Theatre and Dance

College of Fine Arts

Applied Drama and Theatre
TD 383P #26400

Professor

Kathryn Dawson, Adjunct Professor, Drama and Theatre for Youth, Coordinator, Drama for Schools, Department of Theatre and Dance

SYNOPSIS

This course actively examines the practices and politics associated with the various use of games, improvisation, role–play, and devised performance for non–theatrical outcomes. The specific practices explored include activity–based methods such as theatre games and improvisational techniques, as well as some Theatre of the Oppressed techniques, literature–based methods such as story dramatization and textual adaptation, and devised performance strategies. Specific applications explored include work with K–12 educators and students, prison and probation workers, hospital patients and health professionals, museum staff and visitors, political awareness and activist groups, older adults, and arts–based organizations.

Students in the course are expected to read a book a week; texts include Acting for Real: Drama Therapy Process, Technique, and Performance by Renee Emunah, Drama Workshops for Anger Management and Offending Behaviour by James Thompson; Applied Drama: The Gift of Theatre by Helen Nicholson, Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paolo Freire, and Pediatric Dramatherapy; They Couldn't Run, So They Learned to Fly by Carol Bouzoukis. All students will also write response papers, facilitate seminars, and complete a course project.

Throughout the course, the class will interrogate the following:

  • What is applied drama and theatre (ADT) What activities are classified as ADT practice?
  • What are the differences between the various practices associated with ADT?
  • What are some of the drama/theatre skills needed to effectively facilitate the use of ADT techniques in various settings?
  • Is there a common pedagogy that underpins ADT practice?
  • What are the steps involved in creating an intentional ADT collaboration?

COURSE OBJECTIVES

Students who successfully complete this course should be able to:

  • clearly articulate the differences between the various practices associated with ADT;
  • identify and develop some of the skills needed to effectively facilitate the use of ADT techniques in various settings;
  • critically analyze how these techniques operate in various contexts;
  • synthesize their emerging understandings through the development, implementation, and presentation of a course project of their own choosing.

This class is the perfect blend of theory and practice. Each week highlights the application of drama and theatre techniques to a particular field— our investigations range from museums and schools to prisons and community development. Our class meetings integrate critical discussion of readings with experiential exercises. As a professor, Katie is enthusiastic, supportive, and challenging.
— Meg Brooker, MFA candidate, Performance as Public Practice

Before enrolling in the class I had a pretty narrow idea of what theatre could be. What applied theatre does so well is create a context for theatre work outside of a traditional performance space. Every week we discuss the application of theatre in settings like museums, hospitals, and prisons. What might the work look like in this setting? How can we best serve this population and how will they benefit from drama–based activity.

This is often very sensitive work, but I really feel my class has created a safe space where we can explore these issues together. Katie allows us all to be the experts and each week we take turns facilitating a lesson in a different application area. It can be intense, sometimes frustrating, but more often than not it's a lot of fun. There is no doubt I'm taking a lot from this class and I will carry that knowledge through the rest of my time at UT.
— Brian C. Fahey, MFA candidate, Drama and Theatre For Youth

Other courses taught by Kathryn Dawson include: Acting for Non–Majors, Outreach Methods, Creative Drama I, Creative Drama II, Teaching Artists in Schools and Communities, Applied Drama and Theatre, Theatre in Education.