Theatre 301: Greek And Roman Theatre

Theatre 301: Greek and Roman Theatre Fall 2012 Dr. Sharon M. Carnicke Professor and Associate Dean, School of Dramatic Arts Drama Center, Telephone: (213) 740-2202 [email protected]

Assistant Instructor: Ms. Tiffany Cole, [email protected]

Office Hours by Appointment: For appointments, please contact Charlene Gawa ([email protected]) during August and after September 1 Sonia de Mesa ([email protected]) both at 213-740-8686.

Course Purpose: In the classical Greek and Roman periods theatre reflected major religious, political and social issues. Moreover, ancient drama established key trends in the development of Western theatre. Tragedy (originating in religious choral odes) looked squarely at what makes us human and how people deal with nightmarish circumstances. Comedy (developing out of fertility rituals) looked at how we best perpetuate ourselves and our communities. This course examines the full range and depth of drama in the classical world with special emphasis on the ways in which ancient drama was produced, staged, and acted. The class involves discussion, performance workshops, and lectures that explore the concrete dimensions of performance in the ancient world. Primarily for dramatic arts majors and minors, anyone with a passion for theatre, literature, the arts, and knowledge is welcome.

Class Meetings:  Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:30-4:50, KAP 163.  Required reading is due on the listed date; always bring your books to class for reference during discussions.  To prepare (as assigned) for the performance workshops, always read the selected scenes closely and multiple times; all preparations are to be done in advance of the class.  Turn off all cell phones during class sessions and exams.  If your phone is on during examinations, you will be asked to leave the room.

Required Texts: The following paperbacks have been ordered for you at the USC Bookstore. They are listed in the order you will need them. NOTE: It is important that we all use the same editions, hence the same translations, for classes and exams. Therefore, please secure the specific editions given below. THTR 301 Course Reader. Aeschylus, The Oresteia (Hackett). Euripides, The Cyclops (Oxford University Press). Sophocles, The Theban Plays (Hackett). Euripides, The Bacchae (Hackett). Classical Comedy: Greek and Roman. Corrigan, ed. (Applause Books). Seneca, Seneca: The Tragedies, Vol. II (Johns Hopkins Press).

Recommended Library Resource: Performances of The Oresteia (Agamemnon, Choephori, Eumenides), Oedipus the King, Antigone, and Medea can be seen at the following website: http://usc.ativ.alexanderstreet.com/video/browse/productioncompany/1580/play

1 Required Work: All assignments must be completed on time. No late work will be accepted. If you have any emergencies that interfere with the completion of assignments, contact Dr. Carnicke or Ms. Cole at least 24 hours before the due date.

1. Graded Participation in one class workshops. 25% of final grade. a. While you are encouraged to volunteer for as many workshops as you would like, you must submit a short written report on one workshop in which you have participated. b. Ms. Cole will also assign participants as needed to ensure that all who need to submit workshop reports have appropriate opportunities to participate. c. The report is an analytical paper (4 pages, typed, double-spaced), that discusses the three following issues:

Your WORKSHOP REPORT prompt: 1--Analyze the section of the play which was workshoped in terms of its artistic characteristics, its themes, and its historical importance. (In other words, write a short critical studies examination of the play.) About 2 pages.

2--What specific performance aspect of ancient theatre did the workshop examine? (In other words, describe what we did and why.) About 1 page.

3--What did you learn from the workshop about the play that was different from your reading of it or from your expectations? (In other words, what can performance of the play tell us about its artistic dimensions?) About 1 page.

2. A 5 page analytical paper (typed and double-spaced) on an assigned topic concerning the class material (25%).

NOTE RE TIMING OF THE WORKSHOP REPORT AND PAPER: To better accommodate the size of the class this term, Ms. Cole will divide the class into two groups with assignments 1 and 2 due as follows:

FOR GROUP I:  The Workshop Report will be due on Tuesday, Oct. 9. You can choose any of the first 5 scheduled workshops for your report.  The Analytical Paper will be due on Tuesday, Dec. 4 on a topic from the second half of the term.

