Courses
The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular semester. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the Student Link for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.
View courses in
-
CFA TH 366: Scene Painting 4
Prereq: CFA TH 365 or consent of instructor. Studio class. Continuation in painting specific architectural detail; projects include stain glass, perspective and trompe l'oeil techniques; special finishes for furniture and constructed projects. 2.0 credits. Spring semester. -
CFA TH 369: Technical Production 3
Prereq: CFA TH 269 or Permission of Instructor. This course is designed to give Technical Directors the engineering knowledge to design safe and efficient scenery. Through real conditions and a text, students will develop a vocabulary and a database of formulas to effectively engineer scenery. Students will discuss concepts typical to engineering, study the variables and formulas used to determine material strengths, typical and atypical loading conditions, and how to engineer scenery used in normal theatrical applications. 3.0 credits. Fall Semester. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Quantitative Reasoning I. -
CFA TH 370: Technical Production 4
Prereq: CFA TH 369. This course is designed to give Technical Directors an in-depth look into engineering safe and efficient scenery. Through real conditions and a text, students will learn how to engineer wood and steel elements used in theatre. The primary focus of study will be beam and column design. 3.0 credits. Spring Semester. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Quantitative Reasoning II. -
CFA TH 375: Costume Design 3
Prereq: CFA TH 276; For the intermediate design student. Geared toward practical application of design theory. Continued development of script analysis, style, research techniques and rendering skills. Exercises examine the principles of design as applied to historical costume. Readings and projects incorporate all theatre genres, ballet, dance and opera depending on individuals in the class. 3.0 credits. Fall semester. -
CFA TH 376: Costume Design 4
Prereq: CFA TH375; Continuation of CFA TH 375. For the intermediate design student. Geared toward practical application of design theory. Continued development of script analysis, style, research techniques and rendering skills. Exercises examine the principles of design as applied to historical costume. Readings and projects incorporate all theatre genres, ballet, dance and opera depending on individuals in the class. 3.0 credits. Spring semester. -
CFA TH 377: Rendering for Costume Design 1
The Rendering for Costume Design course serves to elevate conceptual design ideas with an emphasis on visual and verbal presentation. Drawings are treated as informational tools which are used when facilitating discussions with fellow designers and directors. With practice of the skills learned in class, students find that they will achieve greater individual expression in addition to the research used in the costume design process. The use of various drawing and watercolor techniques are employed to help create dynamic, expressive renderings with an emphasis on composition and style. 1.0 credits. Fall Semester. -
CFA TH 378: Rendering for Costume Design 2
The Rendering for Costume Design course serves to elevate conceptual design ideas with an emphasis on visual and verbal presentation. Drawings are treated as informational tools which are used when facilitating discussions with fellow designers and directors. With practice of the skills learned in class, students find that they will achieve greater individual expression in addition to the research used in the costume design process. The use of various drawing and watercolor techniques are employed to help create dynamic, expressive renderings with an emphasis on composition and style. 1.0 credits. Spring Semester. -
CFA TH 379: Costume Production 3: Modern Tailoring
This class explores the evolution of men's tailoring of the 20th century. Lectures focus on the significance of changing silhouettes for each decade and the inner structure that creates the perfect shape for various body types. Time will be allotted in class to participate in detail sample making, pattern drafting of various systems, cutting and assembling garments. Fittings will also be used to teach different methods of construction through class participation. The final product will be a finished three-piece suit. 3.0 credits. Fall Semester of even academic years. -
CFA TH 381: Fabric Dyeing 1
Prereq: CFA TH 182 or consent of instructor; The student learns a variety of crafts associated with fabric painting and dyeing. Subject matter may include fiber reactive dyeing, distressing and silk screening. Check with instructor for current semester content. 1.0 credit. Fall semester. -
CFA TH 383: Lighting Design 3
