Home | Contact us | Staff | Students | MyExeter | Site map |
https://humanities.exeter.ac.uk/drama/modules/DRA1010/
This module will introduce you to some important and influential modern Western theatre practitioners, situating them in their cultural and historical contexts. These practitioners innovated the art of theatre and enriched the interpretive potential of performance. We will explore some major aspects of modern theatre history, such as the authority of the director, innovations in scenography, new paradigms of physicality and movement, and new methods of audience activation. The module will inform you about the richness and diversity of 20th-century theatre, as well as its connections with culture and society, both historical and present-day.
Performance and Interpretation will help to develop your understanding of the complex and contested idea of performance forms and contexts, and the variety of ways we might interpret them. It is built around a series of lectures given by departmental staff on their cutting-edge work in their respective fields and disciplines: this means you are directly engaged with the work that is shaping contemporary performance scholarship. Each of the four members of staff will give lectures on a specific performance context, and a theoretical perspective that they use to interpret it. Students will then conduct their own research on these contexts and theoretical perspectives, and present their findings in a critical portfolio and an essay. The module aims to give you a deeper understanding and ability to conduct independent research, which will be of benefit in your final year of study and beyond.
Human beings are characterised by their ability to adapt, and cultures themselves also adapt to a variety of influences, while humans adapt to cultures. In this module you’ll look at the processes affecting performance in the contemporary world, taking into account factors such as globalisation, interculturalism, diaspora and migration. As well as being able to locate yourself within your own cultural histories and values, you’ll also understand the role of performance and arts in different cultural contexts, and the complexities of communicating and adapting texts, events, and performances between cultures.