FOR GROUP II:  The Workshop Report will be due on Tuesday, Dec. 4. You can choose any of the last 5 scheduled workshops for your report.  The Analytical Paper will be due on Tuesday, Oct. 9 on a topic from the first half of the term.

3. An in-class midterm examination on Greek tragedy with both objective and essay questions. 25% of final grade.

4. A comprehensive final examination scheduled on the Final Examination Date including Greek and Roman tragedy and Greek and Roman comedy. USC requires that all undergraduate classes meet for a final examination as scheduled by the University. Therefore, be sure to make your holiday travel plans with the Exam date (given below) in mind. You will not be excused from this final class meeting. 25% of final grade.

5. I reserve the right to give pop quizzes whenever the class seems unprepared for discussions.

Grading: The final course grade is determined according to the following scale: 2 Excellent: A (4 ) = 100-96; A- (3.7) = 95-90 Good: B+ (3.3) = 89-86; B (3) = 85-84; B- (2.7) = 83-80 Average: C+ (2.3) = 79-76; C (2) = 75-74 ; C- (1.7) = 73-70 Poor: the D range (.7-1.3) = 60’s; F (0) = 59 and below

“Excellent” means that clear understanding of the class material is coupled with original and creative insight; “good” means that the class material has been understood clearly; “average” means that the class material has been generally understood, but gaps in understanding remain; “poor” means that there are identifiable gaps in the understanding of class material; “failure” means that gaps in the completion of work is coupled with poor understanding of class material.

When the mathematical GPA falls between two grades, the final grade will be weighted toward the positive end of the scale for students whose attendance and participation in class have been excellent or good and toward the negative end of the scale for those with average or poor attendance and participation.

Further Grading Notes: 1. Dishonesty in any form harms the individual, other students, and the School of Dramatic Arts. Therefore, USC policies on academic integrity will be enforced in this course. Papers suspected of containing plagiarized material (the unacknowledged or inappropriate use of another’s ideas, wording, or images) will be verified for authenticity by the School of Dramatic Arts through internet services. I expect you to familiarize yourself with the academic integrity guidelines found in the current SCampus (www.usc.edu/dept/publications/scampus). 2. Any work that does not fulfill the required assignment is an automatic F. 3. Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to me as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone number for DSP is 213-740-0776. 4. If you are not a native speaker of English and/or you are an international student, make an appointment with me in the first two weeks of classes to determine whether language accommodations might be necessary. 5. If your work in class is unsatisfactory, you will be warned before the deadline for dropping the course with a grade of W. 6. I will be happy to discuss your work at any time, and I encourage you to make an appointment with me at least once during the semester.

DATE ASSIGNMENTS

Aug. Tu 28 INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSLATION HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF ANCIENT THEATRE READ: Class Handouts

I: ANCIENT GREEK DRAMA IN PERFORMANCE: TRILOGIES AND SATYR PLAYS

Th 30 THE PLACE OF THEATRE IN THE POLIS: THE TRILOGY READ: Timelines/Charts (Course Reader) and Agamemnon (first play in The Oresteia).

Sept. Tu 4 WORKSHOP: A scene from Agamemnon. [Theatrical Space and Significant Props] NOTE: The entire class will participate in this workshop.

Th 6 READ: The Libation Bearers (second play in The Oresteia)

Tu 11 WORKSHOP: A scene from The Libation Bearers. [Character Interaction]

3 Th 13 READ: The Furies (third play in The Oresteia)

NOTE: Friday, Sept. 14 is the last day to drop this class without a "W" or to select "P/NP."

Sept. Tu 18 WORKSHOP: A scene from The Furies.

DISCUSSION TOPIC FOR TRILOGIES: How is The Oresteia more than the sum of its parts? What does the trilogy say about the society and religion that produced it? What does it say to us today?

Th 20 ACTING THROUGH CHORUS AND CHARACTERS THE REPUTATION OF THE ACTOR IN ANCIENT GREECE READ in Course Reader: Excerpts from Actors on Acting--Greece, Plato’s Republic (Chapter 10), and Aristotle’s Poetics, and the images of Greek theatres, masks, and costumes.

Tu 25 WORKSHOP: Choral performance [Chant, song, speech]

Th 27 THE SATYR PLAY AS EPILOGUE TO THE TRILOGY READ: Euripides, The Cyclops.

