USCSchool of THTR 395m Drama as Human Relations 2018 Spring/63095D—Mon/Wed—2:00-3:20PM Dramatic Arts Location: KAP 159
Instructor: Dr. Meiling Cheng Office: MCC 202 Office Hours: Friday 1-3PM, by appointment only Contact Info: [email protected]
Course Description and Overview This class explores multicultural diversity and the dynamics of human relations through dramatic artworks by U.S. authors. We will read contemporary plays that address various aspects of perceived human differences, including those based on race, ethnicity, class, level of education, religion, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability, political affiliation, and national origin. We will consider how these differences create tensions, cause despairs, stir up conflicts, as well as generate hopes and deliver redemptions among dramatic characters striving to survive and thrive in a multiethnic environment. Inspired by the etymological roots of “drama” as “to do, to act, and to perform,” our curriculum will also include in-class “relational” activities done by students, cinematic and performance art pieces that move toward social change. In our glocalized era, the course encourages its participants to appreciate the challenge and pleasure of experiencing diversity in interpersonal encounters across various boundaries.
This course fulfills the diversity requirement for undergraduate general education.
Learning Objectives This course cultivates the students' abilities for dramatic analysis, creative critique, cultural literacy, and original academic research. The students will learn to become more aware of interpersonal dynamics in daily situations. Through close reading and embodied encounters of dramatic artworks, they may appreciate how theatre and performance artists intervene into contemporary cultures to promote social change toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive future for all terrestrial residents.
Required Readings and Supplementary Materials The following texts, arranged by the order of their appearances in our course, will be reserved via Ares at the Leavey Library. Reserved books will become accessible when the spring semester begins. You may also find, rent, or buy used versions of these books in the following websites: Bigwords.com; Amazon.com; BookFi.org [EBook library] Albee, Edward. The Zoo Story in Two Plays by Edward Albee: The American Dream and the Zoo Story. Signet Book from the New American Library, 1959. [ASIN: B000EYB76S], pp. 10-49.*
Fornes, Maria Irene. Mud in Maria Irene Fornes Plays. PAJ Publications, 1986. [933826-83-4], pp. 13-40.*
Kennedy, Adrienne. A Movie Star Has to Star in Black and White in Adrienne Kennedy in One Act. University of Minnesota Press, 1988. [0-8166-1692-2], pp. 79-103.*
Nottage, Lynn. Intimate Apparel in Intimate Apparel/Fabulation. Theatre Communications Group, 2006. [1-55936-279-0], pp. 1-74. Parks, Suzan-Lori. The America Play and Other Works. Theatre Communications Group, 1995. [1-55936-092-5].*
Joseph, Rajiv. Animals Out of Paper in Gruesome Playground Injuries, Animals Out of Paper, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. Soft Skull Press, 2010, pp. 61-142. [978-1- 59376-294-0] [Full-text available on USC library website.]
Baker, Annie. The Flick. Theatre Communications Group, 2014. [978-1-55936-458-4]
Karam, Stephen. Sons of the Prophet. Northwestern University Press, 2012. [0810128772].
Chanse, Sam. Lydia’s Funeral Video. Los Angeles: Kaya Press, 2015.
Peele, Jordan, written and directed. Get Out. Universal Pictures, et. al, 2017.
Baldwin, James, written. Peck, Raoul, directed. I Am Not Your Negro. Velvet Film, 2016.
Note: All the texts marked with * may be accessed as USC e-resource pdf documents via Blackboard, a close-circuit electronic forum. These texts are for intra-class sharing only, not for public distribution. I compile them on BB for your convenience and my educational purpose. A few other texts are available as e-books from the USC library.
Assessment of Assignments The evaluation of your course performance will include your attendance, your eagerness to be involved in the class activities, and the quality of your various contributions, performance and written works. You will fail the class if you only come for the mid-term exam without fulfilling all other requirements. There will be three sets of written assignments, one performance assignment, and one scheduled essay examination. Overall, you will be graded for the level of your understanding, the ingenuity of your plan, the coherence of your organization, and the soundness of your argument. The evaluation includes your ability to support the analysis and interpretation with specific examples from the plays and the skills with which you
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 2 synthesize different ideas from lecture, research, presentation and discussion. Originality as well as diligence will be rewarded.
You are strongly urged to read the text required for each class before the lecture, so that you may contribute sensibly to class discussions. Please bring your copies of the relevant texts to each class. Be prepared that the Professor might call you to read selected scenes in class. Your willingness to serve as a volunteer reader will count favorably toward your "Participation" grade.
