Theatres of Migration and Exile

Subject 106-400 (2009)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2009. Search for this in the current handbook

Credit Points: 12.50
Level: 4 (Undergraduate)
Dates & Locations:

This subject is not offered in 2009.
Time Commitment: Contact Hours: A 2-hour seminar per week
Total Time Commitment: 2 contact hours/week , 8 additional hours/week. Total of 10 hours per week.
Prerequisites: Admission to Postgraduate Diploma or Fourth Year Honours in Theatre Studies
Corequisites: None
Recommended Background Knowledge: None
Non Allowed Subjects: None
Core Participation Requirements:

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

Contact

Denise Varney

dvarney@unimelb.edu.au

Subject Overview: This subject investigates transitional trends in contemporary theatre. Where national and postcolonial theatres have historically functioned as sites for the exploration of nation and national identity, theatres of migration and exile offer multicultural, intercultural, trans- and postnational perspectives on a mobile world. Through the study of selected dramatic texts and performances, students will critically engage with themes of flight, border-crossing, homeland, mobility, memory and identity. The critical throught of Homi Bhabha, Rustom Bharacha and Una Chaudhuri informs the inquiry. Questions include theatre’s response to the challenge of difference, how it incorporates multiple languages and performance traditions including narrative, song and dance. Key works include Odette Best’s True, Ariane Mnouchkine’s Le Dernier Caravansérail, Tony Kushner’s Homebody/Kabul, Guillermo Gómez-Peña’s performance events and installations, Ping Chong’s Undesirable Elements Project, and Athol Fugard’s Sizwe Bansi is Dead and The Island.
Objectives:
  • be able to demonstrate knowledge of theatrical performance as a thematic space that shapes and comments on contemporary social issues;
  • be able to recognise and explain how theatre and performance engage with wider investigations of identity, difference and belonging;
  • be able to design and conduct original research that includes reflection on their own learning.
Assessment: Seminar paper discussing the text of a chosen performance due mid-semester (1500 words, worth 30%). An essay which critically examines theatre of migration and exile, utilising chosen and competing critical theories due end of semester (3500 words, worth 70%).
Prescribed Texts: A subject reader will be available from the Bookroom at the beginning of semester
Recommended Texts: Homi Bhabha, The location of culture London ; New York : Routledge, 1994. Rustom Bharucha, The politics of cultural practice : thinking through theatre in an age of globalization, London : Athlone, 2000. Una Chaudhuri, Staging Place: The Geography of Modern Drama, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1995
Breadth Options:

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.
Fees Information: Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills:
  • be able to demonstrate a high level of written communication skills, including conformity to academic protocols of presentation and research;
  • be able to demonstrate a high level of competence in reading, synthesizing, and presenting to others the relevant theoretical material;
  • be able to design and conduct original research that includes reflection on their own learning.
Notes: This subject is available to Bachelor of Creative Arts (Theatre Studies) honours and Postgraduate Diploma (Theatre Studies) students.
Related Course(s): Bachelor of Creative Arts(Honours)
Postgraduate Diploma in Creative Arts
Related Majors/Minors/Specialisations: English
English
English

Download PDF version.