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TAPS 11N: Dramatic Tensions: Theater and the Marketplace

Preference to freshmen. The current state of the American theater and its artists. Conventional wisdom says that theater is a dying art, and a lost cause, especially in an age of multi-media entertainment. But there are more young playwrights, actors, and directors entering the field today than at any other time in American history. Focus is on the work of today's theater artists, with an emphasis on an emerging generation of playwrights. Students read a cross-section of plays from writers currently working in the US and UK, covering a spectrum of subjects and styles from serious to comic, from the musical to the straight play. Hits and misses from recent seasons of the New York and London stages and some of the differences of artistic taste across the Atlantic. Hands-on exploration of the arts and skills necessary to make a play succeed. Students develop their own areas of interest, in guided projects in design, direction or performance. Conversations with playwrights, designers ,and directors. Labs and master classes to solve problems posed in areas of creative production. Class meets literary managers and producers who are on the frontlines of underwriting new talent. Class trips include two plays at major Bay Area Stages.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II
Instructors: ; Freed, A. (PI)

TAPS 21S: StoryCraft: Athlete Relationships (FEMGEN 21S)

What is intimacy like as an athlete? What are the stereotypes and the realities? In this class, athletic-identifying students will learn about relationships from the inside out: through an examination and telling of their lived experiences. We will explore various perspectives on intimacy and relationships that illuminate different aspects of our lives and then dive into our own stories to discover the many facets of intimacy. Due to the personal nature of the topic, we will emphasize safety, trust, and confidentiality throughout. The class offers the structure and guidance to 1) mine your life for stories, 2) craft the structure and shape of your stories, and 3) perform with presence, authenticity, and connection. nThis class will be held in Kingscote Gardens 140. Please email boothbk@stanford.edu to get on the waiting list.
Terms: Aut, Win | Units: 2 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE
Instructors: ; Booth, B. (PI)

TAPS 29: Theater Performance: Acting

Students cast in department productions receive credit for their participation as actors; 1-2 units for graduate directing workshop projects and 1-3 units for major productions (units determined by instructor). May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-3 | Repeatable for credit
Instructors: ; Elam, H. (PI)

TAPS 31: Introduction to Lighting and Production

Good visual storytelling begins and ends with good lighting. All visual storytelling forms--from photos to films to stage productions--provide a canvas in which lighting paints the scene. Lighting sets a mood, a tone, and can shape character and stories. This course teaches critical thinking, how to conduct thorough research, practical skills, and a mindfulness for live artforms.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Shayne, T. (PI)

TAPS 33: Introduction to Technical Theater and Production

A fun, collaborative, hands-on course subjecting students to the basics of scenery, props, painting, rigging, sound, lighting, costumes, and other production elements used in theater. This class is good for all types of theater students interested in producing theater at Stanford and beyond.
Terms: Aut | Units: 2-3
Instructors: ; Shayne, T. (PI)

TAPS 39: Theater Crew

For students working backstage, on run crew, or in the theater shops on TAPS department productions. Night and weekend time required. Pre-approval from Jane Casamajor (janecasa@stanford.edu) is required for enrollment.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-3 | Repeatable 4 times (up to 15 units total)

TAPS 40N: Family Drama: American Plays about Families (AMSTUD 41N, ENGLISH 41N)

Focus on great dramas about family life (Albee, Kushner, Shephard, Vogel, Kron, Nottage, Parks). Communication in writing and speaking about conflict central to learning in this class.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: WAY-A-II

TAPS 103: Beginning Improvising

The improvisational theater techniques that teach spontaneity, cooperation, team building, and rapid problem solving, emphasizing common sense, attention to reality, and helping your partner. Based on TheatreSports by Keith Johnstone. Readings, papers, and attendance at performances of improvisational theater. Limited enrollment. Improv, Improvisation, creativity and creative expression. All who sign up are placed on a waitlist. Official enrollment will be determined after the first day of class. Attendance at the first class session is mandatory to be considered for enrollment in the course.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE

TAPS 104: Intermediate Improvisation

This class is the continued study of improvisational theater with a focus on stage skills, short and long form performance formats, and offstage applications of collaborative creativity. It is open to any students who have taken TAPS 103 or have previous onstage improv experience AND consent of the instructor. May be repeat for credit.
Terms: Aut, Spr | Units: 3 | Repeatable 2 times (up to 6 units total)
Instructors: ; Klein, D. (PI)

TAPS 120A: Acting I: Fundamentals of Acting

A substantive introduction to the basics of the craft of acting, this course gives all incoming students the foundation of a common vocabulary. Students will learn fundamental elements of dramatic analysis, and how to apply it in action. Topics include scene analysis, environment work, psychological and physical scoring, and development of a sound and serviceable rehearsal technique. Scene work will be chosen from accessible, contemporary, and realistic plays. Outside rehearsal time required.
Terms: Aut, Win, Sum | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE
Instructors: ; Freed, A. (PI); Hunt, S. (PI)

TAPS 121V: Voice for the Actor

This course will focus on releasing a voice that effectively reaches the listener and is responsive to the actor¿s thoughts and feelings. Through work on breath awareness, alignment, resonance, and muscularity, students will learn to identify habits that help or hinder performance. Students will practice exercises to develop vocal strength, clarity, ease, and expressiveness while exploring the vocal demands of various texts and performing environments. Course will culminate in a presentation of classical and contemporary monologues. This course is a good preparation for auditions, rehearsal, and performance, and is appropriate for all levels. Priority space reserved for TAPS majors and minors.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE
Instructors: ; Hunt, S. (PI)

TAPS 124D: Acting for Non-Majors

Formerly TAPS 20. Creative play, ensemble work in a supportive environment. Designed for the student to experience a range of new creative skills, from group improvisation to partner work. Introductory work on freeing the natural voice and physical relaxation. Emphasis on rediscovering imaginative and creative impulses. Movement improvisation, listening exercises, and theater games release the energy, playfulness and willingness to take risks that is the essence of free and powerful performance. Course culminates with work on dramatic text.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-3 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE, way_ce
Instructors: ; Amarotico, K. (PI)

TAPS 127: Movement for the Actor

This course is an exploration of movement techniques for the actor, designed to provide a foundation for performance practice. Students will develop a more grounded sense of ease and breath onstage, learn fundamentals of physical partnership, and acquire an expanded physical vocabulary. Areas of study include Laban movement analysis, observation and embodiment, basic contact improvisation, and physical characterization. Students will also engage a personalized warmup process for rehearsal and performance. All coursework will be entirely experiential, practical, and participatory. No previous experience necessary. Some outside rehearsal/investigation time required.
Terms: Aut, Sum | Units: 3-4 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE | Repeatable 2 times (up to 8 units total)
Instructors: ; Chapman, M. (PI)

TAPS 134: Stage Management Project

For students stage managing a production in the Department of Theater and Performance Studies.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 3-5 | Repeatable for credit
Instructors: ; Kumaran, L. (PI)

TAPS 138: Introduction to Theater Sound Design (MUSIC 184F)

This course explores the history and aesthetics,of theatre sound design, and provides the basic technical knowledge to create your own work. Learn how to analyze a script for sound design elements, gain practical knowledge of microphones and loudspeakers, sound editing and cueing software, and put your knowledge to work creating your own design.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Caruthers, C. (PI)

TAPS 140: Introduction to Projects in Theatrical Production

A seminar course for students performing significant production work on Theater and Performance Studies Department or other Stanford University student theater projects. Students serving as producers, directors, designers or stage managers, who wish mentorship and credit for their production work sign up for this course and contact the instructor, Laxmi Kumaran. nPrerequisite: consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-4 | Repeatable for credit
Instructors: ; Kumaran, L. (PI)

TAPS 153H: History of Directing (TAPS 253H)