All written assignments should be typed and double-spaced. For research paper formatting and reference citations, consult the MLA Handbook (8th Edition, 2016), and its free online companion, https://style.mla.org/.
I. Participation (15%) The participation grade is not guaranteed by mere attendance. It's evaluated in two parts. • The first part is a reward/discipline section for class behavior. (5%) You will earn up to 5% of the participation grade for this section if you behave as a responsible citizen of the class. If you disrupt the class order, you will lose 10 points with every written warning from the Professor. In addition, unexplained absence from the class will adversely affect your participation grade. You lose 5 points with each unexcused absence. • The second part of the participation grade is decided by your intellectual engagement. You may earn up to 10% of the participation grade by your active participation in class discussion and in-class projects. Your efforts to engage in the on-going process of learning and thinking in class will be valued as much as the quality of your participation. Courage, discipline, determination, and the adventurous spirit will speak well for you in this class.
II. Critical Commentaries and Creative Responses/CCCR (40%; 20% for each set) For each class, you are required to prepare one discussion topic in response to the readings. Better yet, for extra credit, you can take the initiative to adopt a character to do a brief presentation on the life of the character in class.
You will collect these weekly topics on your own and then select some of them to expand into more substantial critical commentaries, or creative responses for formal submissions. For this semester, you are required to submit two sets of these critical commentaries/creative responses (four entries per set) to be graded. Each entry should be one to two pages or their equivalents.
These commentaries/responses may be composed of a set of provocative questions linked into thematic paragraphs, or a series of ideas developed into a short critical paper. They may be drawings, images, collages with notes, poems, plays, journals, and photo essays, paired with analytical artist statements. Each entry should be one to two pages, or their
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 3 equivalent. The most important criterion is that the commentary/response is engaging and substantial and that it may provoke deeper questioning of the issues under investigation.
Replacement Entries: The School of Dramatic Arts offers a rich season of productions. For this term, you may replace three entries from the CCCR assignment with reviews of SDA productions, including The Match Maker, by Thornton Wilder, directed by Drew Barr (2 Feb.-1 Mar. 2018); Buenaza/Cabrón, by David Bridel and the MFA Acting Class of 2018, music and lyrics by Caitlyn Conlin, directed by David Bridel (3 Feb.-3 Mar., 2018); and A Bright Room Called Day, by Tony Kushner, directed by David Warshofsky (10 Feb-4 Mar., 2018), and one Vision and Voices Performance event: 8 Stops: A Performance by Deb Margolin (1 Feb. 2018).
III. Solo or Ensemble Presentation/SEP: 15% You are required to do either a solo project or a collaborative project for the semester. If we have enough time, you can do more than one presentation to increase your participation grade. There will be various solo presentation/ensemble performance slots for the whole semester, roughly corresponding to the units of topics that we are exploring. You should sign up in advance which slot and what kind of project (solo or collaborative) that you are going to do. If you want to change your plan, you must do so at least a week in advance. Consult the Professor or the Assistant Instructor for the signing sheet. Both types of presentations are regarded as performances. An individual presentation should last no more than seven minutes. An ensemble or collaborative performance should last no more than ten minutes. Remember: a project's duration has little to do with its quality—longer doesn't make it better! As a rule, an ensemble should include no more than four members. If your project has special requirements that need more than four participants, you may clear the situation in advance with the Professor or the Assistant Instructor.
In addition to the live presentation, you will submit a 1-2 page written statement, outlining the title, the theme, the artistic motivation, and the performance score (the action sequence) of your project. You may also submit your dramatic script, if you have one.
These SEP projects may be either academic or creative, or both. You may perform as a commentator, a theatre student, or a dramatic character, etc., in your solo or ensemble work. It's your choice to design the format and direction of your in-class presentation You will receive an individual grade for your solo project. Your will receive a group grade for the ensemble project—the same grade for each member of the ensemble.
IV. Mid-Term Essay Exam (10%) You will take a mid-term essay examination, which will be an open-book, open- channel exam. Please bring your laptops to the classroom for the exam. USC students can sign out laptop computers from technological labs located at GFS and THH for class use.
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 4 V. Final Project (20%; 6-8 pages) This assignment aims to train your research ability. Thus, you must draw at least two outside critical or journalistic sources, in addition to the references made from the original text. You lose "5 points" for every missing source. A minimum of 6 pages is required for the paper. You lose "5 points" for each page less than the minimum requirement. Please consult The Chicago Manual of Style or the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers for the editorial format. Be sure to document your sources properly.
