Culture and Performance introduces students to a range of contemporary cultural and critical perspectives on drama and investigates the relationship between culture and performance. The major emphasis of the module is upon developing a refined understanding of how drama, theatre and performance operate in different contexts. The main features of the module are the investigation of ways in which drama expresses cultural and critical perspectives in practice, and the exploration of theories such as post-colonialism, feminism, and materialism as creative and analytical tools. The module is taught through seminar discussions and related practical workshops, supported by extra-curricular events such as theatre visits. The module is assessed formatively through the presentation of a performance essay and a supporting rationale.
Culture and Performance provides an essential platform for students' understanding of Drama as a discipline and helps to deepen their understanding of what theatre is, how and why it is made, and how it makes meaning. The module provides an essential introduction to later Drama modules that explore cultural and critical perspectives in more detail.
This module aims to:
Key questions for this module include:
Areas explored at an introductory level might include:
Key academic skills introduced include:
This module is delivered through a weekly three-hour class which mixes elements of seminar and workshop. Classroom-based learning is supported by guided independent study structured around a series of rehearsal and research tasks. Students will also be encouraged to enhance their learning by taking up opportunities to engage with a range of cultural events. Practical workshops are designed to introduce students to key areas of critical thinking in ways that engage them and that clearly locate concepts and ideas as part of theatre-making. Seminar discussions then extend and deepen students' understanding of these concepts and ideas. In teaching block 2, key areas of contemporary theory and practice will be revisited in greater depth and students will build on this foundation by selecting a specialist research area which they will explore practically and academically as part of their preparation for the performance essay assessment.
| Definitive UNISTATS Category | Indicative Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 11 x 3 hour practical workshops | 33 |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 11 X 3 hour seminars | 33 |
| Guided independent study | Group rehearsals | 92 |
| Guided independent study | Individual research | 142 |
| Total (number of credits x 10) | 300 | |
Summative assessment is through two performance essays and one supporting rationale. Performance essays are a form of assessment designed to emphasise the relationship between practice and theory. They are group-based presentations, based around a question which may be set by the lecturer or negotiated between lecturers and students and include performative elements as part of the students' response to this question. Students are thus encouraged to 'enact' ideas and arguments in imaginative and creative ways.
The performance essay set in teaching block 1 (10 min) is worth 30% of the overall mark and assesses students' breadth of understanding regarding the relationship between theory and practice in terms of the critical tradition, as well as their skills in presenting and supporting arguments through performance essays. The performance essay set in teaching block 2 (15 min) assesses students' depth of understanding regarding the relationship between theory and practice in a specific area of their choice, and again but at a higher level, their skills in presenting and supporting arguments through performance essays. Each performance essay is supported by a written rationale. In teaching block 1, this is formatively assessed, but in teaching block 2, the rationale is summatively assessed, and is 500 words long (excluding references and bibliography).
Formative assessments include small group presentations which help students develop the skills they need to express their understanding in the performance essay mode of assessment, and short writing tasks that support the acquisition of skills needed to complete a rationale.
| Learning Outcome | Assessment Strategy |
|---|---|
| Explain the significance of cultural and critical perspectives in making, performing and responding to theatre | Formatively in small group presentations; summatively in performance essays and rationale |
| Identify forms, strategies or techniques through which complex ideas have been turned into theatrical practices (Key Skills: Creativity and Problem Solving) | Formatively in small group presentations; summatively in performance essays and rationale |
| Create and deliver effective performance essays | Formatively in small group presentations; summatively in performance essays |
| Articulate aims, strategies and ideas unambiguously in writing (Key Skills: Communication) | Formatively in short writing tasks; summatively in rationale |
| Recognise a range of factors that influence the academic discipline of drama, theatre and performance | Formatively in short writing tasks; summatively in rationale |
| Analyse and critique performance events using the vocabulary of cultural and critical perspectives | Formatively in small group presentations; summatively in performance essay |
| Description of Assessment | Definitive UNISTATS Categories | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Performance Essay 1 | 30 |
| PRC | Performance Essay 2 | 50 |
| Coursework | Rationale | 20 |
| Total (to equal 100%) | 100% | |
It IS NOT a requirement that any major assessment category is passed separately in order to achieve an overall pass for the module.
Allain, P. and Harvie, J. (2006) The Routledge Companion to Theatre and Performance. London, Routledge
Fortier, M. (1997) Theatre/Theory: an introduction. London, Routledge
Bogart, A. (2001). A Director Prepares: seven essays on art and theatre. Abingdon, Routledge
Carlson, M. (2004) Performance: a critical introduction. London, Routledge
Counsell, C. and Wolf, L. (eds). (2001) Performance Analysis: an introductory course book. London, Routledge
Freshwater, H. (2009) Theatre and Audience. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan.
Harvie, J. (2009) Theatre and the City. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan
Huxley, M. and Witts, N. (eds). (1996) The 20th Century Performance Reader. London, Routledge
Schechner, R. (2003) Performance Theory. London, Routledge
Shepherd, S. and Wallis, M. (2004) Drama/Theatre/Performance. London, Routledge