CURE2047 Performance Studies Prof. Natalia S.H. CHAN ( 洛楓 ) Monday: 2:30am- 5:15pm Venue: LHC 106 Performances are actions, and Performance Studies is defined as a broad spectrum of human actions ranging from ritual, theatre, dance, music, popular entertainments as well as everyday life practice. The aim of this course is to provide the students with a knowledge of and insight into the key concepts, the historical development, and the socio-cultural implications of performance both in international scene and local context. Not only do we study the archives, the manifestations, the theory and the practice of various performers, composers, choreographers, actors/actresses, art and stage directors from different periods and traditions, but we also focus on the interpretation and communication, the audience reception and spectatorship of the social mass. It is a course draws on a wide variety of disciplines including social sciences, semiotics, speech-act theory, psychoanalysis, gender and queer studies, with which we can investigate the stylistic features, the quality of theatricality, the technical change, the hybridity and the boundary-crossing of performance in our era. Evaluation of the course bases on a book report, and one final paper. No exam required. Week One (7 Jan): Introduction to Performance Studies Course Organization & Assignments Readings: -Richard Schechner: What Is Performance? What Is Performance Studies? Screening: -Episode of 港樂 X 黃耀明 : 電幻狂想曲 (Concert, HK, 2006) -Episode of 鄧樹榮導演 : 打轉教室 (Drama, HK, ) Introducing HK Contemporary Dance & Choreographers: Screening: Episode of 陳德昌 方育平 陳樂儀 : 香港舞蹈檔案 (2006) (R ) 曹誠淵 : 舞者不懼 : 曹誠淵舞蹈書寫 Part One: Theory of Acting & Theatre Week Two (14 Jan): Acting Theory (I) Constantin Stanislavski Readings: -Constantin Stanislavski: When Acting is An Art Emotion Memory Case Study 1: 阮玲玉的情緒記憶 (Modern China) Readings: - 鄭君里 : 阮玲玉和她的表演藝術 Screening: Episode of - 吳永剛 : 神女 (Film, Shanghai, 1935) - 關錦鵬 : 阮玲玉 (Film, HK, 1991)
Week Three (21 Jan): Acting Theory (II) Bretolt Brecht Readings: Bertolt Brecht: - The Question of Criteria for Judging Acting - Alienation Effects in Chinese Acting - New Technique of Acting - Two Essays on Unprofessional Acting - Some of the Things that can be Learnt from Stanislavsky Case Study 2: 周星馳的喜劇表演 (HK) Screening: -Episode of 周星馳 : 喜劇之王 (Film, HK, 1999) Week Four (28 Jan): Physical Theatre (I) Vsevolod Meyerhold Readings: Vsevolod Meyerhold: - The Fairground Booth - Biomechanics - Chaplin and Chaplinism (R) 鄧樹榮 : 梅耶荷德表演理論 : 研究及反思 Case Study 3: 鄧樹榮的形體劇場 (HK) Reading: 洛楓 : 披沙揀金的鑄造與提煉 : 鄧樹榮的劇場藝術 Screening: Episodes of - 鄧樹榮導演 : 泰特斯 2.0 (Theatre, HK & Taipei, 2000s) - 鄧樹榮導演 : 馬克白 (Theatre, Europe Tour, 2017) (R) 鄧樹榮 : 泰特斯 : 簡約美學與形體劇場 (R)William Shakespeare: Macbeth (Drama) Week Five (4 Feb): Chinese New Year NO CLASS Week Six (11 Feb): Physical Theatre (II) Jerzy Grotowski Readings: Jerzy Grotowski: - Towards A Poor Theatre - Methodical Exploration - The Actor s Technique Case Study 4: 邢亮與梅卓燕的舞劇 (HK) Screening: Episode of 鄧樹榮形體指導 邢亮和梅卓燕編舞 舞. 雷雨 (Dance, 2012) (R) 曹禺 : 雷雨 (Play, Modern China, 1933) Week Seven (18 Feb): Postdramatic Theatre: Hans-Thies Lehmann Readings: -Hans-Thies Lehmann: Postdramatic Theatre (selected) Case Study 5: 進劇場與 Sarah Kane (HK) Readings: -Sarah Kane: 4.48 Psychosis (Play, UK, 2000) Screening: - 陳麗珠 : 莎拉 肯恩在 4.48 上書寫 (Theatre, HK, 2016)
