Department of Theatre and Drama
Lynn Eastes (chair), Laura Green, Anne Willingham*.

*Part-time

Vision:

The Department of Theatre and Drama is centered in the belief that the artist serves a vital purpose in society and is dedicated to preparing students who desire careers in professional, educational or community theatre settings.

Purpose:

To provide thorough instruction and guidance for students who are in the process of developing their artistic skills and sensibilities.

Goals:

1. To equip students with a vocabulary and language that reflects the standard terms and concepts used in the dramatic arts.
2. To expose students to the basic body of knowledge that impacts upon the major and minor movements of past and contemporary theatre and drama.
3. To prepare students to display basic competencies in at least three of the following areas: acting, directing, scriptwriting, theatre criticism, stage management, or production design.
4. To contribute to the cultural and artistic environment of Belmont University and the Nashville community.
5. To provide performance, production and instructional opportunities for students majoring in areas other than theatre arts.

The Department of Theatre and Drama is committed to a liberal arts foundation as an effective means of preparing students who want to pursue theatre as a life's work. This commitment is reflected in the system of training that stresses the collaborative and inter-disciplinary nature of the theatrical performance and production process. Based upon a Bachelor of Arts model, the program of study requires that students be exposed to the cultural, socio-political, and historical knowledge that serves as the core of the theatrical tradition and current professional standards.

Theatre and Drama Courses (TDR)

TDR 100. Communication Arts Seminar (0). Required for all Communication Arts majors enrolled for 12 or more hours. This zero-credit seminar is offered each fall semester. Students are encouraged to enroll in the seminar during the freshman year, or upon transfer to the university. The seminar is designed to prepare the Communication Arts major for the university experience and expose students to educational and career opportunities after graduation. Special emphasis will be placed on the communication process and its role within respective majors. Grades will be awarded on a Pass/Fail basis. ($50.00 course fee)

TDR 111. Introduction to the Theatre Arts (3). Designed to provide students with a basic understanding of the process of theatrical production from conception to execution to evaluation.

TDR 112. Fundamentals of Production Design (3). Designed to introduce students to the basic elements of technical production and design. Emphasis upon the areas of scenery, lighting, costume, and make-up.

TDR 195-495. Studies Abroad (3-18). Study in a foreign country. Individual course titles and locations are assigned for each course taken. See Studies Abroad program for details.

TDR 199-499. Special Studies (1-3).

TDR 201. Basic Acting (3). Introduces student actors to contemporary approaches to stage performance. Emphasis upon realism, role development and characterization.

TDR 203. Play Analysis (3). A study of the methods of analyzing dramatic scripts.

TDR 210. Voice and Diction (3). A study of the production of speech as it applies to American English as a spoken language. Designed to improve speech patterns through application of vocal mechanics and appropriate diction techniques.

TDR 212-412. Theatre Workshop (1-3) (Pass/Fail). A series of performance and production workshops designed to enhance students' stage expertise. Workshop topics include, but are not limited to, training in the following: audition techniques; stage dialects; period styles; on-camera performance; theatrical design; arts management. (May be repeated with change of topic.)

TDR 213. Performance and Production Lab (0). Open to all students of the university and sponsored by the Belmont Little Theatre, this lab produces a season of shows open to the campus and Nashville community while serving as the performance-production studio for theatre majors and minors. Theatre majors must enroll in the lab a minimum of 4 semesters and minors must enroll a minimum of 2 semesters.

TDR 225. Basic Directing (3). An introduction to the study and practice of directing plays, this course focuses upon the rehearsal process and staging of scenes.

TDR 302. Basic Playwriting (3). This course introduces the student to the process of script development through writing exercises and concentration on the one-act play form. Requirements include completion of a one-act play.

TDR 303. Stage Movement (3). This course is devoted to studying the various forms of movement for the stage performer. Includes exercises in mime, mask work, clowning, stage combat, movement in relationship to musical composition and to the demands posed by stage and scene properties.

TDR 305. Creative Drama in the Classroom (3). This course is devoted to studying the traditional modes of creative dramatics and the use of drama as a supplemental teaching tool. A required class for students who plan to teach in the elementary/secondary school system.

TDR 308. Intermediate Acting (3). Prerequisite: TDR 201 or consent of instructor. Three units of concentrated scenework. The first unit focuses upon performance in realistic scripts. The second details approach to performance in non-realistic scripts. The third introduces the student actor to period styles performance.

TDR 351. Theatre and Drama History I (3). A study of theatre history and dramatic theory from Ancient through Restoration drama.

TDR 352. Theatre and Drama History II (3). A study of theatre history and dramatic theory from the eighteenth century through the present.

TDR 353. Shakespeare: Representative Plays (3). Traces the development of Shakespeare's career through the study of representative tragedies, histories, comedies, and romances. Taught through the Department of Literature and Language.

TDR 394, 494. Directed Studies (3). Student development of a project or student special interest. Consent of the instructor is required.

TDR 420. Advanced Performance Studies (3). Intensive studio work in areas of acting, directing, script-writing, or production design. Participating students must be interviewed and approved by the instructor at least one semester prior to enrollment in the course. (May be repeated once with change of focus.)

TDR 443. Stage Management (3). Prerequisite: TDR 112. Concentrated training in the functions and role of the Stage Manager in the production process.

TDR 444. Technical Theatre for Stage Directors (3). Studies in the technical aspects of production from the director's viewpoint. Emphasis is placed on implementing the directorial concept through the visual media of scenic design, lighting, costuming, and make-up.

TDR 445. Advanced Stage Directing (3). Prerequisites: TDR 112, TDR 203. This course offers intensive study in the process of stage directing and culminates in a student-directed play to be viewed by an audience.

TDR 491. Theatre Internship (3). Sponsored for qualifying students in one of the following areas: (I) Technical Internship; (2) Performance Internship; (3) Production Internship. A student is accepted as a theatre intern upon approval of the application by the Belmont Little Theatre director in conjunction with the participating Intern Theatres.