Topics in Literature
Topic: Theatrical Performance in London
Class Information
Instructor: Hulbert, Annette
CRN: 45260
Time: MWF 3:10-4:00
Location: 1134 Bainer
GE Areas: Writing Experience
Description
Public theaters in London had been closed for a long eighteen years under Oliver Cromwell's Puritans, banished as an ungodly spectacle. Within months of Charles II ascending the throne in 1660, the new king reopened the shuttered doors and ushered in an exciting new era of theatrical performance. This course will examine plays produced in the 150 years following the Restoration in order to give you a sense of what the period looked like and felt like (and sounded like). We will pay attention to how the plays are shaped by an age of imperial expansion and growing global entanglements; fear of political and economic instability; the perceived transgression of gender and sexual roles, and the enthusiastic audiences that flocked to the theater to see a good show. This was the age marked by inventive special effects, new roles for women, the rise of the celebrity actor, and the more than occasional riot. In addition to reading the texts of the plays, we will consider ideas about staging and styles of acting.
Grading
- Discussion posts and quizzes: 30%
- One 4-5page paper: 25%
- One 5-6 page paper: 35%
- Final exam: 10%
Texts
The Broadview Anthology of Restoration and Early Eighteenth-Century Drama, Concise Edition J. Douglas Canfield & Maja-Lisa von Sneidern (eds.) , J. Douglas Canfield & Maja-Lisa von Sneidern (eds.)