Units of study include mime technique, physical comedy, dance/movement for musical theatre, unarmed stage combat and fight choreography, mask technique in ensemble and solo work, and an introduction to 17th century Italian theatre, commedia dell'arte.

Graded assignments: Mime duet, 20%.  Mime solo, 20%.  Vaudeville routine, 20%.  Stage combat, 20%.  Final performance, 20%.  

Suggested reading:

Commedia dell’Arte: An Actor’s Handbook                          The Moving Body

By John Rudin                                                                                    by Jacques Lecoq

The Physical Comedy Handbook                                            An Acrobat of the Heart

By Davis Rider Robinson                                                       by Stephen Wangh

Acrobats of the Soul: Comedy and Virtuosity in Contemporary American Theatre

By Ron Jenkins

The Articulate Body: The Physical Training of the Actor

By Anne Dennis

Talking About Mime: An Illustrated Guide                            The Tricks of the Trade

By David Alberts                                                                                by Dario Fo

Week One:

Introduction; discussion of class policies and procedures; introduction to warm-up.

Week Two:

            Development of warm-up.  Fundamentals of mime technique.

Weeks Three-Five:

Illusory Mime Technique; Development of vocabulary of mime illusions.  Duet mime assignment, rehearsals, performance.  Solo mime assignment, rehearsals, performance.

Weeks Six and Seven:

Development of physical comedy vocabulary: Takes, Trips, Slaps, Falls, Slow-burn, Vaudeville

 Duet vaudeville assignment, rehearsals, performance.

Week Eight:

            Introduction to modern dance and dance for musical theatre: bell-kicks, waltz, turns, leaps, hops, jumps, and more!

Week Nine:

Introduction to Unarmed Stage Combat.  Training in combat techniques and fight choreography emphasizing safety and believability.

Students choreograph and perform a realistic “fight” with a partner: punches, shoves, kicks, hair-pull, safe falls, and more!

Weeks Ten - Twelve:

Development of Mask Technique (neutral and character mask) in ensemble and solo work.  Exploration, discovery, and embodiment of the mask character.  Application of text to mask character movement.

Weeks Thirteen - Sixteen:

Introduction to and exploration of 17^th Century Italian Theatre, Commedia dell’Arte, including stock characters and lazzi.  Continued application of skills of mime, combat, mask, dance, and slapstick to create final solo and ensemble performances.

The instructor reserves the right to revise or amend the schedule as necessary to accommodate the needs of the class as a whole. 

This class is a study of the use of the body on stage to communicate character and action.  Activities include exercises in body control, body language, dance, and stage combat designed to provide movement theatre skills for the student actor, as well as to instill self-awareness, spatial awareness, and tools and techniques for effective physical expression.