Department of Theater > Course Descriptions

Please note:  Almost all theater department courses take field trips to Chicago-area theater to allow students to see productions of the plays and techniques being discussed in the classroom. Tickets and transportation for most field trips are arranged by the College, and the costs are shared by the Center for Chicago Programs, the theater department, and student lab fees for theater courses.

Lab fees will be charged (along with tuition) for all courses involving field trips.  Field trips are fully arranged before the semester begins, and no refunds can be made after the add/drop date.

THTR 102 Theater in Chicago
Investigation and discussion of both classic and modern plays through attending performances at a wide variety of Chicago theaters, ranging from small special-interest companies to the world-famous Goodman and Steppenwolf theaters. Reading and analysis of selected plays is coupled with written critiques and group discussion. Cost of theater tickets is not included in tuition; it will be billed upon enrollment and is not refundable.  (Cross-listed as AMER 102.)

THTR 103 Being On Stage
This course explores the many times we are on stage in life: job interviews, business presentations, teaching a class, or even in a court of law.  It is also an introduction to a wide variety of performance experiences including lecture, poetry and prose reading, stand-up comedy, improvisation, dance and music, as well as acting. Particular emphasis is on key presentation components of physical comfort and presence, clarity of message or intent, and variety in vocal delivery. Students will attend events in Chicago and on campus in order to learn how to talk and write about being on stage when performing in the theater or in daily life. Numerous explorations and on-stage exercises lead to final projects. This course is ideal for students majoring in the fields of music, communication, education, pre-law, pre-med, or business, as well as beginning or experienced actors.

THTR 120 Acting I: Creating a Character
For beginners and experienced actors alike, this course is required for all theater majors but open to students from any discipline with any level of experience.  This course explores the basic methods of  creating and developing realistic characters through truthful explorations of the "self" and the "text." A variety of acting methods are studied and practiced through interpretive and physical exercises, monologues, and scenes. The course work culminates in final scene projects.  Writing assignments include analytic response papers on productions attended, in-class exercises, projects, and daily journal entries.  Offered yearly.

THTR 128 Introduction to Singing
(Cross-listed as MUSC 118.)

THTR 130 Origins and Theories of Theater
This required course for theater majors introduces students to the theoretical underpinnings of the discipline. Theater history and methodology are used to ask such basic questions such as: Why are humans drawn to perform? For sheer enjoyment? To express ideas through performance?  What functions have theater and performance served in cultures throughout history?  Group psychology, ritual, cathartic transformation, celebration, invocation, and other concepts are examined through discussion, readings, and performance experiences. This course focuses on the ability to analyze and interpret works of dramatic literature through written, oral, and visual presentations.

THTR 160 Being Backstage
An introduction to the technology employed backstage to create the magic of theatrical design and special effects.  This course is open to beginning students of all disciplines, and will provide an experiential and practical orientation to stagecraft through projects in puppetry, set and prop construction, painting, makeup, and computer-assisted drafting (CAD).  Other topics include theater terminology, safety procedures, and hand & power-tool usage.

THTR 200 Technical Theater Practicum
Practical work on a technical crew for the fall or spring production(s) in the Theater Department.  This course is open to all students by application to the Director of Theater.  Students train in safety, tool use, and protocol for backstage areas and theatrical scene shop, then apply that training to building the Theater Department production(s).  Students may take this course for credit, earning 1/4 credit per semester, but may only receive credit for each section once during their degree.  The sections are listed below.  At least 40 hours of volunteer (i.e. unpaid) work will be required over the course of the semester to receive credit.  Participation in all technical rehearsals and performances may be required.  This course is graded Credit/D/F.  (No concurrent registration with THTR 205).
Sec 01 Set Construction
Sec 02 Lighting and Sound
Sec 03 Properties and Paint Techniques
Sec 04 Costumes, Makeup, and Hair

THTR 205  Artistic Theater Practicum
Artistic and individualized practical work on the fall or spring production(s) in the Theater Department.  This course is open to all students who have completed the necessary prerequisites for their section, and who have auditioned or interviewed with the Director of Theater or his or her representative.  Enrollment is contingent on the approval of the production director.  Students train in theatrical performance techniques, stage management, dramaturgy, or assistant directing, then apply that training in the Theater Department productions.  Students may take this course for credit earning 1/4 credit per semester, but may only receive credit for each section once during their degree.  The sections are listed below.  Participation in all technical rehearsals and performances may be required.  This course is graded Credit/D/F/  (No concurrent registration with THTR 200.)
Sec 01 Stage Performance
Sec 02 Stage Management
Sec 03 Production Dramaturgy
Sec 04 Assistant Directing