Part Two: Dance Theaory & Contemporary Society Week Eight (25 Feb): Dance Theatre (I) 林懷民 Meeting East & West Readings: - 林懷民 :- 說舞 雲門舞話 (selected) -(T) 跟雲門去流浪 - 陳雅萍 : 探尋亞洲現代性 : 全球化情境下的雲門身體與劇場美學 Screening: -Episodes of 林懷民編舞 : 薪傳 九歌 流浪者之歌 (R) 陳雅萍 : 主體的叩問 : 現代性 歷史 台灣當代舞蹈 Case Study 6: Dance Show Viewing 林懷民舞作精選 (Taiwan) **Hong Kong Arts Festival 2019:21-24 Feb 2019 Students are required to watch the performance before class. Week Nine (4 March): Theory of Modern Dance & Its Gender Representation Readings: -John Martin: Characteristics of the Modern Dance -Martha Graham: I am a Dancer - 文潔華 : 性別 舞蹈與身體的政治 Case Study 7: Vaslav Nijinsky (Russia) Readings: Ramsay Burt: Nijinsky: Modernism and Heterodox Representations of Masculinity Screening: Paul Cox: -The Dairy of Vaslav Nijinsky (Documentary, Russia) -Rambert Dance Company: L'Après-midi d'un faune (UK, 2012) Week Ten (11 March): Contact Improvisation & Postmodern Dance Readings: -Sally Banes: Introduction of Terpsichore in Sneakers: Post-Modern Dance -Cynthia J. Novack: Contact Improvisation & Anthropological Analysis Case Study 8: Crossover of Dance & Literature: 梅卓燕 (HK) Readings: - 白先勇 : 遊園驚夢 (Taiwan, Short Story) Screening: - 梅卓燕 :- 遊園驚夢 (HK, 1986/ 2016) - 紫 釵 緣 (HK, 2010) Week Eleven (18 March): Workshop I Training Class of Contemporary Dance Guest Instructor: 王榮祿 (Artistic Director, Unlock Dancing Plaza, HK) Casual Clothes Required ##Submission Date of Mid-term Paper (Book Report)
Week Twelve (25 March): Dance Theatre (II) Pina Bausch & Helen Lai Reading: -Ciane Fernandes: Pina Bausch and the Wuppertal Dance Theater: The Aesthetics of Repetition and Transformation (selected) Case Study 9: Pina Bausch & Wuppertal Tanztheater (German) Readings: -Pina Bausch: Not How People Move but What Move Them Screening: Episode of Pina Bausch: Café Müller, Le Sacre du Printemps Case Study 10: Helen Lai ( 黎海寧 ) & City Contemporary Dance Company (HK) Readings: - 李時雍 : 林懷民談 90 後的黎海寧 - 吳孟軒 : 卅年的靈光舞蹈書寫的香港記憶 Screening: -Episode of 陳德昌 : 香港舞與編舞者 (HK) (Dance-Making of Plaza X by Helen Lai, 2006) -Episode of 黎海寧 : Plaza X 與異變街道 (2006) Week Thirteen (1 April): Reading Week NO CLASS Week Fourteen (8 April) : Site-Specific Performance, Community & Space Readings: -Victoria Hunter: Experiencing Space: The Implication for Site-Specific Dance Performance. - 曹誠淵 謝東寧 楊春江 : 中國舞蹈去邊度? 中港台三地談 座談會 - 洛楓 : 剪影輪廓 : 後九七 香港舞蹈的形態 Case Study 11: Site- Specific Dance (HK & Macau) Screenings: Episodes of - 王榮祿編舞 : 牆 44 之關於消失 (HK, 2013) - 楊春江編舞 : 慾望西九 (HK, 2013) - 邢亮 梅卓燕編舞 : 詠舞南音 (Macau, 2014) ##Submission of Final Paper s Title in Class Week Fifteen (15 April): Workshop II Critical Writing of Dance Readings: -Marcia B. Siegel: Bridging the Critical Distance -June Layson: Dance History Source Materials -Janet Adshead: An Introduction to Dance Analysis -Jane C Desmond: Embodying Difference: Issues in Dance & Cultural Studies - 洛楓 : 女媧煉石的舞姿 : 舞評寫作的理論與實踐 - 台灣 表演藝術 專輯 : 我的專業是評論人 - 香港 藝術評論 論文選輯 Case Study 12: Dance Dramaturgy & Comics Culture (HK) 舞劇與漫畫改編 香港舞蹈團 : 中華英雄 Choreography: 楊雲濤
Dramaturg: 洛楓 Screening: -Episodes of 風雲 中華英雄 (HK, 2014-2016) - 馬榮成 : 中華英雄 ( 漫畫 ) ##Submission of Final Paper (Dance Criticism) (Deadline: TBC) Instructions: Textbooks (required) (T) 林懷民 : 跟雲門去流浪, 台北 : 大塊文化出版,2007 年 Suggested Readings (optional) -Richard Schechner: Performance Studies: An Introduction -Marvin Carlson: Performance: A Critical Introduction -Michael Huxley & Noel Witts eds. The Twentieth-Century Performance Reader -Simon Murray & John Keefe: Physical Theatres: A Critical Introduction -John Keefe & Simon Murray eds. Physical Theatre: A Critical Reader -Lizbeth Goodman ed. The Routledge Reader in Politics & Performance 1. Course Reader: There will be a complied package of all reading materials. Students should make a copy of it by themselves, and finish the assigned readings before classes. 2. Students are expected to be open-minded in receiving new and/ or controversial ideas. A significant amount attention will be given to discussing the reading materials. Please be active and verbal within classroom. 