By their very nature, live arts, and theatre in particular, can be assumed as a field of observation of the complex interaction between the social dimension, the media context and the cultural production, especially in phase of shifting. 

Assuming the central issue of the process of remediation of the performing arts, and applying a dual perspective that combines a vertical, historical-theoretical approach with a participatory, pratical-experimental research on the contemporary theatre, the course provides a series of methodological coordinates and applicative experiences useful for the construction of a transdisciplinary critical method aimed to improve the analysis, contextualization and interpretation of the artistic-theatrical creation in the light of its relationships with the transformation occurred and occuring in both mediological and socio-anthropological scenarios.

Part 1: theatre in (social, cultural, mediological) histories

- introduction to the guiding concepts of the course between Media, Performance and Theatre Studies: remediation, liveness, intermediality

- investigation of the basic elements of the performative event; genealogical analysis and deconstruction of the paradigms in force in Theatre Studies; methodological opening linked to the notion of performance

- recognition and discussion of some key moments in theatrical, artistic and cultural history in which the performing arts can be explored as a field of study useful for observing the mutations that occurred at the mediological and sociological level (from the beginning of Western culture to its systematization in Renaissance, up to the "society of the spectacle" between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries).

Part 2: remediation processes in contemporary theatre

- theoretical and conceptual introduction to the postmodern and contemporary theatre

- identification, supported by the vision and commentary of shows (in video and / or live), of the trends that characterize the performing arts between the twentieth century and the 2000's (with particular attention to intermediality performances, to the relationship between art and reality, to the question of liveness)

- focus Digital theatre: mapping of the digital performances available during the course; vision of the selected works (also starting from the collective mapping) and discussion (also, where possible, through the comparison with the artists); individual / group research on the remediation processes of performing arts in the context of web culture.

1. Knowledge and understanding: students, by attending lectures and studying the texts in the bibliography, come to possess a basic historical and theoretical knowledge for understanding the interactions between performative phenomena, social dynamics, communication processes in history and in the contemporary.

2. Applied knowledge and understanding: through exercises, individual or group research and classroom discussions, students experience different practices of recognition, analysis, interpretation of the contemporary landscape linked to artistic and cultural creation in relation to emerging dynamics in the socio-anthropological and mediological fields.

3. Autonomy of judgment: through the methodological coordinates provided by the lectures and the applicative experience gained with the exercises and discussions in the classroom, students develop a critical approach aimed both at the analysis of the productive mechanisms of contemporary performing arts, and, vice versa, the performative dynamics implicit in the communication processes.

4. Communication skills: in the various moments dedicated during the course to the exposure, discussion and comparison on theoretical topics and case studies, students refine expressive skills, communication skills and language properties in the field of study as well as, in reference to the proposed transdisciplinary perspective, they implement approaches of a comparative nature in order to put in dialogue stimuli and paths coming from different fields of knowledge and knowledge.

5. Learning skills: students acquire notions, theoretical tools and skills that bring to the comparison between the historical-theoretical and analytical-practical dimensions and that are tested through dialogue, discussions and individual / collective exercises in the classroom, allowing the autonomous development of further study within the involved disciplines.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

In addition to lectures, there will be both individual and collective exercises in the classroom, and seminars that will focus on the analysis of the performative events enjoyed during the course (whose program will be built together with the students) and on the discussion of texts that will be provided by the teacher

Teaching

- Frontal lessons on the history and theory of performing arts in relation to socio-anthropological and mediological contexts

- Seminar moments: discussion on performative events and reference texts

- Individual / group exercises on the digital scene and on the remediation processes of the contemporary theatre

Attendance

Attendance at ¾ of the lessons + classroom exercises

Course books

1) A book between: 

- Philip Auslander, Liveness: Performance in a Mediatized Culture, Routledge 2008

- Freda Chapple, Chiel Kattenbelt (eds.), Intermediality in Theatre and Performance: Definitions, Perceptions and Medial Relationships, Rodopi 2006

2) A book between: 

- Hans-Thies Lehmann, Postdramatic Theatre, Routledge 2006

- Erika Fischer-Lichte, The Transformative Power of Performance: A New Aesthetics, Routledge 2008

Assessment

The exam for attending students consists of an oral discussion which will focus on:

- the texts indicated in the bibliography (2 books: each choosen from the one of the two thematic areas of the course)

- lessons' notes

- a performative event enjoyed in the current year

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Study of the exam program and teaching materials available on the University's online platform

Course books

1) A book between: 

- Philip Auslander, Liveness: Performance in a Mediatized Culture, Routledge 2008

- Freda Chapple, Chiel Kattenbelt (eds.), Intermediality in Theatre and Performance: Definitions, Perceptions and Medial Relationships, Rodopi 2006

2) A book between: 

- Hans-Thies Lehmann, Postdramatic Theatre, Routledge 2006

- Erika Fischer-Lichte, The Transformative Power of Performance: A New Aesthetics, Routledge 2008

3) Bruce McConachie, et al., Theatre Histories: an Introduction, Routledge, 2016

Assessment

The exam for non-attending students consists of an oral discussion that will focus on the books included in the specific bibliography.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.