In this class, students will examine the work of directors who shaped modern theater. Some of directors we are going to explore are Konstantin Stanislavski, Jerzy Grotowski, and director-choreographer Pina Bausch. In order to engage closely with directorial styles of these and other landmark directors, we will focus on their career-defining productions. The class will include readings, screenings of recorded performances whenever possible, and workshops with professionals in the field. Capped enrollment.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4

TAPS 153W: Warhol's World (AMSTUD 153, ARTHIST 153, ARTHIST 353, FEMGEN 153, TAPS 353W)

Andy Warhol's art has never before been more widely exhibited, published, or licensed for commercial use, product design, and publication than it is today. For all Warhol's promiscuous visibility and global cachet at the current moment, there is much we have yet to learn about his work and the conditions of its making. This course considers the wide world of Warhol's art and life, including his commercial work of the 1950s, Pop art and films of the 1960s, and celebrity portraiture of the 1970s and 80s. Of particular interest throughout will be Warhol's photography as it reflects his interest in wealth and celebrity on the one hand and on the everyday life of everyday people on the other. The course will include multiple visits to Contact Warhol: Photography without End, an exhibition co-curated by Prof. Meyer on view throughout the quarter at the Cantor Arts Center.
Terms: Aut | Units: 5
Instructors: ; Meyer, R. (PI)

TAPS 162L: Latin/x America in Motion: An Introduction to Dance Studies (CHILATST 162, CSRE 162D, DANCE 162L, TAPS 262L)

This course introduces students to the field of Dance Studies by examining the histories of Latin American and Caribbean dances and their relationship to developing notions of race and nation in the Americas. We will study the historical emergence and transformation of ¿indigeneity,¿ ¿blackness,¿ ¿whiteness,¿ and ¿Latin/@/x¿ and consider how dance practices interacted with these identifications. No prior experience with Dance or Latin America and the Caribbean necessary.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3-4 | UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-EDP
Instructors: ; Schwall, E. (PI)

TAPS 163D: Shakespeare: The Ethical Challenge (ENGLISH 163D)

Was the eighteenth century right in proclaiming Shakespeare to be the greatest moral philosopher? What are the ethical challenges Shakespeare's major plays still pose for us? Can we divorce ethical decisions from the contingencies of experience? We will ask a series of normative ethical questions (to do with pleasure, power, old age, self-sacrifice, and truth telling) and attempt to answer them in relation to the dramatic situation of Shakespeare's characters on the one hand and our own cultural situation on the other. The ethical challenge of Shakespearean drama will be set against selected readings in ethical theory.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3-5 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-A-II, WAY-ER

TAPS 170A: The Director's Craft (TAPS 370A)

This workshop class guides students through the directing process from investigating the big ideas of a play and analysing the action to organizing and running rehearsals to building up the world of the play through character work and visual composition. Over the quarter we will look at the use of creative visualization and improvisation alongside working with actors on ideas, emotions, relationships, textual analysis and blocking. This course also attends to the process of communicating with designers and production teams as well as structuring rehearsals, run-throughs and technical and dress rehearsals. Each student will select a theatrical text to work from across the quarter. In many cases the student¿s text will be a play that they are planning to direct in future, such as productions for student groups like Ram¿s Head or Stanford Shakespeare Company, TAPS capstone projects, TAPS 2nd year grad shows and/or TAPS Second Stage productions. No previous directing experience in necessary.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE
Instructors: ; Rau, M. (PI)

TAPS 180Q: Noam Chomsky: The Drama of Resistance

Preference to sophomores. Chomsky's ideas and work which challenge the political and economic paradigms governing the U.S. Topics include his model for linguistics; cold war U.S. involvements in S.E. Asia, the Middle East, Central and S. America, the Caribbean, and Indonesia and E. Timor; the media, terrorism, ideology, and culture; student and popular movements; and the role of resistance.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-ER, WAY-SI
Instructors: ; Rehm, R. (PI)

TAPS 184C: Dramatic Vocal Arts: Songs and Scenes Onstage (MUSIC 184C)

