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Introduction to Theatre Online Course

Dr. Eric W. Trumbull, Professor, Theatre/Speech

Project Suggestions / Assignments

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1. Imagine the telling of an important event in your life through music, dance, poetry, and a play. Write a verse of melody and lyrics, describe the type of dance most appropriate,write a verse of poetry, and describe the opening scene of a play, each of which conveys the event.

2. Turn your favorite popular song into the scenario for a play. What elements must be added to accommodate a two-hour, full-length drama?

3. Turn your favorite film or an episode of your favorite TV show into a song. What parts of the dramatic action can be conveyed in music and lyrics? Which arts must be left out?

4. If you were to turn your favorite movie / TV show / into a two-hour stage play, what aspects would you leave out, change, or adapt to the dimensions of stage space? What scenes could not be shown?

5.  Devise alternate endings for well-known plays such as Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, or Death of a Salesman that would alter the implications of the play, yet maintain the tragic nature of the action.

 6. Write out a scenario for scenes that do not appear, but could be logically included or substituted for others in the above plays. Imagine, for instance, a scene or scenes that could precede the beginnings of these plays as presently structured.

 7. Scan the daily newspaper and create a scenario for a play based on a "real-life" event It does not have to be a headline or front-page story. The event may be reported in the sports, financial, or lifestyle sections. The source might be printed in capsule form under the headings "arrests," "legal notices," "social clubs," or even "recipes."

 

OR

1. Consider one of the plays read or discussed so far and describe how it could be presented (a) on a proscenium stage; (b) on an arena stage; (c) on a thrust stage; (d) in found space, such as a church or warehouse; and (e) in an all -purpose space. Which space seems to be best for the play? Why?

2. Consider each of the plays read or discussed so far, and explain which type of space you think would be best for it.

 

 

PLEASE NOTE:  for all papers you submit for this class (critiques, short papers, extra credit), you MUST include the following information at the top of your paper; include it as part of the text of the paper and not as a header, as this will make it easier for me to mark the document electronically:

Your Name
The Assignment (i.e.: Critique One, Paper Two, etc.)
Date
The semester for which you are registered (i.e.: Fall 2000, Summer 2001, etc.)

This information MUST be included on ALL written assignments.

Last update: November 20, 2007