Sometime after 1492, the concept of the New World or America came into being, and this concept appeared differently — as an experience or an idea — for different people and in different places. This semester, we will read three groups of texts: first, participant accounts of contact between native Americans and French or English speaking Europeans, both in North America and in the Caribbean and Brazil; second, transformations of these documents into literary works by contemporaries; third, modern texts which take these earlier materials as a point of departure for rethinking the experience and aftermath of contact. The reading will allow us to compare perspectives across time and space, across the cultural geographies of religion, nation and ethnicity, and finally across a range of genres — reports, captivity narratives, essays, novels, poetry, drama, and film. Some of the earlier authors we will read are Michel Montaigne, William Shakespeare, Jean de Léry, Daniel Defoe and Mary Rowlandson; more recent authors include Derek Walcott, and J. M. Coetzee.

The television landscape has changed drastically in the past few years; nowhere is this more prevalent than in the American daytime serial drama, one of the oldest forms of television content. This class examines the history of these "soap operas" and their audiences by focusing on the production, consumption, and media texts of soaps. The class will include discussions of what makes soap operas a unique form, the history of the genre, current experimentation with transmedia storytelling, the online fan community, and comparisons between daytime dramas and primetime serials from 24 to Friday Night Lights, through a study of Procter & Gamble's As the World Turns.

Employees of the Two O'Clock, a Boston strip joint, talk about their lives and work. George, a bartender, talks about what it takes to be a bartender in a place like the Two O'Clock.

This is a course in Narrative Film Production which shows how drama departments can create short motion pictures as part of a drama class. Currently, we have only one lesson. But eventually, there will be more. And with each lesson, you will participate in the making of a movie based on your own story.

This class is an interdisciplinary survey that explores the experiences of people of African descent through the overlapping approaches of history, literature, anthropology, legal studies, media studies, performance, linguistics, and creative writing. It connects the experiences of African Americans and of other American minorities, focusing on social, political, and cultural histories, and on linguistic patterns. Activities include lectures, discussions, workshops, and required field trips that involve minimal cost to students.

Excerpt from 'Black Nativity,' performed by vocalists from the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts. This musical production is based on the play 'Black Nativity.' by Langston Hughes.

'Black Nativity.'A Say Brother special presentation, 'Christmas in Color', features the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts' musical adaptation of Langston Hughes' 'Black Nativity,' which was performed in-studio. Additional segments include a mime performance by Halim Adbur Rashid (Fred Johnson) and a 'Christmas Cabaret' featuring four songs by vocalist Chip Garnett with back-up vocalists Cheryl Freeman and Sheryl Shell. Produced by Barbara Barrow-Murray.

What does Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus tell us about the author and the time at which the play was written?This unit will help you to discover the intricacies of the play and recognise how a knowledge of the historical and political background of the time can lead to a very different understanding of the author's intended meaning.

'City Archives' was written and directed by Richard Foreman, founder and director of the Ontological Hysteric Theater. He serves as the narrator for this work, discussing the power of 'the foreign' and images, talking directly into a microphone in a purposely stilted manner and addressing questions to the viewer. A sort of classroom overpopulated by adults sets the stage for the work. Phrases are written and erased on a blackboard, and women gaze out a window, physically supporting planks of wood. The cast gathers around the makeshift bedside of a woman and wanders through what appears to be a library. The performers appear in a small garden and at a movie theater, speaking only to occasionally echo Foreman's remarks and with elaborately choreographed movements and stillnesses. Foreman's text questions strategies for documenting experience, the notion of place and a city, and the process of writing. Produced by the Minnesota Public Programming Corporation. Directed by Richard Foreman. Originally created with the support of the Walker Arts Center, 'City Archives' was broadcast as an episode of the WNET Television Laboratory's series 'Video/Film Review,' ca. 1979. At WGBH, it was broadcast as part of 'Artist's Showcase.''Artist's Showcase' was a series designed to showcase video art and experimental work from WGBH. The program ran on Sunday evenings at 11 P.M., from the fall of 1976 through 1982. In the early 1970's, 'Artist's Showcase' was the only consistent broadcast outlet for many of the Workshop productions. Most materials of broadcast quality created at WGBH in the mid-1970's were shown as part of this series. Additionally, earlier video art experiments and segments of related shows, such as 'Mixed Bag' or 'What's Happening Mr. Silver' were broadcast under these auspices. This series was also a broadcast outlet for a handful of works by video artists that were not created at WGBH but only acquired for this purpose. Some compilation reels showing highlights of Workshop activity were also broadcast.

'Collisions' was written by Jane Wagner and is an unusual comedy/drama. It stars Lily Tomlin and other well known performers, such as Dan Aykroyd and Gilda Radner. The work attempts to integrate short video works by Stephen Beck, Ed Emshwiller, Louis Falco, Ron Hays, Stan Vanderbeek, and William Wegman. 'Collisions' tells the story of Eartha, a creature from the planet of Zymus, who agrees to take a human form and to observe the planet earth. Eartha inhabits Beth Barber (Lily Tomlin), a news reporter. At one point, Beth visits her family in Kentucky, who are played by Tomlin's actual family. Meanwhile, a panel of experts on a television program on Zymus monitor Eartha's impressions and contemplate whether or not to blow up the earth. Eventually, Eartha, who has come to respect the humans' vulnerability and depth of feeling, has a falling out with the panel. The fate of earth remains uncertain. Produced by Fred Barzyk and David Loxton. A coproduction of the WNET Television Laboratory and the WGBH New Television Workshop. This work was considered a 'failure' by Fred Barzyk and was never broadcast.

