SEMESTER AT SEA COURSE SYLLABUS
Voyage: Summer 2014
Discipline: Drama
SEMS 3500-103: Comparative Theatre: Page to Stage to Screen
Division: Upper
Faculty Name: Geno Carr
Pre-requisites: None
COURSE DESCRIPTION
In this class, students will trace a play’s journey from the written words of the playwright to its
realization on the theatrical stage and finally to its cinematic interpretation(s). Along with
exploration of American works, several of the plays and playwrights studied will tie in directly
with the countries visited on the voyage. By exploring these plays and their various incarnations,
students will employ critical thinking about theatrical performance, its relationship to the society of
which it is a part and its past and present significance as an art form. The field component of the
class will be attendance at a live theatrical performance as well as participation in a discussion with
artists involved in the production.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
To develop an understanding of, appreciation for and the analytical tools necessary to
critically evaluate, compare and contrast a play’s journey from text to stage to filmed
performance.
To make students aware of the ways in which theatre reflects a society’s values, history,
hopes and fears.
Discover and investigate common thematic connections found in drama and better
understand the universal nature of theatre as a reflection of the human condition.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
AUTHOR: Arthur Miller
TITLE: Death of a Salesman
PUBLISHER: Penguin Classic
ISBN #: 978-0141180977
DATE/EDITION: 1998
AUTHOR: Henrik Ibsen (in a new version by Frank McGuinness)
TITLE: A Doll’s House
PUBLISHER: Faber and Faber
ISBN #: 978-0571191291
DATE/EDITION: 1997
AUTHOR: William Shakespeare (SparkNotes, Editors)
TITLE: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (No Fear Shakespeare)
PUBLISHER: SparkNotes
1
ISBN #: 978-1586638481
DATE/EDITION: Study Guide Ed., 2003
AUTHOR: John Patrick Shanley
TITLE: Doubt
PUBLISHER: Theatre Communications Group
ISBN #: 978-1559363471
DATE/EDITION: 2008
TOPICAL OUTLINE OF COURSE
June 16:
Depart Southampton
June 17:
Orientation
C1-June 18:
Why Do We Love Stories?/What is Theatre?
C2- June 19:
Script Analysis/Breaking the Code
C3- June 20:
Script Analysis/Breaking the Code/Why is Meryl Better Than Keanu?
READ DEATH OF A SALESMAN
June 21-24:
Lisbon
C4- June 25:
The American Dream/Existential Crises/Death of a Salesman
C5- June 26:
Death of a Salesman
June 27-30:
Bilbao
C6- July 1:
Death of a Salesman
C7- July 2:
Death of a Salesman
READ PETER PAN
C8- July 3:
Why Do Adults Love Children’s Stories Too?/Peter Pan
July 4-7:
Glasgow
C9- July 8:
Peter Pan/Animated Storytelling
C10-July 9:
Peter Pan/Musical Theatre Storytelling
READ A DOLL’S HOUSE
July 10-13:
Dublin
C11- July 14:
Theatre As Social Commentary/A Doll’s House
2
C12- July 15:
A Doll’s House
C13- July 16:
A Doll’s House
July 17-20:
Bergen and Oslo
C14- July 21:
Exploring Thematic Commonalities in Storytelling
NO CLASS
C15- July 23:
The Universality and Humanity of World Theatre
READ A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
July 24-28:
St. Petersburg
C16- July 29:
The World’s Most Popular and Enduring Playwright/A Midsummer Night’s
Dream
C17- July 30:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
July 31- August 3:
Stockholm
C18- August 4:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
C19- August 5:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
READ THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST
August 6-9:
Helsinki
C20- August 10:
Why We Love Sitcoms and The Hangover/Parody and Satire/The
Importance of Being Earnest
C21- August 11:
The Importance of Being Earnest
READ DOUBT
August 12-15:
Gdansk
C22- August 16:
Parables/Fear/Doubt
C23- August 17:
Doubt
STUDY DAY
C24- August 19:
Final Exam
3
FIELD WORK
Field lab attendance is mandatory for all students enrolled in this course. Please do not book
individual travel plans or a Semester at Sea sponsored trip on the day of our field lab.
FIELD LAB (At least 20 percent of the contact hours for each course, to be led by the
instructor.)
The class will attend a live theatrical performance and talkback in one of our ports of call.
The port, performance and other pertinent details will be determined as the voyage
approaches.
Whenever possible, students are encouraged to seek out and experience performances of
any kind throughout the voyage.
FIELD ASSIGNMENTS
Students will submit a two to three page reaction paper reflecting upon their Field Lab
experience (as well as incorporating any other performances they attended). These papers
will discuss how the performance/talkback (and other performances) related to classroom
studies, explore cultural and artistic similarities and differences, as well as include any
number of other discoveries and insights.
METHODS OF EVALUATION / GRADING RUBRIC
Attendance/Participation (40%)
Students are expected not only to attend class, but also to actively participate in and
contribute to classroom activities. A majority of the time spent in class will consist of
observations, discussions and analyses of plays and their filmed adaptations, so attendance
and participation are absolutely necessary.
Quizzes/Assignments (40%)
Content quizzes will be proctored and there will be various assignments and projects to be
completed throughout the voyage.
Field Assignment Reaction Paper (10%)
Students will submit a two to three page reaction paper reflecting upon their Field Lab
experience (as well as incorporating any other performances they attended). These papers
will discuss how the performance/talkback (and other performances) related to classroom
studies, explore cultural and artistic similarities and differences, as well as include any
number of other discoveries and insights.
Final (10%)
The final exam will be in multiple choice and essay form, covering material from the entire
semester and inviting students to reflect and expound upon their cumulative studies and
experiences both in class and during the voyage.
RESERVE LIBRARY LIST
N/A
ELECTRONIC COURSE MATERIALS
AUTHOR: J.M. Barrie
4
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: Peter Pan or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up (PDF)
AUTHOR: Oscar Wilde
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: The Importance of Being Earnest (PDF)
Others TBD As Voyage Approaches
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
DVD/VIDEO CLIPS SELECTED FROM:
Death of a Salesman (1951, 1985)
Peter Pan (1953 – Animated, 1960 – Stage Musical)
Hook (1991)
A Doll’s House (1973, Young Vic)
Mabou Mines Dollhouse
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1935, 1968, 1999)
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952, 2002, 2011)
Doubt (2008)
Others TBD as Voyage Approaches
*Some May Be Broadcast on CCTV
HONOR CODE
Semester at Sea students enroll in an academic program administered by the University of
Virginia, and thus bind themselves to the University’s honor code. The code prohibits all acts of
lying, cheating, and stealing. Please consult the Voyager’s Handbook for further explanation of
what constitutes an honor offense.
Each written assignment for this course must be pledged by the student as follows: “On my honor
as a student, I pledge that I have neither given nor received aid on this assignment.” The pledge
must be signed, or, in the case of an electronic file, signed “[signed].”
5