Playwriting
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CAS EN 306: Introduction to Playwriting
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120)
This course teaches playwriting craft through lectures, readings, discussion of dramatic writing, writing workshops, attending theatrical events, individual conferences, and the writing of short plays culminating in a one-act. A portfolio of revised work is due at semester's end. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Writing-Intensive Course, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS EN 509: Playwriting 2: Writing the Social/Political Play
Undergraduate Prerequisites: consent of instructor, to whom a short play or scene from a play must be submitted during the period just before classes begin.
Explores the dramatist's response to political and social events over 2,000 years from the Greeks through the modern period. Examines how playwrights dramatized the pressing issues of their times with a focus on content, historical context, and theatrical forms. -
CAS EN 510: Playwriting 1: Writing of Short Plays
Undergraduate Prerequisites: consent of instructor, to whom a short play or scene from a play mustbe submitted during the period just before classes begin. First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120)
A seminar in the writing of short, original plays, addressing structure, language, and theme. Students read and discuss the masters of modern drama. Writing exercises are assigned to stir the imagination and develop craft. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Aesthetic Exploration, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS EN 517: Drama in Theory and Practice 1: Structure and the Script
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or 120) and by consent of instructor, to whom a short play or scene from a play must be submitted during the period just before classes begin.
Structure and the Contemporary Script. A comparison and analysis of the design of plays from the last two decades, encouraging students to imitate the form, character, and plot from these plays while experimenting with their own narrative structures. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Aesthetic Exploration, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS EN 519: Drama in Theory and Practice 2: Experiments with Character and Form
Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS WR 100 or WR 120 along with the consent of the instructor, to whom a short play or scene from a play must be submitted during the period just before classes begin.
Course includes the reading and analysis of dramatic works. Classes allow experimentation with the full-length monologue and small cast plays while giving attention to dramatic structure and style. Students present their own work in a workshop format, and material is critiqued in class. Students also attend performances and write critiques of professional productions. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Aesthetic Exploration, Creativity/Innovation. -
CAS EN 520: Drama in Theory and Practice 3: Adaptation and the Theatre
Undergraduate Prerequisites: consent of instructor, to whom a short play or scene from a play mustbe submitted during the period just before classes begin. First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120)
This playwriting seminar focuses on translation versus adaptation, comparing the two, and culling material from other writing genres. Focusing on tone, imagery, stage design, and language, students write their own stage adaptations as well as read various texts translated from World Theatre. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Aesthetic Exploration, Creativity/Innovation. -
GRS EN 705: Seminar: The Writing of Plays 1
Graduate Prerequisites: consent of instructor, to whom one act or a full-length play must be submitted in the period just before classes begin.
A workshop in the writing of plays. Manuscripts are read using professional actors from the Boston community, and plays are discussed in class. Individual conferences. Limited enrollment. -
GRS EN 706: Seminar: The Writing of Plays 2
Graduate Prerequisites: consent of instructor, to whom one act or a full-length play must be submitted during the period just before classes begin.
A workshop in the writing of plays. Manuscripts are read using professional actors from the Boston community, and plays are discussed in class. Individual conferences. Limited enrollment. -
GRS EN 995: Directed Study in Playwriting
Graduate Prerequisites: thesis-level student in the MFA in Playwriting.
Directed study devoted to writing of the student's thesis play. -
GRS EN 996: Directed Study in Play Production
Graduate Prerequisites: thesis-level student in the MFA in Playwriting.
Directed study devoted to production of the student's thesis play.
