Because I came to Theatre Studies after studying and teaching French language and literature, my earliest formal reflections on teaching occurred in a course on foreign language pedagogy. The most important thing this course taught me is that students learn in different ways; as teachers we must use a variety of strategies to help our students learn. Language pedagogy focuses on developing discrete but connected skills of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Though I now teach different skill sets in theatre history, dramatic literature, and dramaturgy courses, I carry with me the lessons I learned in studying and teaching French language and culture. Crucially, the time I spent studying abroad showed me the immeasurable value of experiential learning.
In teaching undergraduate Theatre majors, I am committed to designing meaningful learning experiences and offering students opportunities to explore discipline-based writing and performance projects. Each student chose one Greek tragedy and pitched that play to a committee of invited faculty members for possible inclusion in the Department of Theatre’s next production season. These pitch presentations were the culmination of several weeks of work based on Simon Goldhill’s How to Stage Greek Tragedy Today. Before beginning to work with Goldhill, students read their selected play and completed a professional reader report listing cast and technical requirements, concise plot summary, and comments on reasons for (or against) producing the play. After reading each chapter of Goldhill’s book, students completed worksheets demonstrating their comprehension of the content and of the author’s rhetorical strategies. Then they wrote a paragraph applying each of Goldhill’s six major analytical frameworks (Space, Acting, Chorus, Politics, Translation, Representations of the gods) to their chosen play. By the time they made their pitch presentations, each student had developed enough expertise in the chosen play to speak with authority about acting and design challenges, potential for collaboration with other departments on campus and in the community, which of several translations had the most theatrical potential, and which theatre space on campus would be best for the play. They also turned in papers that had already undergone a guided revision process, leading to stronger writing.
In teaching graduate students, the same general principles of experiential learning apply, but I tend to offer more flexibility in terms of process and product. I want graduate students to be able to take away something tangible from my class, whether that leads to a document for an artistic portfolio, a teaching portfolio, or a conference presentation. In my graduate seminar on Translation and Adaptation, students wrote midterm papers and gave presentations on comparing multiple translations of the same play. Their final projects took several different forms based on their interests: one developed fight choreography that suggested how different choices of weapons constitute different “adaptations” of a scene; one wrote a prequel to Strindberg’s The Father; one wrote a grant proposal for an Electra festival; one created a scenic model; another created a syllabus for a full-year course.
Finally, as a theatre artist, I find my interactions with students outside the classroom to be particularly important, whether I am with them in rehearsals and production meetings as a dramaturg or director, or supporting their work as a spectator at their productions. In teaching artistic skills, I believe in the importance of learning by doing and in creating a safe space for students to experiment with their artistic abilities. My theatre practice, my teaching, and my research are interdependent. My students teach me how to be a better teacher, and these lessons make me a better scholar, translator, and dramaturg.