French Play

Les Essif is the author of Empty Figure on an Empty Stage: The Theatre of Samuel Beckett and His Generation, and numerous articles on French theatre and theories of drama and performance. He is a former New York City police officer and currently a Professor of French Studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

• List of illustrationsAcknowledgementsIntroductionThe Pedagogy of Performance by and for Students of Foreign Language The Creativity-Complex Matrix by Re-Creative Design Theories 1: Performance and Re-Creative Language Learning Theories 2: The Spect-actorial View of Performance Theories 3: Teaching Literary-Dramatic Texts as Culture-in-Process Theories 4: Regenerating the Creative Principle of the Text Prologue: Advance Preparation for the Project Selecting the Play Selecting the Rehearsal and Performance Space Recruiting the Students 1. Day One - You're On! 1.1 Discussing the Syllabus and the Project: Organizing the Class Sessions and Semester, and Settling the Research schedule 1.2 Setting a Creative-Critical-Performative Tone for the Project 1.3 The Introductory Re-Creative Exercise 1.4 Homework 2. The First Six Weeks of Performance Awareness and Textual Analysis 2.1 Creating a Performance Space, Challenging Habit, Trusting the Teacher-Director 2.2 Questions 2.3 Class Roster 2.4 Recap 2.5 Warm-Up Exercises 2.6 Interactive Dramatic Games 2.7 La Petite Mise-en-Scene (The Short Sketch) 2.8 Textual Analysis 2.9 A performative Approach to the Text 2.10 Guidelines for Performative-Texutal Analysis 2.11 The Journal 2.12 Schedule of Re-Creative Sketches (Petites Mises-en-ScÉnes) for Each Class 2.13 Introducing a Semiotic Understanding of the Performance: Vive la DiffÉrence! 2.14 The Discovery of Semiotics through Recreation and Re-Creation 2.15 Introducing the "Systems" of Style, Costume, Prop, and Music, and the Styles of Jeanne d'Arc 3. The Collaborative Re-Creation of the Original Text 3.1 The "How To" Guidelines for the Comprehensive Re-Creational Assignment 3.2 D-Day: Pieces Come Togetehr and the Full Story Takes Shape 3.3 Collaborative Examination of the Re-Created Text 3.4 My Weekend from Hell! 3.5 Discussing the Text and Giving It and Ourselves a Name 3.6 Casting: The Anti-(Lone) Star System or, Every Star Has a Prominent Place in the Constellation 4. Co-operatively and Re-creatively Rehearsing, Revising, Refining, and Promoting the Performance 4.2 Early Rehearsals 4.2 Blocking the Text 4.3 Memorizing Text and Individual Work with Voice-Access-Intonation-Expression 4.4 The Journal 4.5 The Week before Spring Break 4.5 After the Break: Discovering and Claiming Our Space 4.7 The Material Genesis of the Play: Set, Costumes, Props, Sound, and Light 4.8 Collaborative, Co-operative Duties: Stage Management and Promotion 4.9 Poster and Program Design 4.10 Financing the Production and Ticket Sales 4.11 Activist Promotion: "Storming" the Foreign-Language Classrooms 4.12 The Final Rehearsal Phase 5. The Opening Show: C'est fini! . . . Ce n'est pas fini! 5.1 Inevitable Doubts and Problems 5.2 Rehearsing the Audience 5.3 Audience Feedback: The Survey 5.4 Photographing and Videotaping the Process and the Performance 5.5 On the Road: Another Space, Another Audience 6. Post-Performance Student Evaluation of the Performance and the Project 7. The Analystical-Subjunctive Art of Combining Texts and Con-fusing Character Identities 7.1 Regeneration through Combination 7.2 Reinterpreting the Absurdity of Cruelty through the Con-fusion of Character Identities in Ionesco's Macbett 7.3 Taking Combination and Con-fusion to Another Level: "Dom Juan, Ubu, Hamm: Something Is Taking Its Course") ConclusionAppendicesAppendix A: Sample Course Description and Syllabus Appendix B: Sample Interactive Dramatic Games and Excuses Appendix C: Sample Study and Performance Guide for a Critical-Creative-Performative Approach to Ubu Roi Appendix D: Pavis's Questionnaire Appendix E: Textural Re-creation: Guidelines for Ubu 2000 Appendix F: Sample Excerpts and Materials from Rewritten Plays Appendix G: Sample Promotional Materials and Methods Appendix H: Audience Survey Appendix I: Instructions for Final Undergraduate and Graduate Written Assignments Works Cited Notes