THTR 220 Acting II: Twentieth-Century Realism
An exploration of acting techniques required in modern and contemporary works from the early twentieth century to the present by authors such as Shaw, O’Neill, Williams, Inge, Miller, Pinter, Albee, Shepard, Churchill, Norman, Wilson, and others.  Scene projects include written script and  character analysis, daily journals, and in-depth critiques of self and peer performances. Prerequisite: THTR 120 (Acting I).

THTR 222 Voice and Diction
Theory and practice of oral communication; voice production and breathing techniques; articulation drills; development of effective delivery and presentation techniques; relaxation and confidence-building exercises; public speaking practice; communication skills for business, the creative arts, and professions.

THTR 224 Performance Art Techniques
An exploration of modern and contemporary performance styles required by works from the early twentieth-century to the present by authors such as Pirandello, Brecht, Rice, Beckett, Ionesco, Genet, Grotowski, Artaud, Mnouchkine, Spaulding Gray, and others. Theories of Realism, Expressionism, Absurdism, and others will be examined in a performance context that includes skills in mime, improvisation, puppetry, dance, and more.

Students will create their own “Performance Art” works as well as reading or performing scripted works by others. Project work is coupled with research projects, journal assignments, and attendance at a variety of Chicago-area productions and exhibitions. Written analyses and  critiques of field trips and in-class presentations fill out the curriculum. This course is applicable for students of theater, art, literature, history, and communication. Prerequisites: THTR 120 (Acting I) or ART 130.

THTR 225 Acting for the Camera
This course is an exploration of the acting techniques required in film, television, and other media. Knowledge and understanding of film techniques, vocabulary, and genre styles is accomplished through viewing and analysis of modern and contemporary film works from the early twentieth century to the present by noted authors and filmmakers.

Acting projects center on the performance of scenes, monologues, voice-overs, and commercials. Other projects include written script and character analysis, daily actor journals, and in-depth critiques of self and peer performances. Papers of analysis on films viewed in and out  of class and other research projects including adaptation of texts and acting styles for the screen are also required.  Prerequisites: THTR 120 (Acting I), and either THTR 220 or permission of the instructor.

THTR 226 Improvisation Techniques
Targeted towards both theater majors and non-majors, this class will focus on the basic rules of improvisation (performing specified objectives onstage without a script), heightening the actors’ techniques of immediacy, relationship, commitment, storytelling, physicality, clarity, intuition, spontaneity, and creativity.  Objectives, given circumstances, and physical involvement will all be explored thoroughly.  Students will discover, through experience, their own possibilities of varied action, of personal freedom and self-expression within the parameters of basic stage improvisation.

THTR 230 History of Drama I: Greeks to Shakespeare
This required course for theater majors examines the history of drama and theater from its origins in religious ritual of ancient Greece to the productions of Shakespeare’s London. In addition to in-depth study of plays, emphasis is placed on acting styles, production techniques, stage and auditorium architecture, and the socio-political milieu that formed the foundation of the theater of each culture and period.  Offered yearly in the spring.  THTR 130 is recommended but not required.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 230.)

THTR 231 History of Drama II: Molière to Chekhov
This required course for theater majors examines the history of drama and theater from the comedies of Molière to the beginning of twentieth-century realism in the plays of Ibsen and Chekhov. In addition to in-depth study of plays, this course explores the conventions of acting and stagecraft and cultural conditions that influenced each period’s theater. Offered yearly in the fall.  Prerequisite: THTR 230.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 234.)

THTR 235 Topics in 20th Century Theater (students may repeat different topics of THTR 235 for credit)

THTR 235 Topics in 20th Century Theater: Musical Theater
A study of representative musical comedies, operettas, and related works that will provide topics for papers by students. Emphasis will be placed on relationship to political, social, and cultural events. Videotapes of musicals are viewed and discussed. Among works to be discussed are Show Boat, Oklahoma!, South Pacific, My Fair Lady, Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, A Little Night Music, Sunday in the Park with George, and others. (Cross-listed as MUSC 235, ENGL 236, and AMER 235.)

