Theatre+Domains+Survey

Survey Respondents:
=== Terri Mastrobuono,Joel Gori,Jill Campbell,Cory Wilkerson,Tom Stretton,Barry Kornhauser,Kristin Wolanink,Laura Ferguson,Mark Zortman,Deborah Klose,Kellee Van Aken,Melissa Mintzer,Gene R. Frank,Lisa Weitzman,Robert L. Smith ===

Domain names under consideration:

**Play Analysis, Production, Playwriting **

**Acting, Directing and Pedagogy **

**Theatre History & Cultural Context **

**Technical Theatre & Design **

Do these four broad categories align with your educational experience as a theatre professional?
Yes As an Elem Ed/Theatre degree candidate I took courses in acting, theatre history, technical theatre, play analysis and creative dramatics - for my Masters I took courses in acting, directing, pedagogy, theatre history, play analysis, playwriting, technical theatre and design Pedagogy and Playwriting by title were the only courses not required in either my undergraduate or graduate theater degree programs. I always felt pedagogy was well demonstrated and it is from best teachers that I learned best practices. For in acting classes we learned many approaches for teaching acting and in directing classes for teaching directing. I studied Child Drama in Graduate school and although the course was not called pedagogy, my child drama course studied the educational theater practices of the published professionals in educational theater. I also taught creative dramatics to education and child development undergraduates. Although writing was often part of what we did and many original works were and have been part of my experience. I never had a formal playwriting course, but have attended many workshops. I also published the process of creating a play from a book as part of a graduate Children's Literature course. My elementary education degree combined with my theatre degree really enhanced my development of educational theater best practices and the teacher workshops I developed and presented over the years. All of these categories align with my experience. However, in order of my competencies I would place Technical Theatre and Design beneath the others, this despite the fact that I worked for 17 years as an Equity stage manager. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. As a holder of a B.F.A. in Dramatic Arts, we were required to take courses in each of the areas on a basic level and then declare a "specialization" in Production or Performance. Subsequently, advances courses were taken in the chosen field. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Absolutely, yes. All four are very important and instrumental in being a well rounded theatre educator. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Not completely. I think the word "playwriting" should be revused to "play creation". Not every play needs to be "written" in the traditional sense, with a designated writer who puts words down on a page before actors get to see them. Plays can also be devised via a collaborative process involving actors; they can be solo works performed by their creators; they can be quasi-improvised pieces in the style of commedia dell'arte; they can be completely improvised full-length works that follow the long form of theatrical improv. My course work and training include these methods. There also needs to be a way to address the business of obtaining work in theater. Too many theater students do not treat theater as a serious means of making a living, either as producers or actors. So actors, in particular, give their services away. We do students a disservice by not teaching them how to write resumes, audition, make an acting reel, obtain an agent, negotiate contracts, etc. So, I think we need a theater business category. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. I hold a bachelors in Theatre and two Masters in theatre. One master is an MFA in theatre design. I completed all the course work for a Ph. D. in theatre, so I have significant depth in all the area. There doesn't seem to be a place for comment at the end of the final grid so I'll comment here. My education, teaching, experience, and publications in theatre make me a theatre expert at the highest level for the two areas of design and theatre history. My directing experience and teaching also make me proficient in the other two categories. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. They align with what I have taught. *Play Analysis, Production and Playwriting -Acting, Directing and Pedagogy -Theatre History and Cultural Context *Technical Theatre and Design * College courses - Participatied in theater productions in HS, College, Community & Film Community <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes, if "production" implies planning. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. My coursework did fit under these categories. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes these categories do align with my experience as a theatre professional <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I do not have formal training in theatre. I have been a part of theatre since I was in HS, but have done many of the jobs in my 20 years of involvement at Penn Manor. I have attended workshops at the state Thespian conference, International Thespian Festival, and taken graduate coursework over the summer at Millersville University. I have taken the Communications Praxis exam so that I have the proper certification to offer the Theatre Arts course at Penn Manor HS. These categories align well to the curriculum content of that course. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. Point Park University required all of these categories. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I have not taken coursework in theater, so my experiences are all field experience (which is extensive). <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Do these four broad categories align with what you feel Theatre teachers need?
<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I believe that classroom teachers need to be steeped in theatre history, to be exposed to the varied genres and possibilities, to have had some experience with Creative dramatics, guided drama experiences and integrated drama experiences, some exposure to various theories of acting and most importantly some experience in how to teach theatre to students, how to direct young people, and how to pull together a performane, including some knowledge of lighting and sound, costuming, make up, scenic and design elements <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Again, theater teachers need to be versed in different methods of creating theater pieces. They need improv training, acting training, and training in methods of creative collaboration. They need to have some experience in the professional world so they can guide students into how to enter it. Otherwise, we are creating only a pool of erudite volunteers. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I think that these four categories cover all content well. I think that each individual teacher's needs will vary - but an overview of these categories will enable everyone to get what they need. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I am comfortable that these 4 areas cover the areas a Theatre teacher should have knowledge in. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">These categories seem rather comprehensive. The only thing that I feel might be missing is an exploration of the more practical elements of preparation for a theater career, such as preparing an audition and appropriate resume, learning the correct channels to seek employment,apprenticeships, etc. Although these may seem unimportant to the student considering theatre as an avocation only, the pursuit of all of this builds work skills no matter what career direction one ultimately takes, and indeed life skills as well. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. This covers the necessary areas. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Teaching theater requires much more than book knowledge. To be able to teach theater, the instructor must have experience on the stage. Those that teach acting or directing must have first hand experience on creating a role, processing the thoughts of a character, translating it into physicality and emotional form, and be able to present it to an audience. Other classes can be taught through book and classroom work. Only in theater, it is impossible to teach the knowledgeable skills without firsthand knowledge of the actual execution on a professional stage, with all of its technical aspects, interactions with theater staff, and learning how to play off of audience reaction. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The broad categories are all important and should all be represented in some way. Although I do not think a formal course in just playwriting or just theater pedagogy for an experienced teacher absolutely necessary. If an experienced teacher has studied creative writing and attended writing workshops, understands teacher education and has been a practicing teacher for many years, given the study of script analysis, acting styles and theory, they should have the skills they need to teach them. I feel the four broad categories are all important at least because in many places in our state theater teachers need to be generalists and do everything including technical theater. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. Theater teachers should have training and knowledge in all of these areas. All areas are necessary to be able to produce live theater performances from beginning to end. Musical Theater and Theater movement should be considered as well. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Again, yes. Usually the theatre teacher is a one person job. They need to be able to wear many hats. The four areas mentioned summarizes a theatre teacher's job in any school. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes they do. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I do, but experience has shown that what students should be learning doesn't necessarily mesh with that which is being taught, especially in the area of pedagogy. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">To your knowledge, do these four categories align with what area colleges are teaching?
<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes these align with my experience with Harrisburg Area Community College, Villanova University and the State Univ of New York <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Sadly, yes. The coursework offered needs to be expanded. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I am not sure that students in a theatre track get all of these areas - I think they are more aligned with specific focuses within their major - however I do agree that a teacher should have knowledge in each of these areas. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Because theater education is not endorsed in our state, BA degrees in PA do not necessarily require any kind of teaching pedagogy and playwriting is often offered as an elective, but not required. I do, believe acting and directing classes do cover the necessary material for pedagogy if a teacher already has another teaching certificate and can incorporate their knowledge of teaching. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I have been teaching theatre in colleges/universities for 50 years and these four categories align with all the programs I work with. The four also generally align with all the other programs that I know about. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I am not certain how universally theatre pedagogy is offered. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">There are many Colleges & Universities in the Philadelphia area that offer all types of theater majors and courses including theater study abroad. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I have several students majoring in Theatre at various universities right now - PACE, Temple, Penn State. From my discussions with them, these align very well. Actors must learn about technical theatre, and technical theatre majors must still learn about performance. Since dance is being treated as a separate topic for our purposes, I think that these categories are appropriate. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">If it is not a conservatory, then yes. Many colleges in the area offer a balanced theatre degree. By balanced I mean the student is exposed to all four of the categories. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. These four areas align with college teaching as well. Play Analysis maybe incorporated into other classes, rather than as a stand alone. Pedagogy is taught less frequently, if at all, and depends largely on if your state has certification for teachers. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">In every college or university where I have taught, there is some semblance of coursework that fits into these broad categories. That being said, I am not aware of any coursework that is focused directly on the teaching of theatre, but more often on using theatre to teach. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Beyond practicums, yes. I like the categories and, as I mentioned, they seem rather comprehensive. They also allow for some flexibility of content. For example, if there was to be a course on Theater for Young Audiences, its curriculum could potentially involve content from each of the categories. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Yes, colleges do cover these categories. ===<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">How well do these four categories align with your own thoughts about an organizing framework to identify and articulate competencies for a Theatre endorsement? ===


 * Highly aligned with my thinking || **12**  ||  80%  ||
 * Moderately aligned || **1**  ||  7%  ||
 * Aligned || 0  ||  0%  ||
 * Minimally aligned || **2**  ||  13%  ||
 * Not at all || 0  ||  0%  ||
 * Other || 0  ||  0%  ||

Final names chosen:
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Play Analysis, Production, Script Writing and Play Creation ** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Acting, Directing and Pedagogy ** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Theatre History & Cultural Context ** <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;">**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Technical Theatre & Design **