3. Students, who commit academic dishonesty (for examples, plagiarism and cheating), will receive 0 mark and F grade. Please see the guidelines below for definition & information. 4. Students who are absent from classes should be responsible for the make-up of class activities at their own discretion. Requirements and Assessment: Mid-Term Paper: Book Report: Topic: A critical report on any One of the following books: 1- 黎耀祥 : 戲劇浮生 : 黎耀祥論演技與人生 2-Michael Chekhov: To The Actor: On the Technique of Acting 3- 鄧樹榮 : 書寫塞納河開始 : 我對劇場的思辨與演繹 4- 曹禺 : 雷雨 ( 劇本 ) 5-William Shakespeare: Macbeth (Drama) Final Paper: Dance Criticism: Topic: A critical study of a Dance Performance Onstage by local, Asian or international troupes. Please attach your admission ticket for our reference when hand in your paper. Photo-copy of ticket is not acceptable. Paper without admission ticket
will be marked down for one point grade. The papers must include the essay title and the list of reference. They can be written in Chinese or English in not more than 2000 words (typed & double-spaced). We DO NOT accept any electronic versions of papers. Students should print out their papers & submit the hard-copy. Late paper will be marked down for one point grade. No paper will be accepted after grade submission. Evaluation: Mid-Term Paper: 50% Final Paper: 50% Total: 100% Learning Outcomes Knowledge Outcomes Trans-disciplinary approach Integration of theories and practices Historical, sociological & psychoanalytical studies, including comparison and contrast Cross cultural contexts, including local, Asian, and European traditions Specialized and professional knowledge in performing arts Skills Outcomes (Generic and Discipline/Professional) Textual and con-textual analysis Academic writing and discursive skills Cultural appreciation and cultural criticism Independent and contextualized research skills Critical and creative thinking Visual literacy Honesty in Academic Work: A Guide to Students The Chinese University of Hong Kong places very high importance on honesty in academic work submitted by students, and adopts a policy of zero tolerance on cheating and plagiarism. Any related offence will lead to disciplinary action including termination of studies at the University. Students must submit their assignments via the Webpage of the Chinese University Plagiarism Identification Engine (CUPIDE) http://cupide.cse.cuhk.edu.hk/student Although cases of cheating or plagiarism are rare at the University, everyone should make himself/ herself familiar with the content of this website and thereby help avoid any practice that would not be acceptable. Section 1 What is plagiarism [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p01.htm ] Section 2 Section 3 Section 4 Section 5 Proper use of source material [http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p02.htm] Citation styles [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p03.htm] Plagiarism & copyright violation [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p04.htm] CUHK regulations on honesty in academic work
Section 6 Section 7 Section 8 Section 9 Section 10 [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p05.htm] CUHK disciplinary guidelines & procedures [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p06.htm] Guide for teachers & departments [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p07.htm] Recommended materials to be included in course outlines [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p08.htm] Recommended declaration to be included in every assignment hand in [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p09.htm] Electronic submission of term papers [ http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/policy/academichonesty/p10.htm]