Prereq: CFA TH 284 or Permission of Instructor. Introduction to lighting design for the stage as a medium for communicating artistic ideas to an audience. Explores the language of light, both verbal and abstract, with a strong emphasis on dramaturgical analysis and how these textual ideas can be interpreted using light. Required Labs will supplement class work with hands-on activities. 3.0 credits. Fall semester. -
CFA TH 384: Lighting Design 4
Prereq: CFA TH 383 or Permission of Instructor. A continuation of CFA TH 383. Introduction to the process of lighting design for the stage. Explores how to develop lighting ideas, concepts, and visual images from a text, and how to support those ideas to the point of realization. Required Labs will supplement class work with hands-on activities. 3.0 credits. Spring semester. -
CFA TH 387: Sound Design 3
For the intermediate sound design student. Projects for both theoretical and realized productions. Practical projects to demonstrate sound design techniques. Readings and projects incorporate genres, ballet, dance, and opera. 3 cr -
CFA TH 388: Sound Design 4
Continuation of sound design exploration for the intermediate sound design student. Projects for both theoretical and realized productions. Practical projects to demonstrate sound design techniques. Readings and projects incorporate all theatre genres, ballet, dance, and opera. 3 cr -
CFA TH 390: Systems Design 2
Prereq: CFA TH 389 or consent of instructor; Audio systems, video systems and intercom systems will be examined from input to output in terms of signal flow and interconnection practices and how they are used. Offered in odd numbered AY. 3.0 credits. Spring semester. -
CFA TH 393: Stage Management 3: Types & Styles
Prereq: CFA TH 293 or Permission of Instructor. This course examines leadership, management, and communication styles for the stage manager. Students will strengthen and hone their personal stage management style through the lens of the artful application of their skills to the different types of live performance the stage manager may encounter, such as new works, musicals, opera, dance, staged readings & workshops, and event work. Fall Semester. -
CFA TH 395: Production Management
This course will study the role of the Production Manager within the design, production, and rehearsal process, specifically concentrating on the roles and responsibilities of Production Managing on a professional level, including scheduling, staffing, budgeting, team building, and time management. Students will get hands-on experience in each of these through the creation of a theoretical production process, in class discussions and workshops. 2.0 Credits. Fall Semester. -
CFA TH 397: Production
Prereq: CFA TH 298; Each semester that a junior Design & Production BFA candidate is in residence at SOT, he/she is required to enroll in an appropriate section of Production. Meets late afternoons, evenings and/or weekends. Specific design and shop work in the mounting of student or professional productions. Does not include off-crew design work. Fall semester. -
CFA TH 398: Production
Prereq: CFA TH397; Each semester that a junior Design & Production BFA candidate is in residence at SOT, he/she is required to enroll in an appropriate section of Production. Meets late afternoons, evenings and/or weekends. Specific design and shop work in the mounting of student or professional productions. Does not include off-crew design work. Spring semester. -
CFA TH 401: Dramaturgical Methods and Investigations: Excavating the Classics
Prereq: At least one of the following: CFA TH 101, CFA TH 102, CFA TH 201, CFA TH 202 or consent of instructor; What is dramaturgy? How are its methods useful to theatre practitioners, regardless of specialization? Students in this course will learn the basics of best dramaturgical practice through investigations and excavations of classic plays, juxtaposed against current adaptations and reinterpretations. Instruction will focus on: the development of one's personal aesthetic; effective research and its presentation; dramaturgical writing and analysis; the creation of casebooks on specific plays; and devising pathways into the world of the play for one's collaborators. 3.0 credits. Fall semester. -
CFA TH 402: Contemporary Dramatic Literature
Prereq: At least one of the following: CFA TH 101, CFA TH 102, CFA TH 201, CFA TH 202 or consent of instructor; This discussion course explores the most current trends in theatre from the United States and United Kingdom, with particular attention paid to the voices of African-American, Asian-American, Disabled, Feminist, Gay, and Lesbian playwrights, as well as to plays that break the standard molds of realism and naturalism. Beginning with 1990's Angels in America and moving forward to the present, the course pairs close reading and analysis with other dramaturgical methods in order to provide students with intellectual depth and practical skill for the professional theatre. Attendance of selected performances at B.U. and in Boston-at-large is required. 3.0 credits. Spring semester.