My undergraduate dramaturgy course includes a collective dramaturgy of one of the shows in the FSU season, which I oversee as the senior dramaturg on the production. In this way, my students interact with both the cast and crew during rehearsals and the audience via the lobby display. The samples below are from the 2011 production of The Miser, directed by Curtis Young in FSU’s Lab Theatre.
My class created an Actor Packet that we distributed to the cast and attended rehearsals.
The program also contained two dramaturgical contributions:
- My program notes — “For Love or Money: The Comedy of Moliére”
- A fabulous quiz à la Cosmo or Vogue — Kelly Terry’s “Which Miser Character Are You?”
And last, but certainly not least, the Lobby Display for The Miser included the following visuals,* as well as a number of tactile pieces like furniture, samples of baroque coins, and a handmade ladies fan.
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- Timeline focusing on Moliere & 17th Century France (Zoe Chase)
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- Visual Representation of the Period Social Strata (Heather Reynolds & Jayme Smith); Fun Facts (Kat McLeod)
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- Insults Heard in the Show (Mackenzie McBride & Margaret Medwedew); Famous Quotes (Westley Richter)
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- Baroque Fashion (Jenna Gagliano)
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- Fan Etiquette — an important part of this production; accompanied by a sample fan made by Katie Kupferberg (Merritt Rodriguez & Katie Kupferberg)
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- Fan Details (Merritt Rodriguez & Katie Kupferberg)
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- The Financials — accompanied by a chest with samples of 17th century coins (Merritt Rodriguez)
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- Baroque Furnishings — with real examples (Merritt Rodriguez)
*Created by my Dramaturgy undergraduates and edited by me, with layout by Corin Schall and Susan Thomas.