Course Descriptions

THR/HPE 002 Lifetime Sports—Introduction to Dance and Composition (.0 course)
This course offers an overview of various exercises and gives an introduction to a variety of movement styles, cultures of dance, and composition. Each class includes a rigorous, physical warm-up, mixing yoga, conditioning, and modern dance.

THR/HPE 005 Lifetime Sports—Modern Dance and Improvisation (.0 course)
Students will learn various phrases of movement incorporating floor exercises and will learn to travel through space using level, volume, and floor pattern. Improvisational techniques will be introduced and students will create short improvisational pieces. (NOTE: Students are allowed to use only one of THR/HPE 002, 003, 004, or 005 to fulfill the lifetime sports requirement.)

THR 116 Creative Drama: Acting and Improvisation
A study of theatrical movement, voice, mime, mask, improvisation, acting, and storytelling with an emphasis on active participation, creation of an original performance, and reflective writing. This course is primarily designed for non-majors and does not fulfill credit toward the theater arts major. Attendance at theater productions required. Students will be required to pay for theater production tickets.

THR 222 Introduction to Theater
Introduction to Theater is an examination of theater as an artistic form and focuses on the appreciation and value of theater in society. Focus on historical periods, plays, artists, basic concepts, and techniques of the play production process. Students attend and review stage productions. This course is primarily designed for non-majors and does not fulfill credit toward the theater major.

THR 226 Movement for the Theater
A study of the principles of movement used in the art of acting. Students will improve their use of energy, concentration, balance, control, clarity, timing, and spontaneity through practical exercises. This course uses established theory and techniques in neutral mask, Asian martial arts, and physical and vocal characterization exercises. Students will examine various performance paradigms and see professional productions.

THR 228 Introduction to Stagecraft
An introduction to the backstage world of the theater: its organization, crafts, and creative processes. Students will execute practical projects, attend theater tours, see professional productions, and participate in the Theater  Department’s fall productions. Open to all students. Thirty-hour lab requirement.

THR/FLM 230 Scenic Painting for Stage and Film
Scenic Painting is an introductory study of the art of scenic painting for the stage, film, and faux application. Through a series of foundational painting projects, reading assignments, informal lecture, discussion, and a final cumulative painting project, students will develop the required skills and understanding of what it means to be a scenic artist and what role the scenic artist plays in artistry of theater and film.

THR 232 Acting
An introduction to the art of acting. Focus on physical, mental, and emotional preparation, and exploration of the creative approach to scene and character study in American drama, culminating in a final performance. Students attend and review local professional productions.

THR 233 Acting for Camera
An exploration of acting principles and techniques as it enhances and applies to on camera effectiveness. This co-taught studio course also includes technology elements which support acting on camera. (Alternate years)

THR/MUS 235 Skills of Music Theater
An interdisciplinary approach to the topic using music and theater techniques to develop the student’s basic skills of music theater. Concepts of diverse music theater forms are introduced. Course includes reading, writing, research, class discussion, exercises, small and large group participation, memorization, and public performance. Students will attend and review live productions. (Alternate years)

THR 237 Dance for Musical Theater
Introduction to movement technique in two dance styles. Students will learn fundamental skills in and aesthetics of dance technique, as well as the sociohistorical content and meaning of various dance forms, with a particular focus on the representation of individual and cultural identity through movement.

THR 245 Introduction to Asian and Asian American Theater
A survey of the theatrical performance styles, aesthetic theories, and plays of traditional Asian and Asian American cultures. The course includes lectures, films, videos, and demonstrations by visiting performers. Attendance at local theater productions required. Students will be required to pay for theater production tickets.

THR 250 Script Analysis: Foundations of Theater
This foundations class focuses on major principles and fundamentals of theater literary analysis and research and uses discussion, writing, performance, and projects as ways to interpret a dramatic script for academic and artistic purposes. Close readings of plays from various genres and in-depth research projects will enable students to learn and apply skills they will use in more advanced courses.

THR 255 Introduction to Musical Theater
This course examines American musical theater in societal, cultural, and historical context with special attention to the representation of race, class, gender, and sexuality on stage. Through active discussion and written assignments, students will engage with specific musicals through the examination of cultural artifacts, live and recorded performances, and popular and scholarly texts.

