An Actor’s Technique: Nuts and Bolts (DRA4127.01)

Jennifer Rohn

How do actors bridge the gap between themselves and the role they are playing? How do actors rehearse with other actors in order to explore the world of the play? This non-performance-based class is designed to help individual actors discover their own organic, and thorough rehearsal process. All casting and scene selection decisions will be discussed with each individual student in an effort to allow them to bring themselves fully to the work. Every effort will be made to provide an accurate and adequate ethnocultural context for the plays chosen. Step by step we will clarify the actor’s process: character research, character exploration, text analysis, identifying actions, working with scene partners, emotional preparation, and scene presentation. Each student will be required to research and present the biography of one renowned actor during the term, and these presentations will serve as a springboard for an on-going group conversation about the craft of acting. Students will work to create a warm-up specifically designed to meet their individual needs and work on one scene throughout the term, allowing them to explore deeply, revise, and edit their choices. Various rehearsal techniques will be explored so that students can begin creating their own rehearsal techniques for future performance work.


Learning Outcomes:
-Understanding of the principles of collaboration
-Ability to analyze and interpret a text(play)
-Develop a sense of how work is created and an ability to foster process
-Develop your own process as an actor


Delivery Method: Fully in-person
Prerequisites: DRA2170 Actor's instrument or permission of instructor.
Corequisites: Dance or Drama lab assignment
Course Level: 4000-level
Credits: 4
M/Th 10:00AM - 11:50AM (Full-term)
Maximum Enrollment: 16
Course Frequency: Once a year

Categories: All courses , Drama , Fully In-Person
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