Directing I

Student Learning Outcomes, Goals, Objectives:

Students successfully completing this course will be able to:

• Demonstrate an ability to use character objectives as a director to activate actors in a scene.
• Analyze scenes and break them down into units.
• Create strong and effective plans for staging through use of ground plans.
• Articulate the core dramatic story of their directorial scenes/projects.
• Evaluate and critique their own directorial work as well as that of their peers in the class.

This class will examine the role of the director. Naturally, as this can be defined in radically different ways, we will collectively adopt a single goal: the director’s responsibility is to express a clear and compelling story to the audience. Most of our time will be spent exploring ways in which a director can communicate effectively with actors and audience. This class will focus on three main areas: script analysis, visual composition/staging, and rehearsal work with actors using objectives and actions.

Course Grading Information:

Activity/Performance Measure	Percentage/Points
Participation and Growth	10%
Discussions: Readings, Play, & Rehearsal Response Discussions	10%
Open Scenes	10%
Observed In-Class Rehearsal	10%
Final Scene Presentations	15%
Artist Inspiration Project	5%
Text Analysis Assignment	10%
Beats and Intentions Assignment	10%
Chairs Staging Assignment	5%
Ground Plan Assignment	5%
Self-Evaluation	10%

Grading Scale:

Percentage	Letter Grade
93–100%	A
90–92%	A-
87–89%	B+
83–86%	B
80–82%	B-
77–79%	C+
73–76%	C
70–72%	C-
67–69%	D+
63–66%	D
60–62%	D-
0–59%	F

Attendance/Participation:

Your presence in class is crucial to your success. Please make your attendance a top priority whenever possible. This also means taking care of yourself. Sleep. Eat. Drink Water. Moderation in all things is a means to a healthy life. Please take care of yourself.

Each student will be allowed 3 absences, no questions asked, over the course of the semester. That being said, this is a participation-based class. Unexcused absences over the allowed amount will negatively impact your grade. Your attendance is especially crucial when you are scheduled to present or rehearse scene work in class as this affects other students. In-class rehearsals/presentations may NOT be made up without an excused absence.

Full participation in class exercises, discussions, and in-class rehearsals both when working and observing classmates’ work is expected. Curiosity is the cornerstone of learning. Often, more can be learned and absorbed while watching a classmate work than while you are working yourself. It is very likely that everything your classmates are working on in class would be helpful for you to also bring into your work. If a student is distracted, they miss this opportunity. For example, if a student is using their phone for something not class-related or doing homework, their participation grade will be calculated accordingly.

Course Materials Purchased by the Students:

Sense of Direction: Some Observations on the Art of Directing by William Ball