THR 265 Computer Drafting for the Stage and Architecture
An introduction to drafting on the computer. Students will learn how to use basic commands to input information, organize, lay out, and print 2-D drafting plates, with an emphasis on drafting for the theater.

THR 270 Black Theater
An examination of the principles, major movements, and fundamentals of theater by and about African Americans. It examines the historical, political, and cultural context of Black Theater and focuses on plays written by African American playwrights.

THR 275 Lighting and Sound for the Stage
A practical study of the lighting and sound design processes for theater and beyond. This course leads the student step-by-step from script analysis through final execution of both a lighting and sound design. Basic principles of light and sound, as well as equipment, will be addressed.

THR 280 Costumes and Makeup for Performance
A practical study of the costume design and makeup application processes for theater and beyond. Topics covered include period research, sketching, rendering, fabric selection, fabric draping, and basic sewing techniques, as well as introductorytechniques in stage makeup application and design.

THR 295 Topics
An introduction to selected theater arts-related topics not regularly offered in lower division classes. The specific topics to be offered will include travel abroad courses. In addition, this THR 295 designation will fulfill an LAF requirement for Fine Arts.

THR/ENL 325 Playwriting I
An introductory course in writing for theater and performance. Students will learn the basics of dramatic structure, character development, and theatrical language, as well as techniques for the development of playscripts from idea to complete draft.(Prereq.: ENL 111 or 112 or HON 111, or consent of Theater Department chair. THR 250 or ENL 226 recommended. Alternate years)

THR/ENL 326 Playwriting II
A playwriting workshop with emphasis on the revision process and the continued development of craft. Students will revise, redraft, and polish an original one-act play, as well as create one new, short piece of theatrical writing. (Prereq.: THR 325 or ENL325)

THR 328 Theatrical Design
Introduction to the design process for the stage. Each student will execute four design projects for scenery, costumes, lighting, and sound, using a research-based design process. The class will take theater tours and host visiting artists.

THR 350 Voice for Speech, Stage, and Screen
A study of vocal skills including tone production, breathing, placement, relaxation, resonating, articulating, listening, introduction to phonetics, and the vocal mechanism. This course will use established exercises and theories in several methodologies of vocal training. Theory and practice are combined in oral projects, reports and papers, voice tapes, and individual coaching. (Alternate years)

THR 361 Theater History and Criticism I
An overview of theater history, dramatic literature, and criticism from the classical Greek through the French Neoclassical period. Reading a range of texts (including plays), writing a research paper, and attendance at local theater productions are required. Need not be taken sequentially with THR 362. (Prereq.: THR 250 and ENL 111 or 112 or HON 111. Fall: alternate years)

THR 362 Theater History and Criticism II
An overview of theater history, dramatic literature, and criticism from the English Restoration through contemporary performance. Reading a range of texts (including plays), writing a research paper, and attending local theater productions are required. Need not be taken sequentially with THR 361. (Prereq.: THR 250 and ENL 111 or 112 or HON 111. Fall alternate years)

THR 365 Advanced Acting
This course provides students with performance skills and the ability to recognize differentiating clues that identify the style of a play. Through class exercises, scene study, and character analysis, students will gain insight into the performance demands of a specific style. Emphasis is on a variety of roles from the classics (Shakespeare, French Neoclassicism, Restoration Comedy, realism, and nonrealism), culminating in a public recital. (Prereq.: THR 250, THR 232, THR 362 orconsent of instructor, and pass CT assessment or GST 100. Fall, spring)

THR 366 Stage Direction
A study of the basic principles and skills of stage direction: directing concepts and methodologies, stage techniques, terminologies, script analysis; rehearsal planning and techniques; blocking, stage dynamics, working with actors, and the overall staging of a play. Theories of directing are also examined. (Prereq.: THR 362 and junior or senior standing)

THR 425 New Methodologies of Stage Direction and Dramaturgy
This course will examine principles and practices of the modern and contemporary stage director as auteur. We will study radical reinterpretations of classic plays by such directors as Meyerhold, Mnouchkine, and Sellars, and explore and apply some of their methodologies in workshops and projects. Students will gain insights into postmodernism and deconstruction in regard to stage direction and contemporary theater. Prerequisite: THR 366.

THR 495 Theater Topics
Selected topics in theater.