Studies in stagecraft, acting and performance for singers, culminating in a public performance. Repertoire to be drawn from the art song, opera, American Songbook and musical theater genres. Audition or consent of instructor required. May be repeated for credit a total of 4 times. Zero unit enrollment option available with instructor permission. See website: (http://music.stanford.edu) for policy and procedure. By enrolling in this course you are giving consent for the video and audio recording and distribution of your image and performance for use by any entity at Stanford University.
Terms: Aut, Spr | Units: 1-2 | Repeatable 4 times (up to 8 units total)

TAPS 190: Special Research

Individual project on the work of a playwright, period, or genre. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-4 | Repeatable for credit

TAPS 192: Nitery Board Practicum (TAPS 292)

Credit given for student board members of the Experimental Nitery Studio. Undergraduate students should enroll in TAPS 192. Ph.D. students should enroll in TAPS 292.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1 | Repeatable 6 times (up to 6 units total)
Instructors: ; Casamajor, J. (PI)

TAPS 200: Senior Project

All TAPS Majors must complete a Senior Project that represents significant work in any area of theater and/or performance. The project must be an original contribution and can consist of any of the following: devising a performance, choreographing a dance, stage managing a production, designing a large theater work, performing a major role, writing a play, directing a show, or researching and writing a senior essay. Work for this project normally begins in Spring Quarter of the junior year and must be completed by the end of the senior year. Students receive credit for senior projects through TAPS 200. A minimum of 4 units is required, but additional units are available for larger projects. Students pursuing senior projects must submit a two-page proposal to a faculty advisor of their choice, which must be approved by the Undergraduate Advisor and the department faculty no later than the end of Spring Quarter of the junior year.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 2-4 | Repeatable 2 times (up to 4 units total)

TAPS 201: Theater History

A survey of the history of theatre and dance from the ancient Greeks to the modern world. While primarily intended to help TAPS graduate students prepare for their Comprehensive Exam, this course may also be taken by undergraduates or non-TAPS graduate students in order to gain a broad understanding of some of the seminal plays, dances, theories, and performance practices of the past 2500 years.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Al-Saber, S. (PI)

TAPS 202: Honors Thesis

An advanced written project to fulfill the requirements for the Honors degree in TAPS. There are two ways to undertake an honors thesis. The first is to write a 40-50 page essay, which presents research on an important issue or subject of the student's choice. The second option is a 30-page essay that takes the student's capstone project as a case study and critically analyzes the creative work. Students are expected to work consistently throughout the year with their advisor, whom they identify at the time of application. Advisors can be selected from Academic Council faculty or artists-in-residence. Students should enroll in TAPS 202 each quarter during the senior year (1 unit in Autumn; 1 unit in Winter; 2 units in Spring).
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-2 | Repeatable for credit

TAPS 220: Academic Publishing

This course offers systematic opportunities for students to develop a publishable article for a scholarly journal. We will examine a range of successful articles in journals and carefully consider a variety of effective writing techniques and styles.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3-5
Instructors: ; Menon, J. (PI)

TAPS 231: Advanced Stage Lighting Design

Individually structured class in lighting mechanics and design through experimentation, discussions, and written reports. Prerequisite: 131 or consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-4 | Repeatable 55 times

TAPS 232: Advanced Costume Design

Individually structured tutorial for costume designers. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: 132 or consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-5 | Repeatable for credit

TAPS 233: Advanced Scene Design

Individually structured workshop. May be repeated for credit. Prerequisite: 133 or consent of instructor.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-4 | Repeatable for credit

TAPS 234: Advanced Stage Management Project

For students stage managing a Department of Theater and Performance Studies production. May be repeat for credit. Prerequisite: 134.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 2-4 | Repeatable for credit
Instructors: ; Kumaran, L. (PI)

TAPS 253H: History of Directing (TAPS 153H)

In this class, students will examine the work of directors who shaped modern theater. Some of directors we are going to explore are Konstantin Stanislavski, Jerzy Grotowski, and director-choreographer Pina Bausch. In order to engage closely with directorial styles of these and other landmark directors, we will focus on their career-defining productions. The class will include readings, screenings of recorded performances whenever possible, and workshops with professionals in the field. Capped enrollment.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4

