Staging Australia (KTB207)
Semester 2 / 2009

Texts

y separately published work icon Concise Companion to Theatre in Australia : Theatre, Film, Radio, Television Philip Parsons (editor), Victoria Chance (editor), Sydney : Currency Press , 1997 Z214691 1997 reference criticism biography (taught in 2 units)

Description

Rationale

NB: Information in this Unit Outline is subject to change prior to commencement of semester

As students of Drama, and of the Creative Industries more broadly, you will benefit from an examination of ideas and information relating to the theory and practice of Australian theatre and performance. In drawing connections between theatre and society, and in exploring a variety of Australian performance idioms, this unit augments understandings developed in a range of other Creative Industries study areas. The unit provides vital contextual material for students who will be working in the Creative Industries sector.

Aims

This unit aims to provide you with core understandings relating to Australian theatre history, as well as contemporary issues in Australian theatre and performance.

Objectives

On completion of this unit you should be able to:

1. Display knowledge of key periods, plays and playwrights in Australian theatre

2. Display a knowledge of a range of plays through reading and rehearsed performance analyses of Australian theatre

3. Identify key institutional influences, and theoretical paradigms, currently shaping Australian theatre criticism and practice

4. Use a variety of information sources to research subject material

5. Critically analyse material and apply research skills to present research findings in a variety of modes (written, verbal, online, as performance)

6. Understand the role of indigenous performance as a defining energy of contemporary Australian theatre

7. Articulate a range of issues impacting on contemporary Australian theatre

Content

This unit covers the following: issues and challenges in contemporary Australian theatre; key periods in Australian theatre history; major Australian plays,playwrights and practitioners; Australian theatre companies and institutions; indigenous drama; women in Australian theatre; Brisbane theatre history; Australian performing arts as markers of identity; state and federal funding and arts policies.

Assessment

Assessment name: Major Research Essay

Description: (Summative) A major written task that reflects detailed research on your topic. Length: 3000 words.

Relates to objectives: 1-7

Weight: 60%

Group or individual: Individual

Due date: End semester

Assessment name: Oral Presentation

Description: (Summative) A small group performative seminar presentation. Length: 40 minutes.

Relates to objectives: 1-7

Weight: 40%

Group or individual: Group

Due date: Mid semester

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