Course: 07722/ 07717 DSA Beginning Theatre

Shawn Hann, Moss Kaplan, Brett Scott Theatre Syllabus

Contact Info email: [email protected] phone: 720-424-1809 email: [email protected] phone: 724-424-1781 email: brett scott: [email protected] fax: 720-424-1845 website: dsatheatre.org The BEST way to contact us is through dps email. If we do not reply within 3 days, please resend as our mailbox was probably full and it bounced away and we have not read your email.

Office Hours 5th period is my off-hour. Mon, Tues, Fri: 11:08-12:04, Wed: 7:29-9:01, Thurs: 9:06-10:38

Course Requirements The beginning level of Theatre will cover the following units of study in 2009-2010: basic acting, long form improvisation, playwrighting, short films/silent films, editing, movement, Renaissance dance and scenes, monologue coaching, marketing, voice care/projection, Shakespeare, group acting with a peer director, and collaboration with creative writers staged reading.

Students need to be in clothes they can move in (no flip flops, low cut shirts, tight or hanging below the bottom jeans, or hats), ready to participate, and actively engaged in class. See p.17-18 in the handbook for specific requirements.

Required Reading • any play you perform a scene or monologue from • Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing and Hamlet • handouts or assignments given in class

Required Fees • the fees you paid at registration cover the costs of the texts you will receive in class, you will keep these ALL STUDENTS need: • a composition book for journal • a place to take notes and keep handouts other than journal • black fitted movement clothes (sweats, yoga pants, leotards or fitted t-shirts) • Jazz shoes (preferably black) • all students need their own Ben Nye Crème makeup kit—see handbook for details • something to write with every day

Grading Policies Each class period is worth 20 points: 5 for being on time, 5 for being on task, 5 for daily journal entry (at least 5 sentences), and 5 points for participation. Each assignment will have graded components and a final product grade. The product/performance will usually be 100 points based on a rubric.

Participation means participating in class discussions, actively working within groups, bringing homework to class, being prepared for class (including memorization, knowing blocking, and bringing materials needed to work), having a positive attitude, showing respect for teachers and students and guest artists, dressing in black movement clothes, and not disrupting other students. Reasons to lose “on-task” points: Wandering the halls, going to the vending machines without permission, working on other school work or computers without permission (ie. checking email/photo booth), debating the teacher/inability to take direction, or causing drama/gossip.

There is also a general expectations that class starts on time and you are ready to go when class starts.

It is up to the teacher’s discretion on how many points each offense is worth out of 5 points.

Absences/Tardies This is a participation-based class. Students will need to be present to earn the points. There are 20 points earned daily: 5 will be deducted if the student is tardy. Up to 10 can be deducted if depending on lack of participation. If a student is unexcused, they will lose all 20 points.

Daily Journals On most days there will be a question written on the board to start class. When you enter class, take out your journal, copy it into your notebooks and write at least 5 sentences in response to the question. If there is no question, you are still required to write at least 5 sentences for that day. Here are prompts for days without a question. • Reflect on today’s activities in class. What did you like? Learn? Struggle with? Doubt? Questions? • Plan what you need to get done the next day, write what you accomplished in the period. • Questions you have about an assignment, a partner, a process, a playwright… • Reactions to something you’ve read or a comment from a peer or guest artist about your work. • If nothing else, write a critique on a performance – a movie, TV, newscast, radio broadcast, or live theatre. You could also just do a “People Observation.” Watch someone and take notes about how they walk, talk, stand, gesture. This helps you create a notebook of potential character.

You MUST turn in your journal during movement class for a weekly check. Label each entry for the week with a BOX in the upper right corner of the page. We will check the boxes for a completion grade. If you would like us to read a specific entry or comment on it, please put a R in the box.

Curriculum Standards Theatre Arts are important to life and learning. They are a universal force in the everyday - life of people around the world. This force connects each new generation to those who have gone before. Students need theatre arts to make these connections and to express the otherwise inexpressible. Theatre arts benefit the student because they cultivate the whole person, gradually building many kinds of literacy while developing intuition, reasoning, imagination, and dexterity into unique forms of expression and communication

Colorado Model Content State Standards THEATRE 1. Students develop interpersonal skills and problem-solving capabilities through group interaction and artistic collaboration. 2. Students understand and apply the creative process to fundamental skills of acting, playwriting, and directing. 3. Students understand and apply the creative process to skills of design and technical production. 4. Students understand and relate the role of theatre arts to culture and history. 5. Students analyze and assess the characteristics, merits, and meanings of traditional and modem forms of dramatic expression. 6. Students know and apply connections between theatre and other disciplines.