THTR 235 Topics in 20th Century Theater: GLBT Voices
This class will study the recent flourishing of gay, lesbian, and transgender voices in theater. We’ll look at various styles of activism and  performance, from farce to realism, to camp/ drag, to “queer” theater. Figures to be discussed include Charles Ludlam, Harvey Fierstein, Larry Kramer, William Hoffmann, Paula Vogel, Paul Rudnick, Tony Kushner, Jane Chambers, and Holly Hughes. (Cross-listed as AMER 235, WOMN 235, and ENGL 385.  Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement.)

THTR 235: Topics in 20th Century Theater: Shaw to Kushner
An exploration of modern and contemporary works from the early twentieth century to the present by authors such as Shaw, Pirandello, O’Neill, Brecht, Inge, Rice, Odets, Wilder, and Miller. Theories of Realism, Expressionism, and others will be examined in context with the social and cultural events that inspired them.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 237.)

THTR 235: Topics in 20th Century Theater: Performance Art
(Cross-listed as ART 237 and ENGL 233.)

THTR 235: Topics in 20th Century Theater: American Celebrations
(Cross-listed as SOAN 235 and AMER 200.  Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement.)

THTR 236 Shakespeare
(Cross-listed as ENGL 220.)

THTR 237 Women in Theater
This course will examine the involvement of women in the history of theater. Topics covered may include: the medieval plays of Roswitha, strong female characters (acted by men) in Shakespeare, the arrival of actresses on the Restoration stage, the eighteenth-century playwright Aphra Behn, the rise of “star” actresses in the nineteenth century, and such twentieth-century figures as Marsha Norman, Maria Irene Fornes, Beth Henley, Wendy Wasserstein, Caryl Churchill, Timberlake Wertenbaker, Hélène Cixous, and Ntozake Shange. Prerequisite: At least one course in theater history. (Cross-listed as WOMN 237.  Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement.)

THTR 241 African American Drama & Theater
This course surveys the work African American theater artists from the nineteenth century to the present day. Playwrights surveyed may include Richardson, Hughes, Hansberry, Childress, Bullins, Baraka, Fuller, Wilson, Cleage, Shange, and Parks.  Readings are supplemented by field trips to Chicago theaters that feature African American plays. (Cross-listed as AMER 241, AFAM 241, and ENGL 241. Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement.)

THTR 242 Violence in Drama & Theater: Shakespeare to Tarantino
This course explores the conundrum of why, from the time of Shakespeare to the present day, violence in the arts continues to endure and, indeed, to thrive.  We will read and discuss selected plays and view both live theater productions and films.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 380).

THTR 251 Introduction to Performance Studies
In this course, we will explore the flourishing new discipline of Performance Studies.  This field of study began as a collaboration between theater director and theorist Richard Schechner and anthropologist Victor Turner, combining Schechner's interest in "aesthetic performance" (theater, dance, music, performance art) with Turner's interest in performance as ritual within indigenous cultures, or (as Erving Goffman has written) "the presentation of self in everyday life."  Performance Studies often stresses the importance of intercultural performance as an alternative to either traditional proscenium theatre or traditional anthropological fieldwork.  In addition to the above and other authors, the course will include in-class performance exercises along with field trips to performances in Chicago. (Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement. Cross-listed as SOAN 251.)

THTR 252 World Performance
This course covers the history and appreciation of several types of non-Western performance, with the goal of developing students' ability to understand non-Western performance traditions and their influence on Western drama and performance traditions.  Students will view videos and attend out-of-class field trips to performances, museums, and special events in order to develop skills of analysis and appreciation for non-Western performance, as well as to master English- and foreign-language vocabulary.  Through focused units on Chinese Drama, Indian Drama, Indonesian/Oceanic Drama, Japanese/Korean Drama, African Drama, Caribbean/Native and South American Drama, we will practice comparing trends across cultural groups, learn to identify political, social, and cultural motivations for performance, and experiment in using non-Western techniques in our own creative work.  (Meets GEC Cultural Diversity Requirement).

