Cheryl Faraone
Isabel Mettler Prof Emerita of Theatre; Gender, Sexuality, Feminist Std
- faraone@middlebury.edu
Cheryl Faraone – Professor of Theatre and Gender Sexuality and Feminist Studies. Co-founder and co-director of the PTP/NYC (formerly Potomac Theatre Project), the college’s affiliated professional theatre company. Teacher, director and arts administrator. Selected professional directing credits: The Real Thing, Anna Karenina (Olney Theatre Center); Lovesong of the Electric Bear, Perfect Pie, Stanley, Arcadia, Masterpieces, Mad Forest, Cigarettes & Chocolate, The After-Dinner Joke (Potomac Theatre Project). At Middlebury, among many others: An Experiment with an Air Pump, Top Girls, The Rover, Arcadia (New England ACTF), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, On the Verge. Particular interests include interdisciplinary work with the sciences and mathematics and the study of women and creativity. Associations and affiliations: Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Association for Theatre in Higher Education, and numerous others. B.A. and M.F.A. in Theatre from Catholic University; Ph.D from Florida State University School of Theatre.
Courses Taught
INTD 0206
Math/Science Contemp. Theatre
Course Description
Mathematics and Science as Art in Contemporary Theatre
In Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia, the playwright somewhat miraculously manages to use the tension between Euclidean geometry and modern fractal geometry to explore the classical/romantic dichotomy in literature, science, art, and human personality. This is just one example of how acclaimed playwrights such as Stoppard, Rinne Groff, Michael Frayn, Simon McBurney, and others have effectively incorporated mathematical and scientific themes for artistic purposes. Our goal is to explore this relatively recent phenomenon in theater with an eye toward understanding the complementary ways in which science and art aim to seek out their respective truths. The course is intended to be experiential in both theatrical and scientific terms; our explorations will include the staging of scenes and discussions of theatre as performance; we will also undertake labs in the various mathematical sciences related to the material within the plays. (Dramatic Literature)/
Terms Taught
Requirements
INTD 1029
Creativity, Self, Change
Course Description
Creativity, Self, Change
This course uses the art of devising to create material as a change initiator, both for self and for society. Work in this course will question hierarchies, binaries, narratives, linearities and the like through readings, exercises, and movement. Beginning with readings on devised theatre (Allison Oddey, Simon McBurney), physical work and collaboration (Dymphna Callery; Twyla Tharp) and theatre for social change (Michael Kustow, Robin Belfield), the course will pivot into guided exercises and culminate with the creation of scenes, dialogues, essays and more. No prior experience with performance is needed.
Terms Taught
Requirements
THEA 0206
Contemporary Women+Playwrights
Course Description
Contemporary Women+ Playwrights
In this course we will read and discuss the work of influential contemporary American playwrights from the late twentieth century to the present. Authors will include Maria Irene Fomes, Ntozake Shange, Lynn Nottage, Larissa Fasthorse, Martyna Majok, and others. Issues of race, class, and gender will be closely examined. Readings will include selections from performance and feminist theory. 3 hrs. lect. (Dramatic Literature)
Terms Taught
Requirements
THEA 0220
Spring Production Studio: Act
Course Description
Spring Production Studio: Acting
The cast works as part of a company, interpreting, rehearsing, and performing a play. Those receiving credit can expect to rehearse four to six nights a week. Appropriate written work is required. Participation in the course is determined by auditions held during the term prior to the performance. (Approval required) 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
Requirements
THEA 0235
Theatre and Social Change
Course Description
Theatre and Social Change
In this course we will explore ways in which theatre engages perceptions, behaviors, and social conditions in audiences and practitioners. While historically controversial, the practice of art as an agent of change is increasingly important, ignited by the work of Augusto Boal. We will also explore works presented in a 'conventional' theatrical setting, drama therapy, and creative role-playing in institutional settings (prisons, schools, mental health facilities). Community-based work will focus on issues facing a specific community and the voices of that group. We will read theory and history, engage issues, and build work. No previous theatre experience is required. (Not open to students who have taken FYSE 1334) 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
Requirements
THEA 0406
20th/21st Century Perf. Aesth
Course Description
Twentieth/Twenty-first Century Performance Aesthetics
This course is an intensive exploration of the evolution of the theory and practice of theatrical experimentation in the 20th and 21st centuries. The Modernist movement irrevocably altered the artist’s relationship to the social, and political order. The ramifications of this change will be addressed throughout the course, with particular emphasis on Brecht, Artaud, and Grotowski. Students will write papers and give presentations on the work of such contemporary artists as Peter Brook, DV8, Robert Wilson, Ariane Mnouchkine, Complicite and Jerzy Grotowski. (Approval required; ARDV 0116 and THEA 0208) 3 hrs. lect./1 hr. disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
THEA 0500
Intermediate Indep Project
Course Description
Intermediate Independent Project
In consultation with their advisors, theatre majors in design may propose a THEA 0500 Intermediate Independent Project. Preliminary proposal forms approved by the student's advisor will be submitted to the program by March 1st of the preceding academic year for those wanting credit in the fall or winter terms and by October 1st for those wanting credit in the spring term. Projects will conform to the guidelines that are available in the theatre office. Students are required to attend a weekly THEA 0500/0700 seminar.
Terms Taught
THEA 0505
Intermediate Ind. Project
Course Description
Intermediate Independent Project
(Approval Required)
Terms Taught
THEA 0700
Senior Project
Course Description
Senior Independent Project
Senior work is required. In consultation with their advisors, theatre majors may propose a THEA 0700 Independent Project. Preliminary proposal forms approved by the student's advisor will be submitted to the program by March 1st of the preceding academic year for those wanting credit in the fall or winter terms and by October 1st for those wanting credit in the spring term. Projects will conform to the guidelines that are available in the theatre office. Students are required to attend a weekly THEA 0500/0700 seminar.
Terms Taught
THEA 1239
Speaking from the Stage
Course Description
Speaking from the Stage: Hearing from Contemporary Playwrights
In this course we will explore, through reading, films, and personal performance, a selection of plays (scripted, verbatim, devised) from a range of women and women-identifying writers for the theatre. The focus of the work is both an examination in form and content of the works’ diversity, and an accompanying analysis of any thematic and formal similarities. Course reading highlights texts of the plays accompanied by historical/theoretical readings. Students will produce two brief pieces of written work, one creative and one comparative.
Playwrights will include Adrienne Kennedy, Betty Shamieh, Caridad Svich, Aleshea Harris, Naomi Wallace, Martyna Majok, Jazzmun Nichcala Crayton, Lauren Yee, and Dipika Guha.
Terms Taught
Requirements