed.
Students in this performance- based class investigate the internal logic of the clown mind and the clown's external physical characteristics. Students engage in exercises, improvisations, drills, and scene work to explore these concepts. Clown history, make-up, a brief overview of Mask, the art of physical comedy, and intellectual and physical exploration of "What is Funny" will be covered. A willingness to publicly make a fool out of oneself while supporting others in that artistic risk is mandatory.
700 Students who need more time to complete the MLitt thesis project must register for this extension continually, for each fall and spring term (not summer), until thesis is completed. REN 701 does not appear on academic transcripts once REN 700 is complete. Offered fall and spring terms. $750 fee. Credits: 0 402
This intensive 6-week module aims to further develop the actor's verbal, physical, and imaginative story-telling skills. Using a variety of texts drawn from the Renaissance canon, actors will discover ways to deepen their connection to a character's physical and spoken acts, as well as developing a better understanding of their relationship to a visible audience.
This intensive 6-week module aims to help directors develop their abilities as creative artists and passionate story-tellers. Choosing a play from the Renaissance canon, each director will develop the dramaturgy and performance script necessary to begin rehearsals with a professional company. In-depth text analysis will explore how the rhetorical structure of a scene might best be translated into a viable working method in the rehearsal room, and questions of the director's artistic point of view will also be explored.
This 6-week intensive course aims to bridge the gap between training and the profession. Student actors will prepare a professional quality headshot and resume, as well as a collection of twelve monologues for the purposes of auditioning at general calls, regional unified auditions, and other types of professional theatre auditions. Student directors will prepare their directing portfolio, as well as a statement of intent and instructor, according to the needs of the class. Class sessions will help actors and directors to improve their audition and interview technique, as well as provide an opportunity to bring in professional actors and directors to share their experiences. The content and logistics of the MFA showcase will be determined by some of the work done in this class.
800 M.Litt. and MFA students continuing their project or thesis after fulfilling all other course requirements(including REN 700 and REN 800) must maintain their enrollment by registering for REN 701 or REN 801 for each additional semester until completing the degree. Credits: 0
Students will take a major or featured role (or roles) in one or more of the MFA company productions. Building on their knowledge of Shakespeare's theatre, performance practices, and audiences, students will experiment with a range of acting techniques and styles from the most traditional to the most contemporary in conventional, community, in house, and found spaces. Acting journals will serve as resource material for the Company Book thesis project. Resident and guest faculty offer instruction.
Working with resident and guest faculty, MFA degree candidates dramaturg, rehearse, direct, and perform four to five early modern and early modern inspired pieces over the course of the calendar year. Each student will also contribute a chapter to a collectively composed "Company Book" that chronicles the research into and performance of the company repertory but also explores a particular theme as directed by program faculty. Credits: 3
Students will take a major or featured role (or roles) in one or more of the MFA company productions. Building on their knowledge of Shakespeare's theatre, performance practices, and audiences, students will experiment with a range of acting techniques and styles from the most traditional to the most contemporary in conventional, community, in-house, and found spaces. Acting journals will serve as resource material for the Company Book thesis project. Resident and guest faculty offer instruction. 404
Working with resident and guest faculty, MFA degree candidates dramaturg, rehearse, direct, and perform four to five early modern and early modern inspired pieces over the course of the calendar year. Each student will also contribute a chapter to a collectively composed "Company Book" thesis project that chronicles the research into and performance of the company repertory but also explores a particular theme as directed by program faculty. Credits: 3