THTR 255 Dramaturgy
An introduction to the role of the dramaturg within the theatrical production process. Includes readings by and about dramaturgs and hands-on experience in the following areas of dramaturgical pursuit: evaluating new scripts; creating  a production-specific “protocol” (research  compendium); analyzing and preparing a script for rehearsal; serving as an “in-house critic”; collaborating with directors, designers, and actors; creating and running educational programs for school and adult audiences; rehearsal functions and decorum; documentation techniques. Offered every other year.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 255.)

THTR 257 Theater Criticism
An intensive course on reading and writing brief, journalistic play critiques designed to help theatergoers make informed consumer decisions.  Attention to journalistic basics and issues of individual sensibility and taste. Class writings will be considered for campus publications.  Prerequisites: THTR 255; or THTR 102 and permission of the instructor.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 340.)

THTR 260 Design for the Stage: Designing Ideas
This course is an introduction to the processes and principles of design. It covers the development of a design concept through script reading and analysis; the discussion and analysis of professional set, costume, lighting, and sound designs; training in basic drafting skills; and  lecture information on theater technology and terminology. Several design projects are coupled with text readings and hands-on work with lighting instruments, and sound and lighting control systems.  Offered every other year.  THTR 160: “Being Backstage” is recommended.

THTR 270 Playwriting
This course focuses on the collaboration between director, designers, and playwright in the creation and production of new works for the stage. Projects will include writing, script analysis, casting, and presentation of original student works and/or student-adapted works by professional authors.  Offered every other year.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 242).

THTR 320 Topics in Advanced Acting (students may repeat different topics of THTR 320 for credit)

THTR 320 Topics in Advanced Acting: Performing Verse Drama
An actor’s buffet of verse and period style roles requiring special techniques and stylistic awareness. Scene work is coupled with intensive study of verse drama, written analysis and historical research on the plays, and attendance at a variety of Chicago-area productions. Written assignments include analytic papers, journals, and critiques of in-class and outside performances. Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 220.  THTR 222 (Voice & Diction) strongly recommended.

THTR 320 Topics in Advanced Acting: Performing Farce & Comedy
A practical study of comic techniques for modern, classic, and contemporary works. A variety of on-stage projects, film/video viewing, research projects, and field trips to local and regional performances combine to provide a detailed investigation of what makes us laugh and how  it is best achieved.  Scene work is coupled with intensive study of verse drama, written analysis and historical research on the plays. Written assignments include analytic papers, journals, and critiques of in-class and outside performances. Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 120.

THTR 325  Advanced Scene Study
An opportunity for advanced students of acting to explore in depth scenes from historical and contemporary dramas of various styles.  This course is designed to work in conjunction with the directing course. Advanced scene study students participate in directing exercises and final projects as needed. In addition to working with directing students, we will pursue our own readings, discussions, and exercises, emphasizing an actor's reading of a script, research and preparation for a role, a relationship with the director, and creating a strong ensemble with other cast members.  Prerequisites:  THTR 120, THTR 230, THTR 231, as well as either permission of the instructor or THTR 220.

THTR 340 Renaissance Drama
Who were the other popular playwrights of Shakespeare’s day?  Have they been overshadowed by the Bard’s fame? In this course we will discuss, watch films of, and stage scenes from the vibrant and stage-worthy plays of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries in England, including the witty comedies of Jonson and Dekker, and the horrific tragedies of Kyd, Marlowe, Marston, Middleton, Tourneur, Webster, and Ford. The course will culminate in a discussion of the film Shakespeare in Love, which portrays playwrights, actors, managers, and other historical figures of the English Renaissance.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 308.)

THTR 350 Dramatic Theory
Discussion and application of major theories of drama, including Aristotle, Dryden, Stanislavski, Brecht, Artaud, and others.  We will apply each theory to appropriate plays from each theorist’s time period, plus we will apply all the theories to a selected work in order to come up with a range of theoretically informed producible production concepts for the play.  Prerequisites:  THTR 230, THTR 231.  THTR 255 strongly recommended.

