ENG 222 - Science on Stage

Course unit(s): 1
Meets GAR: Meets general academic requirements HU and W.
Theatre models the way the world works, asks us to consider what makes things happen and why people act as they do. Science gives us another kind of model. So what happens when the modeling system of theatre reimagines the modeling systems of science? This course is a study of theatre, as a way to ask questions about the world, as a site for experimentation, as a way to learn about science, and as a mode of critical cultural inquiry into scientific ideas. To investigate the theatrical fascination with science, we will study works by playwrights interested in heredity and evolution (Strindberg, Glaspell), in mathematics and physics (Stoppard, Auburn, Frayn), in astronomy (Brecht), biology and cloning (Churchill), robotics and technology (Kopit, Capek). We will also consider the scientist on stage, looking at plays that dramatize their stories. Satisfies departmental Drama/Transmedia requirement.