American Drama 1900-1960

THETR 3360

T/R 2:55 – 4:10 pm

Schwartz 125

Fall 2010

http://courses.cit.cornell.edu/thetr336/

Professor Sara Warner

Making Contact: slw42@cornell.edu or 254-2727

Office: Schwartz Center 429

Office hours: Tuesdays 4:30-6:00 pm and by appointment

Course Objectives:

• To understand American theater history as a significant part of modern American cultural history.
• To explore the ways in which theater and performance have contributed to the construction and deconstruction of an American identity.
• To examine the broad social, political, religious, and cultural contexts in which American theater and performance takes place.
• To develop a vocabulary of key terms for viewing, reading, and reviewing performances.
• To identify and analyze theatrical and literary devices employed in plays and productions.

Course Policies:

• This course will be based on lecture and in-class discussion of the material we read and view. It is essential that you arrive on time to class every day prepared to discuss the assigned material. I will take attendance daily. You are allowed to miss two classes without penalty. Each unexcused absence after this will result in your grade being lowered by 10%. Two tardy arrivals amount to one unexcused absence. If you are absent, you are responsible for finding out what went on in class and for coming to the next meeting fully prepared. Do not make travel plans or schedule appointments that interfere with class; these are unacceptable excuses.
• This class requires professional standards of communication in all areas. All written assignments are to be typed in 12 point font, double spaced, and formatted according to the latest addition of the MLA handbook.
• I do not accept emailed copies of assignments without prior permission.
• I do not accept late work, and I do not give incompletes. Please make every effort to stay on top of the syllabus and contact me immediately if you are falling behind or having difficulty with the course material.

• I respect and uphold University policies and regulations pertaining to the observation of religious holidays; assistance available to physically, visually and hearing impaired students; plagiarism; sexual harassment; and racial and ethnic discrimination. All students are advised to become familiar with these University regulations and are encouraged to bring any questions or concerns to my attention. In keeping with University policies, I am available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that may be required for students with disabilities or special needs. Please see me during the first three weeks of the semester to discuss arrangements. In order for me to assist you, you must register with Student Disabilities Services.
• You are welcome to bring your laptops to class, but use is restricted to course content. Do not text, FB, tweet, email, websurf, etc. during class on your computer, phone, or pda.

Academic Integrity:

Each student is expected to abide by the Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity. Any work submitted by a student in this course for academic credit will be the students' own work. All outside assistance should be acknowledged, and the student's academic position truthfully reported at all times. Please refer to the Code of Academic Integrity and Acknowledging the Work of Others in the Policy Notebook for the Cornell Community, or online at: http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/Academic/AIC.html

Grades:

20% Live Performance Reviews

20% Oral Presentation

30% Paper 1

30% Paper 2

Live Performance Review: You will be required to attend 2 performances during the semester and to write a one page review of each event (as if you were a theater critic). You will receive handouts guiding you in watching live performances critically and writing reviews of them. A list of suggested events can be found at the end of this syllabus.

Oral Presentation: You will be required to give a critical presentation of the material slated for one of the class meetings. Your dynamic report should last between 10 and 15 minutes (no more, no less). Ideally, you will provide a context for the work and summarize the main elements of the text(s) in question, highlighting the major themes, techniques, and tropes. Presentations should be clear, concise, and interactive. Performative enhancements are encouraged. The possibilities for presentation are limited only by your imagination. You can act out a scene from a performance, create a powerpoint presentation, lead the class in an activity, design costumes, etc. The goal of this exercise is not to exhaust a text, but to bring to life one or two key elements of the work. The presentation should include a handout for the class that encapsulates your presentation. You are strongly encouraged to consult with me at least one week prior to your presentation.

Papers: A short paper of 5 pages will be due at the beginning of class on September 30 and December 2. The short papers do not require outside research (though this is certainly an option). These essays should use texts from the syllabus to respond to one of the questions I will distribute 2 weeks prior to the due date. The short paper should be written in MLA format and contain a bibliography and proper citation of sources.

Course Calendar: (O = online article; password required)

August 26

• Introduction: Policies, Terms, Methods

STAGING ALTERITY: THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE & ITS LEGACY

August 31

• Susan Harris, American Drama: The Bastard Art. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1997. 1-9 (O)
• Jeffrey D. Mason, "American Stages (Curtain Rasier)" in Performing America: Cultural Nationalism in American Theater, Eds. Jeffrey Mason and J. Ellen Gainor. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1999. 1-6. (O)

September 2

• Langston Hughes, Mulatto (in Hatch), 4-23
• Alain Locke, excerpts from The New Negro. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992. 3-16 (O)

September 9

• Langston Hughes, Limitations of Life (in Hatch), 223-225
• Zora Neale Hurston, Mule Bone from Library's Alexander Black Drama 1850 to Present (search the Database option)

September 14

• Zora Neale Hurston, Color Struck from Library's Alexander Black Drama 1850 to Present (search the Database option)
• Marita Bonner, The Purple Flower (in Kelly), 309-318

September 16

• Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun (in Hatch), 104-146

September 21

• Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun (in Hatch), 104-146

INTIMATE SPHERES: THE LITTLE THEATERE MOVEMENT & ITS LEGACY

September 23

• Eugene O'Neill, The Emperor Jones
• David Greenspan performance on the 27^th at 4:30 pm

September 28

• Eugene O'Neill, The Emperor Jones
• Big Love opens tomorrow

September 30

• Paper 1 Due
• Susan Glaspell, Trifles from the Library's Alexander North American Women's Drama Database

October 5

• Katherine Kelly, "Introduction: The Making of Modern Drama," 1-16
• Susan Glaspell, The Verge from the Library's Alexander North American Women's Drama Database

October 7

• Performance Review 1 Due

October 12 – No Class: Fall Break

• Djuna Barnes, The Dove (in Kelly)

October 14

• Eugene O'Neill, The Hairy Ape

October 19

• Eugene O'Neill, The Hairy Ape

PERVERSIONS, PECADILLOS, AND THE LOSS OF INNOCENCE: BROADWAY AND BEYOND

October 21

• Lillian Hellman, The Children's Hour (O)

October 26 – No Class (Professor Conference)

October 28 – No Class (Professor Conference)

• Hangar Theater Event - Jason St. Little as Tits Fisher with Kitten's Kiss: A Cabaret Voltaire (Playing Saturday, October 30th at 8:00 PM and Sunday, October 31st at 2:00 PM).