This course looks at comedy in drama, novels, and films from Classical Greece to the twentieth century. Focusing on examples from Aristophanes, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Molière, Wilde, Chaplin, and Billy Wilder, along with theoretical contexts, the class examines comedy as a transgressive mode with revolutionary social and political implications. This is a Communications Intensive (CI) class with emphasis on discussion, and frequent, short essays.

Subject focuses on fiction, drama, and poetry and possibly films inspired by these topics mostly of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. This semester, Contemporary Literature (21L.488) deals with Irish literature, a subject broad and deep. To achieve a manageable volume of study, the course focuses primarily on poetry and prose, at drama's expense, and on living writers, at the expense of their predecessors. Each class session follows a discussion format, often with students assigned to lead-off or summarize the day's topic.

Students view photos of Father Serra and his living quarters at Mission Carmel and use their senses to create a speech.

Prior knowledge about Father Serra is required - text book, websites, articles, etc.

'Blast from the Past' with musician Jerry 'Iceman' Butler. Program focuses on the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts, Roxbury, Mass. Host Matthew Goode (education specialist for the Committee of the Massachusetts Department of Education) speaks with Reverend George Thomas (Chairman of the Board for the National Center of Afro-American Artists and Chairman of the 25th Anniversary Committee), Vernon Blackman (Drama Director at the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts) and Margret Morgan (longtime friend, supporter, and 'Honorary Mother' of Lewis's school) to discuss the history of the school, its importance, the community it serves, and the events that will comprise the celebration. Additional program segments include a mime performance by Halim Adbur Rashid (Fred Johnson), 'Access' (on the work of the Roxbury Medical Technical Institute), 'Information' (on how to purchase safe toys for children), 'Blast from the Past' (with an early 1970s Say Brother interview with musician Jerry 'Iceman' Butler), 'The Word' (with commentary by professor and historian A.B. Spellman), the 'Community Calendar,' and 'Commentary' by Producer Marita Rivero. Directed by Conrad White.

Elma Lewis reads the poem 'Sympathy' by Paul Lawrence Dunbar. Program is divided into two halves: the first featuring a 30-minute in-studio poetry reading by Elma Lewis, the second of magazine-style segments. Elma Lewis, Director of the National Center of Afro-American Artists, seated with children around her, talks about what poetry is, what a poem can make you feel, and why people used to write in rhymes. Lewis focuses on two African American poets, Langston Hughes (who is 'of this time') and Paul Lawrence Dunbar, and reads selections from each. The second half contains the following segments: a mime performance by Halim Adbur Rashid (Fred Johnson) titled 'The Writer,' 'Access' (with A.D. Saunders, who describes the Boston Jazz Society), 'The Word' (with professor and historian A.B. Spellman, who comments on Black History Week), the 'Community Calendar,' 'Information' (on Minority Recruitment Month for the Peace Corps), and 'Commentary' by Producer Marita Rivero. Original air date estimated. Directed by Conrad White.

Intensive study of an important topic or period in drama. Close analysis of major plays, enriched by critical readings and attention to historical and theatrical contexts. Instruction and practice in oral and written communication. Topic for Fall: Renaissance Drama.

'Blast from the Past' with FCC Commissioner Benjamin Hooks. Program is divided into two halves: the first consisting of five dance segments aired in previous programs, the second of newsmagazine-style segments. Dance performances are by the Dance Company of the National Center of Afro-American Artists (performing the piece 'Doogla'), the Dance Theatre of Boston (performing 'Black Light'), and Halim Adbur Rashid (Fred Johnson, performing a mime/modern dance piece). Additional segments include 'Information' (on preparing for unemployment), 'Community Access' (on the work of the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency and its role as a financier of mixed income developments), 'Blast from the Past' (with an excerpt from a 1972 interview with FCC Commissioner Benjamin Hooks on the need for increasing the numbers of African Americans in the television and radio professions), the 'Community Calendar,' and 'Commentary' by Producer Marita Rivero (consisting of film footage of an African American couple on a date). Produced by Marita Rivero. Directed by Conrad White.

Acclaimed theater director brings movement to Cezanne's painting, reproduced in the studio for the camera. [Suzushi Hanayagi,] a dancer from the Kabuki theater, performs the role of the woman, whose slight, almost imperceptible, facial and body movements -- together with mysteriously animated objects and strange apparitions -- bring the painting alive. A spoon stirs a cup of coffee without the benefit of human assistance. An off-camera figure manipulates objects. The woman eats green candies. A giant rat head appears in the background. Finally, the woman exits and is replaced by a young woman. Lyrical music and exaggerated sound effects form the soundtrack by Hans Peter Kuhn.

Interactive crossword testing your knowledge of characters and events in a play.