Oct. Tu 2 WORKSHOP: A scene from The Cyclops [Comedic techniques]

DISCUSSION TOPIC FOR SATYR PLAYS: Why link satyrs to tragedies? How does a comedic point of view reflect upon the human condition differently than does tragedy?

II: THE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF GREEK TRAGEDY

Th 4 CLASSICAL DRAMA AT ITS HEIGHT: SOPHOCLES READ: Sophocles, Oedipus the King (The Theban Plays) and Raymond Williams, “Antigone” (Course Reader).

Tu 9 DUE: Group I Workshop Reports and Group II Analytical Papers. WORKSHOP: A scene from Sophocles. [Interaction in a new mode.]

Oct. Th 11 FOCUS ON GREEK DRAMATIC WOMEN: Compare Clytemnestra’s speech justifying her killing of Agamemnon (in Aeschylus, The Oresteia) with Antigone’s justification for burying her brother against the King’s decree (in Sophocles, Antigone).

DISCUSSION TOPICS FOR SOPHOCLES: How does Sophocles use the chorus differently than Aeschylus? How does interaction between the major characters in Sophocles differ from those created by Aeschylus?

Tu 16 THE BAD BOY OF GREEK DRAMA: EURIPIDES READ: Euripides, The Bacchae.

Th 18 WORKSHOP: A scene from The Bacchae.

DISCUSSION TOPICS FOR EURIPIDES: What is the link between The Cyclops and The Bacchae? How does Euripides challenge the norms and conventions of Greek Tragedy as developed by Aeschylus and Sophocles?

Oct. Tu 23 REVIEW FOR MIDTERM EXAMINATION Th 25* MIDTERM EXAMINATION

4 Tu 30* A CONTEMPORARY GREEK PRODUCTION OF TRAGEDY VIEW: Iphigenia.

III: ANCIENT GREEK COMEDY: “OLD” COMEDY

Nov. Th 1 FERTILITY RITUALS, ANIMAL CHORUSES, AND SATIRE READ: Aristophanes, Lysistrata (Classical Comedy).

Nov. Tu 6 WORKSHOP: A scene from Lysistrata. [Comic techniques for political persuasion] NOTE: The entire class will participate in this workshop.

DISCUSSION TOPIC: What is the difference between the use of comedy in The Cyclops and Lysistrata? Can ancient comedy speak to contemporary audiences? What is lost and gained with the passage of time?

IV: THE ROMAN POINT OF VIEW

Nov. Th 8 ROMAN VIEWS ON SOCIETY, RELIGION, THEATRE AND ACTORS READ in Course Reader: Excerpts from Actors on Acting and the image of the Roman stage.

Tu 13 ROMAN TRAGEDY: VIOLENCE CENTER STAGE. READ: Seneca, Oedipus (Seneca: The Tragedies, Vol. II).

Th 15* WORKSHOP: Two scenes from Seneca. [Soliloquies and Interactive Dialogue]

NOTE: Friday, Nov. 16 is the last day to drop this course with a mark of "W."

DISCUSSION TOPIC: How do Sophocles and Seneca tell the same story differently? How do these differences reflect their different social, artistic, and political contexts?

Tu 20* ROMAN COMEDY: “NEW” COMEDY VIEW: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

Th 22 THANKSGIVING!!

Tu 27 READ: Plautus, The Menaechmi (Classical Comedy).

Nov. Th 29 WORKSHOP: Follow the Dress in Plautus, The Menaechmi.

DISCUSSION TOPICS ON NEW COMEDY: How does the comedy of Plautus differ from that of Aristophanes? How do the comedic techniques of slap-stick and sit-com reflect both Roman values and Roman political repression (as distinct from the politically engaged satire of Aristophanes)? How are props used differently in Plautus from other plays read this term?

Dec. Tu 4 CLASS CONCLUSIONS DUE: Group II Workshop Reports and Group I Analytical Papers.

Th 6 REVIEW FOR FINAL EXAMINATION

5 FINAL EXAMINATION, Tuesday, December 18, 2:00-4:00 p.m.

Have a wonderful holiday recess!!!