Option 1--Critical Paper: The critical paper will deal with one of the plays or topics discussed during the semester. Choose the subject that interests you the most, focus on a thesis, and develop your own interpretation based on a close reading of the play and an examination of other critical sources. You must carefully document your sources and present a synthesis of your discoveries. The objective of the paper is to demonstrate your analytical insight, your skill at formulating an argument, and your ability to incorporate examples from the play with critical research.
Option 2--Dramaturgical Newsletter: The dramaturgical newsletter will deal with one of the plays covered during the semester. It will introduce the playwright's life and works, discuss the historical, cultural, and social backgrounds of the play, offer a detailed analysis of the directorial- design concept of the play that you recommend for a new production, explain the reasons for your recommendation, survey at least two past productions, and describe your own version of production. The purpose of the newsletter is to inform your reader about the playwright and the play, to clarify your individual approach to the play, and to impress upon your reader that the production is worth seeing.
Description of Grading Criteria for Various Projects
For Performance and Presentation:
1. Interpretive precision and relevance
2. Conceptual Innovation and coherence
3. Command of medium and presentation/execution (including management of time limit)
4. Significance of the message, supported by the written statement
5. Impact on the audience
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 5 * extra credit for courage
For Creative Response:
1. Relevance to the chosen topic; interpretive precision; knowledge
2. Conceptual innovation, originality, affectability
3. Quality of execution; creative sensitivity and literary/artistic skills
4. Analytical contextualization—support offered by your artist statement accompanying the art project
5. Creative Insights that expand the thematic significance of your chosen topic
For Critical Commentary, Exam Essays, Final Critical Paper:
1. Analytical insight and depth in response to the chosen topic
2. Scope and significance of research: supporting evidence, elaboration of thesis, citation of sources
3. Organization, structure, and persuasion of your argument; knowledge produced
4. Sociocultural or autobiographical contextualization of your chosen theme
5. Quality of writing, demonstrated efforts
For Dramaturgical Newsletter:
1. Analytical innovation and depth
2. Scope and significance of research: supporting evidence through texts, images, and references
3. Imagination and inventiveness in your chosen approach (adaption, concept, context, contemporary relevance, purpose)
4. Clarity and appeal of your information (structure, layout, sequencing of ideas, comprehensiveness, persuasion)
5. Presentation of your Newsletter (quality of writing, sense of design)
FOR SDA GRADING CRITERIA:
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 6 Grading Scale for SDA: A indicates work of excellent quality; B of good quality; C of average quality; D of below average quality; and F indicates inadequate work.
All assignments and presentations will be graded on a percentage (100 points) scale system, which will then be converted into a final letter grade. A+: 100-98; A: 97-94; A-: 93-90; B+: 89-87; B: 86-84; B-: 83-80; C+: 79-77; C: 76-74; C-: 73-70; D+: 69-67; D: 66-64; D-: 63-60.
Grading Breakdown
A s s i g n m e n t P o i n t s % o f G r a d e Participation 1 100 7% Participation 2 100 8% Commentary, 1st Set 100 20% Commentary 2nd Set 100 20% Class Presentation 100 15% Midterm Exam 100 10% Final Project 100 20% T O T A L 700 100%
Assignment Submission Policy All written assignments should be typed and double-spaced. A preferred method of assignment submission is an electronic copy in Microsoft Word format, submitted via Turn- it-in Assignment on Blackboard. For artworks, please scan the piece and linked with your text and submitted via Turn-it-in Assignment on Blackboard. If your art pieces are three- dimensional, you may hand in hard copies to the professor or the Assistant Instructor in class on the due date. Check the course schedule for various assignment due dates. Without prior extension approved by the professor, no late assignment will be accepted.
Additional Policies No cell-phone usage and distracting Internet browsing unrelated to the course material are allowed inside the classroom.
Final Examination Date: Monday, 7 May 2018, from 2 to 4PM. You may submit your Final Projects via this window of time. NO LATE ASSIGNMENT WILL BE ACCEPTED.
Statement on Academic Conduct and Support Systems
Academic Conduct USC seeks to maintain an optimal learning environment. General principles of academic honesty include the concept of respect for the intellectual property of
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 7 others, the expectation that individual work will be submitted unless otherwise allowed by an instructor, and the obligations both to protect one’s own academic work from misuse by others as well as to avoid using another’s work as one’s own. All students are expected to understand and abide by these principles.
