Professor Tom Isbell
Office: 148 MPAC, Phone: 726-6313
Office Hours: Tuesday/Thursday 12:30-1:30
E-Mail: tisbell@d.umn.edu
Home Page: http://www.d.umn.edu/~tisbell
- COURSE OBJECTIVES:
- To continue in the exploration of truthful behavior on stage;
- To revisit Shakespearean text;
- To develop an actor showcase;
- To further explore your own personal relationship to acting;
- To acquire and develop a greater sense of truth while acting;
- To enhance memorization skills as they pertain to acting;
- To assess skills, proficiencies and artistic growth.
COURSE APPROACH: Utilizing scene study and monologue work, students will increase skills and confidence through a rigorous schedule of presenting four scenes and two monologues, and, in the process creating an actor showcase.
REQUIRED READING:
- Mamet, David. True and False: Heresy and Common Sense for the Actor. Vintage Books.
- One of the following:
- Batson, Susan. Truth: Personas, Needs, and Flaws in the Art of Building Characters and Creating Characters. Rugged Land.
- Chubbuck, Ivana. The Power of the Actor. Gotham.
- Guskin, Harold. How to Stop Acting. Faber and Faber.
- Meisner, Sanford and Longwell, Dennis. Sanford Meisner on Acting. Vintage Books.
- Morris, Eric and Hotchkis, Joan. No Acting Please. Ermor Enterprises.
- Moss, Larry. The Intent to Live: Achieving Your True Potential as an Actor. Bantam Books.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
- Attendance is mandatory. No more than two absences are allowed. Each absence beyond two will automatically lower the final letter grade one third of a letter. Chronic absentees will be dropped from the course and the BFA track.
- Please be on time. Two late arrivals (by ten minutes or more) equal one absence.
- Although written critiques will not be required, all students are expected to attend the UMD productions of Urinetown, Dinner with Friends , and the Stage II production.
- Students are expected to read one of the recommended acting books and present an in-depth descriptiong and analysis of the book's strengths and weaknesses via webcrossing.
- Each student will perform four contemporary scenes, one contemporary monologue and one Shakespearean monologue. The first two scenes will be chosen by the instructor; all other material will be chosen by students.
- Each scene and monologue will be presented twice. Although they will not be graded the first time, points will automatically be deducted if lines are not thoroughly memorized.
COURSE OUTLINE Day
Assignment
Wed. Sept. 5 Syllabus. Expectations. Showcase intro. Fri. Sept. 7 Neutral Scene #1. First scenes assigned. Mon. Sept. 10 Neutral Scene #1 Wed. Sept. 12 Neutral Scene #2 Fri. Sept. 14 Neutral Scene #2. Off book for Scene #1 Mon. Sept. 17 Work Scenes Wed. Sept. 19 Scene #1 Presentation Fri. Sept. 21 Work Scenes Mon. Sept. 24 Work Scenes Wed. Sept. 26 Work Scenes Fri. Sept. 28 Scene #1 Performance Mon. Oct. 1 Contemporary Monologue Presentation Wed. Oct. 3 Work Monologues. Exercises. Fri. Oct. 5 Work Monologues. Exercises. Mon. Oct. 8 Contemporary Monologue Performance. Off book for Scene #2 Wed. Oct. 10 Work Scenes Fri. Oct. 12 Scene #2 Presentation Mon. Oct. 15 Work Scenes Wed. Oct. 17 Work Scenes Fri. Oct. 19 Read-thru showcase scenes Mon. Oct. 22 Scene #2 Performance Wed. Oct. 24 Shakespeare exercises Fri. Oct. 26 Shakespeare exercises Mon. Oct. 29 Shakespeare exercises Wed. Oct. 31 Shakespeare Monologue Presentation Fri. Nov. 2 Work Monologues Mon. Nov. 5 Read-thru showcase scenes Wed. Nov. 7 Work Monologues Fri. Nov. 9 Shakespeare exercises Mon. Nov. 12 Shakespeare Monologue Performance Wed. Nov. 14 Book Analysis due. Book discussions. Fri. Nov. 16 Showcase Presentation Mon. Nov. 19 Read-thru showcase scenes Wed. Nov. 21 Celebrity Fri. Nov. 23 No Class. Thanksgiving Holiday. Mon. Nov. 26 Work Scenes. Off book Showcase Scene #1 Wed. Nov. 28 Work Scenes Fri. Nov. 30 Showcase Presentation Mon. Dec. 3 Work Scenes. Off book Showcase Scene #2 Wed. Dec. 5 Work Scenes Fri. Dec. 7 Showcase Presentation Mon. Dec. 10 Work Scenes Wed. Dec. 12 Work Showcase Fri. Dec. 14 Work Showcase
FINAL EXAM: Tuesday, December 18 2:00-3:55 p.m.
Course Evaluation
Assignment
Point Value
Book analysis 10 Contemporary Monologue 10 Shakespeare Monologue 10 Contemporary Scenes 20 (10 each) Showcase Scenes 20 (10 each) Attitude, Improvement, Desire 10 Final Showcase 10 At the end of the semester, points will be totaled and graded on the following scale:
Grading Scale Letter Grade
Percentage
A 91-100 A- 88-90 B+ 85-87 B 81-84 B- 78-80 C+ 75-77 C 72-74 C- 69-71 D+ 66-68 D 62-65 OTHER NOTES:
Individuals who have any legitimate disability, either permanent or temporary, which might affect their ability to perform in this class, are encouraged to inform the instructor at the start of the semester. Adaptations of methods, materials or testing may be made as required to provide equitable participation.
Academic dishonesty tarnishes UMD's reputation and discredits the accomplishments of students. UMD is committed to providing students every possible opportunity to grow in mind and spirit. This pledge can only be redeemed in an environment of trust, honesty, and fairness. As a result, academic dishonesty is regarded as a serious offense by all members of the academic community. In keeping with this ideal, this course will adhere to UMD's Student Academic Integrity Policy, which can be found at www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/integrity. This policy sanctions students engaging in academic dishonesty with penalties up to and including expulsion from the university for repeat offenders.
The instructor will enforce and students are expected to follow the University's Student Conduct Code (http://www.d.umn.edu/assl/conduct/code). Appropriate classroom conduct promotes an environment of academic achievement and integrity. Disruptive classroom behavior that substantially or repeatedly interrupts either the instructor's ability to teach, or student learning, is prohibited. Disruptive behavior includes inappropriate use of technology in the classroom. Examples include ringing cell phones, text-messaging, watching videos, playing computer games, doing email, or surfing the Internet on your computer instead of note-taking or other instructor-sanctioned activities.
No food is allowed in the classroom. Please eat either before or after class.