Teaching Medieval Drama and Performance (colloquium): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 11:02, 7 December 2017

In 2016-17, the Folger Institute sponsored a year-long colloquium on Teaching Medieval Drama and Performance, welcoming advanced scholars whose research and pedagogical practice explore historical, literary, and theoretical dimensions of medieval drama from the perspective of performance. Colloquium participants represented a range of academic specialties and experiences: senior scholars of medieval and early modern drama; a seasoned professor of acting; younger scholars experimenting with digital research and pedagogies; graduate students committed to incorporating medieval drama in broadly-themed literature courses. Our group also included individuals actively engaged in producing medieval drama within and beyond college and university classroom settings.

Binding us together was a passionate belief that medieval drama 1) constitutes an essential chapter in the history of theater and literature; 2) speaks directly to modern and contemporary issues and concerns; and 3) through its immense variety of dramatic modes and techniques, translates to classroom study and performance.

Rather than bringing to the table individual research or pedagogical projects, colloquium participants decided to collaborate on creating materials that provide informational background and contexts as well as practical suggestions for classroom teaching and for performances. To that end, we developed this multipart Folgerpedia archive on Teaching Medieval Drama and Performance. We envision our target audiences as secondary school and college and university teachers, but the materials collected here are adaptable to other contexts. The materials address both those who have never taught medieval drama but who would like to do so and those who have and will and would like to add to their classroom toolkits. In keeping with the research mission of the Folger Institute, these materials also bring to bear on various contexts of teaching medieval drama and performance significant advances in medieval drama scholarship made in recent decades.

These pedagogical materials comprise six major areas, each of which focuses on an aspect of teaching medieval drama that colloquium participants identified as essential to and/or challenging for that endeavor. We have succinctly articulated what we think aspiring teachers of medieval drama might want to and/or should know about the field and how that knowledge can inform pedagogical approaches as well as classroom activities. Individual articles address the following topics: Language; Religious, Textual, and Staging Contexts; Medieval Drama and Shakespeare; Performance-Based Pedagogies.

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-For more past programming from the [[Folger Institute]], please see the article [[Folger Institute scholarly programs archive]].
+In 2016-17, the Folger Institute sponsored a year-long colloquium on Teaching Medieval Drama and Performance, welcoming advanced scholars whose research and pedagogical practice explore historical, literary, and theoretical dimensions of medieval drama from the perspective of performance.  Colloquium participants represented a range of academic specialties and experiences: senior scholars of medieval and early modern drama; a seasoned professor of acting; younger scholars experimenting with digital research and pedagogies; graduate students committed to incorporating medieval drama in broadly-themed literature courses.  Our group also included individuals actively engaged in producing medieval drama within and beyond college and university classroom settings.
-This was a [[2016-2017 Folger Institute Scholarly Programs|2016-2017]] colloquium led by [[Theresa Coletti]].
+Binding us together was a passionate belief that medieval drama 1) constitutes an essential chapter in the history of theater and literature; 2) speaks directly to modern and contemporary issues and concerns; and 3) through its immense variety of dramatic modes and techniques, translates to classroom study and performance.
-This colloquium welcomes advanced scholars whose research and pedagogical practice explore historical, literary, and theoretical dimensions of medieval drama from the perspective of performance. Some sessions may include workshop opportunities and visiting contributors; participants’ own research projects will shape others. Questions to be addressed might include: what is the role of medieval performative practices in the contemporary teaching of medieval drama? What classroom opportunities are offered by a focus on medieval performance? What archival resources—and in what forms—might facilitate this focus or mitigate common challenges? Performative practices may be broadly construed and participant contributions may include practical experiments and applications in the college classroom.
+Rather than bringing to the table individual research or pedagogical projects, colloquium participants decided to collaborate on creating materials that provide informational background and contexts as well as practical suggestions for classroom teaching and for performances. To that end, we developed this multipart Folgerpedia archive on Teaching Medieval Drama and Performance.  We envision our target audiences as secondary school and college and university teachers, but the materials collected here are adaptable to other contexts.  The materials address both those who have never taught medieval drama but who would like to do so and those who have and will and would like to add to their classroom toolkits.  In keeping with the research mission of the Folger Institute, these materials also bring to bear on various contexts of teaching medieval drama and performance  significant advances in medieval drama scholarship made in recent decades.
-<strong>Director</strong>: <strong>[[Theresa Coletti]]</strong> is Professor of English at the University of Maryland. She is the author of <em>Naming the Rose: Eco, Medieval Signs, and Modern Theory</em> and <em>Mary Magdalene and the Drama of Saints: Theater, Gender, and Religion in Late Medieval England</em>; many essays and reviews on medieval drama; and editor of the forthcoming TEAMS edition of the Digby <em>Mary Magdalene </em>play.
+These pedagogical materials comprise six major areas, each of which focuses on an aspect of teaching medieval drama that colloquium participants identified as essential to and/or challenging for that endeavor.   We have succinctly articulated what we think aspiring teachers of medieval drama might want to and/or should know about the field and how that knowledge can inform pedagogical approaches as well as classroom activities.  Individual articles address the following topics:  [[Language]]; Religious, Textual, and Staging Contexts; Medieval Drama and Shakespeare; Performance-Based Pedagogies.
 [[Category: Folger Institute]]