Unit name | Performance Space/Place |
---|---|
Unit code | DRAMM1113 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | M/7 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
Unit director | Dr. Krebs |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
s None |
Co-requisites |
s None |
School/department | Department of Theatre |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will investigate the varied nature and relationships of space and place in performance, giving particular attention to the performative energies which articulate them to cultural change in particular historical periods. Different conceptions of space and place drawn from a range of disciplines, including archaeology, sociology, geography, cultural studies, theatre studies and performance studies itself, will be considered for their relevance to the efficacies of performativity in specific contexts of staged action. Cross-cultural study will compare the dynamics in and between traditional and innovative animations of place and space through performance, in a range of locations from established theatres through site-specific dramas to performance in the everyday and in cyber-environments. Practical exercises and field work will extend understandings of the circulation of power - social, political, cultural, etc - in the performative transformations of space and place, particularly at sites of celebration and contestation. The qualities of space and place that are integral to performances at different times will also be a source of study.
Aims:
Plus as appropriate to the mode of teaching:
These may include: Lectures; workshops; seminars; plenary and small group discussions; viewings; essay/critical analysis;
Either:
2 x Essays (2,500 words)
Or:
1 x Essay (2,500 words) and 1 x Seminar Presentation and write up (1,500 words)
Or:
1 x Essay (2,500 words) and 1 x Critical Analysis (1,500 words)
Bachelard, Gaston (1994 [1964]) The Poetics of Space, tr. Maria Jolas, Boston: Beacon Press.
Carlson, Marvin (1989) Places of Performance: the semiotics of theatre architecture,
Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press.
Lefebve, Henri (1991) The Production of Space, tr. D. Nicholson-Smith, Oxford: Blackwell.
McCauley, Gay (1999) Space in Performance: making meaning in the theatre, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Soja, Edward J. (1989) Postmodern Geographies: The Reassertion of Space in Critical Social Theory, London: Verso.
Wiles, David (2003) A Short History of Western Performance Space, Cambridge University Press.