This course will introduce students to theater as a medium for exploring issues related to social justice and political activism. We will examine techniques used by documentary theater artists such as Emily Mann, Doug Wright, Moises Kaufman, Anna Deavere Smith, and Jessica Blank, who create plays based on interviews, newspaper articles, memoirs, and other documents related to controversial social issues. The course will begin with an investigation of the issue of mass incarceration and will include visits from formerly incarcerated individuals who have agreed to recount their experiences in prison. These prison stories will be the primary sources for the course's initial writing assignments, which will consist of short performance scripts and analytical papers. Subsequent weekly assignments will include performance scripts and analytical papers based on issues that will range from gay rights and racism to sexual violence and the stereotyping of Muslim women. |