H28.0232 Studio 8 Credits
Instructor(s): Elizabeth Swados
The Fall program will be devoted to creating and performing political cabaret. Through the ensemble, students will devise a form of their own using researched material such as poetry, literary prose, journalistic interviews, comic dialogue, and the students’ own original monologues, scenes, and songs. Each semester, the course will reinvent what it means to act in a musical piece and experiment with alternative forms of musical theatre. In the process, students will broaden their vocal range and gain a new freedom of movement. Students will be encouraged to combine forms such as rock with classic themes, to adapt satirical and absurdist theatre, in other words to create a concept of total theatre. Even if the student does not excel in all areas, he or she will discover aspects of theatre not previously realized to be an option. Applicants to this class need not be accomplished singers or dancers.
Through collaboration with Peter Brook, Joseph Chaikin, and other leading experimenters, Elizabeth Swados brings years of original work to the development of her unique methods for sharpening actors’ perceptions and widening the scope of theatre. Her original works have been performed at La Mama, Lincoln Center, Teatro di Roma, The Kennedy Center, Mark Taper Forum, the Public Theater, Carnegie Recital Hall, Manhattan Theatre Club, Brooklyn Academy of Music, on Broadway, and in numerous television shows and films. She has created work in Africa, Israel, Brazil, Holland, France, Denmark, Sweden Belgium, Italy, and Greece.