TAPS 262L: Latin/x America in Motion: An Introduction to Dance Studies (CHILATST 162, CSRE 162D, DANCE 162L, TAPS 162L)

This course introduces students to the field of Dance Studies by examining the histories of Latin American and Caribbean dances and their relationship to developing notions of race and nation in the Americas. We will study the historical emergence and transformation of ¿indigeneity,¿ ¿blackness,¿ ¿whiteness,¿ and ¿Latin/@/x¿ and consider how dance practices interacted with these identifications. No prior experience with Dance or Latin America and the Caribbean necessary.
Terms: Aut | Units: 3-4
Instructors: ; Schwall, E. (PI)

TAPS 292: Nitery Board Practicum (TAPS 192)

Credit given for student board members of the Experimental Nitery Studio. Undergraduate students should enroll in TAPS 192. Ph.D. students should enroll in TAPS 292.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1 | Repeatable 6 times (up to 6 units total)
Instructors: ; Casamajor, J. (PI)

TAPS 311: Performance and Historiography

This graduate seminar focuses on questions of historiography and the archive as they relate to studies of theater, dance, and performance. It blends rigorous discussion and theoretical exploration with practical experience in libraries, museums, and other local archival repositories. Throughout the course, we will explore representation, memory, repertoire, and narrative through examples in theatre and performance history. We will examine how events have been historicized, how absence has been represented, and how individuals are remembered and refigured. Important principles and practices of documentation will also be addressed throughout our discussions and activities. Our discussions and field trips will examine the status of data and various forms of evidence in constructing critical performance history (including prompt scripts, set designs, costumes, publicity material and other ephemera, actorly life-writing, video and digital documents, artifacts, visual material, and embodied traces). TAPS 311 also functions as a gateway course for TAPS PhD students in your first quarter of study at Stanford, familiarizing you with resources at the university and in the broader Bay Area.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Robinson, A. (PI)

TAPS 353W: Warhol's World (AMSTUD 153, ARTHIST 153, ARTHIST 353, FEMGEN 153, TAPS 153W)

Andy Warhol's art has never before been more widely exhibited, published, or licensed for commercial use, product design, and publication than it is today. For all Warhol's promiscuous visibility and global cachet at the current moment, there is much we have yet to learn about his work and the conditions of its making. This course considers the wide world of Warhol's art and life, including his commercial work of the 1950s, Pop art and films of the 1960s, and celebrity portraiture of the 1970s and 80s. Of particular interest throughout will be Warhol's photography as it reflects his interest in wealth and celebrity on the one hand and on the everyday life of everyday people on the other. The course will include multiple visits to Contact Warhol: Photography without End, an exhibition co-curated by Prof. Meyer on view throughout the quarter at the Cantor Arts Center.
Terms: Aut | Units: 5
Instructors: ; Meyer, R. (PI)

TAPS 370A: The Director's Craft (TAPS 170A)

This workshop class guides students through the directing process from investigating the big ideas of a play and analysing the action to organizing and running rehearsals to building up the world of the play through character work and visual composition. Over the quarter we will look at the use of creative visualization and improvisation alongside working with actors on ideas, emotions, relationships, textual analysis and blocking. This course also attends to the process of communicating with designers and production teams as well as structuring rehearsals, run-throughs and technical and dress rehearsals. Each student will select a theatrical text to work from across the quarter. In many cases the student¿s text will be a play that they are planning to direct in future, such as productions for student groups like Ram¿s Head or Stanford Shakespeare Company, TAPS capstone projects, TAPS 2nd year grad shows and/or TAPS Second Stage productions. No previous directing experience in necessary.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Rau, M. (PI)

TAPS 390: Directed Reading

Students may take directing reading only with the permission of their dissertation advisor. Might be repeatable for credit twice for 6 units total.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr, Sum | Units: 1-6 | Repeatable 4 times (up to 12 units total)

TAPS 802: TGR Dissertation

(Staff)
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr, Sum | Units: 0 | Repeatable for credit
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