Plagiarism – presenting someone else’s ideas as your own, either verbatim or recast in your own words – is a serious academic offense with serious consequences. Please familiarize yourself with the discussion of plagiarism in SCampus in Section 11, Behavior Violating University Standardshttps://scampus.usc.edu/1100- behavior-violating-university-standards-and-appropriate-sanctions/. Other forms of academic dishonesty are equally unacceptable. See additional information in SCampus and university policies on scientific misconduct, http://policy.usc.edu/scientific-misconduct/.
Discrimination, sexual assault, and harassment are not tolerated by the university. You are encouraged to report any incidents to the Office of Equity and Diversity http://equity.usc.edu/ or to the Department of Public Safety http://capsnet.usc.edu/department/department-public-safety/online-forms/contact- us. This is important for the safety whole USC community. Another member of the university community – such as a friend, classmate, advisor, or faculty member – can help initiate the report, or can initiate the report on behalf of another person. The Center for Women and Men http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/cwm/ provides 24/7 confidential support, and the sexual assault resource center webpage [email protected] describes reporting options and other resources.
Support Systems A number of USC’s schools provide support for students who need help with scholarly writing. Check with your advisor or program staff to find out more. Students whose primary language is not English should check with the American Language Institute http://dornsife.usc.edu/ali, which sponsors courses and workshops specifically for international graduate students.
The Office of Disability Services and Programs (DSP) http://sait.usc.edu/academicsupport/centerprograms/dsp/home_index.html provides certification for students with disabilities and helps arrange the relevant accommodations. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to the professor as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. DSP: http://sait.usc.edu/academicsupport/centerprograms/dsp/home_index.html, (213) 740-0776 (Phone), (213) 740-6948 (TDD only), (213) 740-8216 (FAX) [email protected].
Emergency Preparedness/Course Continuity in a Crisis If an officially declared emergency makes travel to campus infeasible, USC Emergency Information http://emergency.usc.edu/will provide safety and other updates, including ways in which instruction will be continued by means of blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technology.
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 8 COURSE SCHEDULE
M 1/8 Introduction. Syllabus Survey. Relational Scenarios.
W 1/10 Albee, Edward. The Zoo Story.*
M 1/15 Martin Luther King J. Day. University Holiday.
W 1/17 The Zoo Story.
M 1/22 Fornes, Maria Irene. Mud.*
W 1/24 Mud. Solo/Ensemble Performance (SEP) #1: Dangerous Duets and Fatal Triangles: Albee; Fornes.
M 1/29 Kennedy, Adrienne. A Movie Star Has to Star in Black and White.*
W 1/31 A Movie Star Has to Star in Black and White.
M 2/5 Nottage, Lynn. Intimate Apparel.
W 2/7 Intimate Apparel.
M 2/12 Intimate Apparel. SEP #2: Love, Agony, Betrayal, Loneliness: Kennedy; Nottage;
W 2/14 Parks, Suzan-Lori. The America Play.*
M 2/19 President’s Day. University Holiday.
W 2/21 The America Play.
M 2/26 SEP #3: Surrogacy; Minor Histories: Kennedy; Nottage; Parks.
W 2/28 Midterm Review.
• DUE: The First Set of Commentaries/Responses (select 4 entries).
M 3/5 Midterm Examination (in class).
W 3/7 Joseph, Rajiv. Animals Out of Paper.
3/11-3/18 Spring Break.
M 3/19 Animals Out of Paper.
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 9 W 3/21 Annie Baker, The Flick.
M 3/26 The Flick.
W 3/28 SEP #4: Triangular Motions; Millennial Angst: Joseph; Baker.
M 4/2 Karam, Stephen. Sons of the Prophet.
W 4/4 Sons of the Prophet.
M 4/9 Chanse, Sam. Lydia’s Funeral Video. Whole-class ensemble performance.
W 4/11 Lydia’s Funeral Video. Whole-class ensemble performance.
M 4/16 SEP #5: Everyday Tragedies; Apocalyptic Humor: Karam; Chanse.
W 4/18 James Baldwin and Raoul Peck, I Am Not Your Negro.
M 4/23 Jordan Peele, Get Out.
W 4/25 SEP #6: Dramatic Arts for Social Change.
• DUE: The Second Set of Commentaries/Responses. (Select 4 entries)
M 5/7 2-4PM. Blackboard Submission of Final Projects.
• DUE: The Final Project.
Syllabus for THTR 395m, with Dr. Cheng, Page 10