THTR 353 Bringing Chicago’s Art to Life
This course explores the connections between plastic, two- and three-dimensional art and time-based art such as music, dance, and theater.  Using the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago and performances by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, students will choose particular works of art and explore how they can inspire new works of theater art.  These explorations can be in the genres of traditional theater, music, dance, or performance art, but they must be created and performed by the students.  Additionally students will read, discuss and write about a variety of theoretical works on the nature and creation of art.  Several small-scale projects and one longer performance project will be required.  Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231.  An additional course in performance or dramatic theory is strongly recommended.  (Cross-listed as AMER 353).

THTR 355 Dramatic Criticism
Reading and discussion of principles and examples of dramatic criticism, from longer essays in scholarly books, academic journals, and magazines.  We will write our own dramatic criticism in response not only to plays on the page, but also to performances on campus and in Chicago theater.  Prerequisites:  THTR 230, THTR 231.  THTR 255 strongly recommended.  (Cross-listed as ENGL 343.)

THTR 360 Topics in Advanced Design (students may repeat different topics of THTR 360 for credit)

THTR 360 Topics in Advanced Design: Scenic Design
A study of advanced problems in scene design including multiple-setting shows, period classics, and operas/musicals.  Lab work is combined with scholarly study of the history of design, and some emphasis is placed on visual research and student design projects.  Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 260.  Please note: Only one of the three topics in advanced design courses is offered every other year, according to student interest.

THTR 360 Topics in Advanced Design: Costume Design
A study of advanced problems in costume design including contemporary shows and period classics.  Lab work is combined with scholarly study of the history of design, and some emphasis is placed on visual research and student design projects.  Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 260.  Please note: Only one of the three topics in advanced design courses is offered every other year, according to student interest.

THTR 360 Topics in Advanced Design: Lighting and Sound Design
A study of advanced problems in lighting and sound design.  Lab work is combined with scholarly study of the history of design, and some emphasis is placed on visual research and student design projects.  Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 260.  Please note: Only one of the three topics in advanced design courses is offered every other year, according to student interest.

THTR 370 Advanced Playwriting
This is a writing-intensive course in the craft of dramatic writing.  Problems of writing for the stage will be studied through reading and careful analysis of published play scripts, theater attendance, and in-class and out-of-class writing projects. Group discussions and individual conferences are also required. Prerequisites: ENGL 235 (only accepted for registration under English number), or THTR 230, THTR 231, and THTR 270.

THTR 375 Directing
An introduction to directing for the stage, including both scholarly study of directing and practical work. Students learn the fundamental principles of stage direction through a series of in-class exercises and then apply them to short directing projects. Emphasis is on directing projects and production research. Offered every other year.  Prerequisites: THTR 230, THTR 231, THTR 120.

THTR 480 Senior Seminar
The aim of this course is to provide a “capstone” experience for students majoring in theater. The course allows students to reflect on why one makes theater and to develop their own conceptual basis for making theater. The course will stress issues that confront the theater artist, including professional practices. Students will divide their time between independent research and the classroom.  Classroom work will focus on student research presentations and discussions of practices and issues confronting the contemporary theater artist.  Prerequisites: THTR 120, THTR 130, THTR 230, THTR 231, and senior standing in the major or permission of the instructor.

THTR 390 Internship
Our Chicago connection allows us to offer unique, outstanding internship opportunities at a variety of world-famous theaters. The cornerstone for the program is internships in areas of production management, dramaturgy, technical direction and design, artistic direction, advertising, and public relations. Opportunities are available at Steppenwolf Theater, Goodman Theater, and Second City. Smaller companies, yet no less well-respected, specializing in specific genres also offer internships. These include Bailiwick Theatre, Black Ensemble Theater, About Face Theater, and Lookingglass Theatre.

Internships must be applied for in the semester prior to enrollment and application includes on-campus interviews with faculty and staff and off-campus interviews with members of the host theater company. Junior class standing and other prerequisites apply based on the nature of the internship and the requirements of the host organization.  THTR 390 will not fulfill the 300-level requirement for the major unless specific permission is granted from the Department Chair.

For application information, interested students should consult with the faculty liaison.

THTR 492 Senior Creative Project

THTR 494 Senior Thesis
A well-documented and well-executed senior project completed in the senior year may count as a senior thesis. (See Academic Regulations in the Student Handbook for details.) As with other theses, the final project will be reviewed by a thesis-examining committee consisting of three faculty, at least one from outside the Theater Department. Students are encouraged to consult with members of this committee during the planning and execution of the project.