November 2

• Thornton Wilder, Our Town (O)

November 4

• Thornton Wilder, Our Town (O)

November 9

• Sophie Treadwell, Machinal from the Library's Alexander North American Women's Drama Database

November 11

• Tennessee Williams, Streetcar Named Desire

November 16

• Tennessee Williams, Streetcar Named Desire
• David Savran, excerpts from Communists, Cowboys, and Queers: The Politics of Masculinity in the Work of Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams (O)

November 18 – No Class (Professor Conference)

November 23

• "Morality and Modern Drama" (Arthur Miller interviewed by Phillip Gelb), 172-186
• Miller, Death of a Salesman
• Our Town opens tomorrow

November 25 – No Class: Thanksgiving

November 30

• Performance Review 2 due
• Death of a Salesman (1949)
• Miller, "Tragedy and the Common Man," 143-146
• Miller, The "Salesman" has a Birthday," 147-150
• Miller, "The American Theater," 151-155
• Raymond Williams, "The Realism of Arthur Miller," 313-325

December 2

• Edward Albee, The Zoo Story (1959) (O)
• Paper 2 Due

Text Books:

Available at Buffalo Street Books

215 North Cayuga Street (DeWitt Mall on the Commons, next to Greenstar Co-op)

Tel: (607) 273-8246 Fax: (607) 275-9221

Please order books by Monday at noon, and they will be delivered to you in class on Tuesday. You may also go to the store in person.

• Hatch, James V. and Ted Shine. Black Theatre, USA: Plays by African Americans: The Recent Period, 1935-Today. Free Press; Rev Exp edition, 1996. ISBN-13: 978-0684823072

• Kelly, Katherine E. Modern Drama by Women 1880s-1930s. NY: Routledge, 1996. ISBN-13: 978-0415124942

• Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. NY: Penguin, 1996. ISBN-13: 978-0140247732

• O'Neill, Eugene. Four Plays by Eugene O'Neill. NY: Signet Classics, 2007. ISBN-13: 978-0451530714

• Williams, Tennessee. Streetcar Named Desire. NY: Penguin, 1989. ISBN13: 9780451167781

Online Articles:

• You may access online articles from the class website at: http://courses.cit.cornell.edu/thetr336/
• The login is: thetr336 [note, number; not 3360]
• The password is: drama

Performance Review Event Options:

Cornell Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts

§ The Myopia, an epic burlesque of tragic proportion by David Greenspan – Monday, September 27 @4:30 in the Schwartz Center Class of '56 Dance Theatre

§ Big Love by Charles Mee • September 29-October 2

Based on The Suppliant Women by Aeschylus, Big Love follows the rebellion of 50 brides against their arranged marriages to 50 grooms. Dishes crash, wedding cakes fly, chandeliers swing, riots ensue and body counts rise as Obie Award-winning playwright Charles Mee explores the power and passion between the sexes in this bold and physical play.

§ Our Town by Thornton Wilder • November 17-20

In times of crisis, the message in Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning play reminds us to experience joy in simple wonders as it chronicles everyday life in a small, American town. A mix of history and myth, Our Town evokes nostalgia for humanity and community in today's isolating society.

Kitchen Theater (State Street)

§ The Brothers Size by Tarell Alvin McCraney – October 27 - November 7, 2010

An extraordinary story about two African American brothers whose hopes and dreams are pinned on the actions of the other. Set in contemporary small-town rural Louisiana and infused with Yoruba mythology, the play explodes with familial secrets. Strong language and situations.

Hangar Theater

§ Jason St. Little as Tits Fisher with Kitten's Kiss: A Cabaret Voltaire - October 30th at 8:00 PM and October 31st at 2:00 PM.

This performance is a mad triptych through the mind of one of our most beloved show biz figures. Taking a cue from Tristan Tzara and the New York Dolls, Tits Fisher attempts to decipher the current state of our lost world with bravery, bon mots and a healthy dose of synth and bass. Radical chic exists and the party is over circa 1985."

Ithaca College

§ Chicago October 19 – 30

Get ready to be razzle-dazzled by the jailhouse jazz and courtroom comedy of Kander and Ebb's Chicago (coauthored by choreographer Bob Fosse). Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart get away with murder as they vie for top billing as Chicago's most famous celebrity murderess. Aided and abetted by the hotshot (and high-priced) lawyer Billy Flynn, they prove that in Prohibition-era Chicago, $5,000 buys all the justice even the guiltiest defendants need.

§ How I Learned to Drive by Paul Vogel November 30-December 10 [in special circumstances only due to date]

As the 1998 winner of the Pulitzer Prize for drama, this boundary-pushing play takes an unflinching look at a girl forever damaged by those who love her most. "Li'l Bit" moves between ages 11 and 35 and insists on telling her story of abuse and survival with humor and honesty while blurring the lines between victim and perpetrator.