This six-week course will dive into the many ways the written word can interact and respond to what is being presented on stage. Join U-M Professor of Dance Clare Croft for this interactive, conversational course that will help you critically examine what you’re seeing on stage while developing your own writing skills. From personal reflection and blog comments to critical reviews and inspired creative writing, this course will use the performing arts as a starting off point for a range of exploratory exercises.

Week 1: Seeing and Describing (Monday, February 12)

We will explore basic performance analysis skills through interactive exercises. Participants will watch and respond to clips of performance on video using performance basics: who is on stage? what are they doing? why are they doing it?

Week 2: Layers of Performance (Monday, February 19)

We will explore the many layers of performance (words, choreography, lights, costumes, etc.) and think about how these layers sometimes work together and sometimes create dissonance. Participants will do exercises around the opera Porgy & Bess’s iconic language by exploring the song “Summertime,” and imagining Porgy & Bess’s “missing scenes.”

Week 3: Research and Context (Monday, March 12)

We will consider how performances are in dialogue with the worlds from which they emerge and the worlds in which they are performed. Participants will bring to class research related to the performance of Piedmont Blues: A Search for Salvation to help situate the performance in context, including learning about the Piedmont region, race in Appalachia, different approaches to blues music, documenting musical traditions, etc.

Week 4: Reviewing and Responding (Monday, March 19)

We will consider how people evaluate performance: what makes a performance successful on its own terms? Participants will discuss how to combine description, research, and contextualization as a way to examine and respond to performance.

Week 5: Pulling It All Together (Monday, March 26)

We will share and discuss our approaches to writing about performance. Participants will bring a performance response to class and conduct a peer review workshop around the challenge and possibilities of writing about performance.

Each week, participants will engage in peer sharing and interactive exercises, and have modest homework assignments.

To participate in UMS Night School, you must register through the Rec & Ed website and pay the registration fee. Registration opens on Monday, December 18, 2017. (Sorry, no ticket exchanges or refunds for previously purchased tickets.)