New Directions in Teaching Theatre Arts

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xix

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2. Introduction

   • Gail S. Medford, Anne Fliotsos

   Pages 1-5

3. Teaching with Digital Technology

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 7-7

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   2. Approaches to “Audience-Centered” Performance: Designing Interaction for the iGeneration

      • William W. Lewis

      Pages 9-25

   3. This Is the Dawning of the Age of the Online Course: Reimagining Introduction to Theatre

      • Elizabeth A. Osborne, Shelby Lunderman

      Pages 27-43

   4. “I Had Never Danced in a Bathroom Before”: Using Audio Walks to Engage Theatre Students in the World Outside the Classroom

      • James McKinnon

      Pages 45-61

   5. Digital Storytelling Pedagogies, Processes and Performances: Two Case Studies

      • Amy Petersen Jensen, Megan Alrutz

      Pages 63-79

4. Teaching in Response to Educational Trends

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 81-81

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   2. Theatre Assessment for Teaching and Learning

      • Jane Duncan, Bradley W. Griffin, Travis Malone

      Pages 83-99

   3. Teaching Critical Writing in the World Theatre Course: WAC Pedagogy and the Scaffolded Research Paper

      • Kelly Aliano, Dongshin Chang

      Pages 101-115

   4. Theatre and the First-Year Experience: Activities for Transdisciplinary Teaching

      • Stacey Connelly

      Pages 117-136

5. Teaching New Directions in Performance

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 137-137

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   2. Training Actors with Disabilities

      • Deric McNish

      Pages 139-156

   3. The Intracultural Actor: Embracing Difference in Theatre Arts Teaching

      • Chris Hay, Kristine Landon-Smith

      Pages 157-173

   4. The Entrepreneurial Actor: A Study of Training Programs in Anglophone Countries Abroad

      • Peter Zazzali

      Pages 175-190

6. Teaching Beyond the Traditional

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 191-191

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   2. Pirated Pedagogy: Repurposing Brecht’s Performance Techniques for Revolutions in Teaching

      • Ann M. Shanahan

      Pages 193-208

   3. Learning Theatre from Children

      • Jeanne Klein

      Pages 209-224

   4. Generating Ethics and Social Justice in Applied Theatre Curricula

      • Sally Bailey, Paige Dickinson

      Pages 225-248

7. Teaching Collaboratively or Across Disciplines

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 249-249

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This book reflects the changes in technology and educational trends (cross-disciplinary learning, entrepreneurship, first-year learning programs, critical writing requirements, course assessment, among others) that have pushed theatre educators to innovate, question, and experiment with new teaching strategies. The text focuses upon a firm practice-based approach that also reflects research in the field, offering innovative and proven methods that theatre educators may use to actively engage students and encourage student success. The sixteen essays in this volume are divided into five sections: Teaching with Digital Technology, Teaching in Response to Educational Trends, Teaching New Directions in Performance, Teaching Beyond the Traditional, and Teaching Collaboratively or Across Disciplines. Study of this book will provoke readers to question both teaching methods and curricula as they consider the ever-shifting arts landscape and the potential careers for theatre graduates.

• Theatre education
• Teaching theatre arts
• Pedagogy in theatre
• Practice-based research
• Theatre and performance students
• Teaching with digital technology
• New directions in performance
• Collaborative teaching

• Department of Theatre, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

  Anne Fliotsos

• Department of Fine and Performing Arts, Bowie State University, Bowie, MD, USA

  Gail S. Medford

Anne Fliotsos is Professor of Theatre at Purdue University, USA. Her books include Teaching Theatre Today: Pedagogical Views of Theatre in Higher Education, American Women Stage Directors of the Twentieth Century, International Women Stage Directors, and Interpreting the Play Script: Contemplation and Analysis. 


Gail S. Medford is Professor and Chair of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at Bowie State University, USA. In addition to scholarly papers and publications, she is co-editor of Teaching Theatre Today: Pedagogical Views of Theatre in Higher Education.

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