0 or 3 credits
Spring 2026 Studio Upper Division
This course teaches many aspects of producing a performance, from backstage to onstage. Students will learn the technical aspects of creating a professional performance by both observing performance production and developing an actual performance, which this semester is the Xperimental 2024 Concert. Students may participate in the production in a variety of active roles; however, they will be exposed to all aspects through observation, participation, and discussion. Production roles include: director and assistant director, choreographer, performer, lighting design and staging, sound design and technical support, and stage crew (stage manager, house manager, ticket manager, setup and strike support). Occasional class sessions cover skills to enhance your knowledge of some areas of production such as sound design, and lighting technology. For many students who are at the university level, the art of performance is defined almost totally by the act of being on stage performing, in studios or on stages. This course is designed to invite students to learn about all the activities that are done behind the scenes in order for live performances to be presented to an audience. We will discuss what is involved in both large institutional performance spaces, and compare this to our university performance. Then we will discuss what this scenario looks like for performance professionals after college. This course will greatly enhance students' ability to produce their own events in the future, and develop greater appreciation for the collaborative nature of live performance as art form.
Learning Outcomes1Plan and create a small live performance production.
2Identify the necessary components of a production of a professional performance and explain the key collaborative interactions among them.
3Practice basic skills for working performers and producers including those relating to technology and business.
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