Internships and Independent Study Courses

THR 199 Internship
See descriptions for this and other internship options (on-campus, off-campus, half credit) under the Strommen Career and Internship Center, in the Academic
Information section.

THR 299 Directed Study
See descriptions under the Strommen Career and Internship Center, in the Academic Information section.

THR 399 Internship
See descriptions under the Strommen Career and Internship Center, in the Academic Information section.

THR 499 Independent Study/Research
See descriptions under the Strommen Career and Internship Center, in the Academic Information section.

Theater Practicum Courses

THP courses involve practicum teaching and learning in the context of play productions and are required for the theater arts major/minor. All THP theater practicum courses are taken for noncredit with pass/no pass grading.  Evaluation by the faculty mentor will be based on: 1) successful and timely completion of practicum area for which student is registered; 2) positive and professional attitude and work ethic demonstrated by the student; and 3) demonstrated competency in practicum area. The positive evaluation of each of the areas must be sufficient enough to lead to a minimum grade of 2.0 in order to receive a P grade.

THP courses require:
• Consent and signature of instructor
• Supervision by theater faculty
• A minimum of 30 hours of assessed participation by the student
• Registration for THP course for semester when practicum is completed
• Registration for practicum before deadline dates set by the Registrar’s Office
Please note:
• All majors will complete at least one THP 123 unit in costumes.
• All majors will complete one THP 113 in lighting.
• THP courses may be repeated.
• Crew work required for classes/coursework does not count towards practicum.
• Work-study hours do not count towards practicum.
• Completion of THP 115 and 116 counts as two and three practicum units respectively because of the extraordinary amount of time required of the student. All other THP courses count as one practicum unit each.
• Transfer students are still responsible for the full unit requirements (10 major/5 minor.) Seven practicum units (major) or three units (minor) must be completed while at Augsburg, and units to be credited from previous schools should have program verification or a letter from a previous adviser.

Theater Practicum Courses–Areas

All theater arts majors in all concentrations are required to complete 10 practicum units (THP) from the three established units.

Area 1: Performance

THP 111/121/131/141/151 Theater Practicum: Acting/Performance

1 practicum unit (.0 course)
Participation as performer (or as orchestra member) in a main-stage theatrical production, or substantial participation as an actor in a senior directing project or in final scenes for THR 366 Stage Direction

Each major will complete between one and five THPs from the performance area.

The Performance Area THPs are:
THP 111 Fall Acting/Performance
THP 121 Winter Acting/Performance
THP 131 Spring Acting/Performance
THP 141 Studio Acting/Performance
THP 151 Misc. Performance

Area 2: Production

THP 113/123/133 Theater Practicum: Set, Costumes, Lights

1 practicum unit (.0 course)

Set or costume building, lighting crew, for main-stage production.

THP 114/124/134 Theater Practicum: Running Crew

1 practicum unit (.0 course)

Work on running crew for main-stage production: light or sound board operation, dresser/costume crew; stage and production manager for final scenes from Stage Direction class.

THP 115/125/135 Theater Practicum: Stage Management–small project

2 practicum units (.0 course)

Assistant stage management for main-stage production.

THP 116/126/136 Theater Practicum: Stage Management–large project
3 practicum units (.0 course)
Stage management for main-stage production.
Each major will complete between four and eight THPs from the production area.
The Production Area THPs are:
THP 112, 122 or 132 House Management
THP 113, 123 or 133 Set, Lights, Costumes Crew
THP 114, 124 or 134 Running Crew
THP 115, 125 or 135 Assistant Stage Manager
THP 116, 126 or 136 Stage Manager
THP 115, 125 or 135 Stage Manager–small project counts as two units
THP 116, 126 or 136 Stage Manager–large project counts as three units.

Area 3: Artistic/Production Management

THP 117/127/137 Theater Practicum: Artistic Assistance

1 practicum unit (.0 course)
Assistant to the designer (scenery, lights, costumes, sound), assistant to the director (dramaturgy, choreography/assistant choreography for main-stage production), or a substantial arts management project.

Each major will complete one THP from this area.

The Artistic/Production Management Area THPs are:
THP 117 Fall Artistic/Production Assistance
THP 127 Winter Artistic/Production Assistance
THP 137 Spring Artistic/Production Assistance

Please note that all theater practicum courses count as one theater practicum unit, except for stage management THPs.