Oral Presentations are marked as 6% and 10% and are due on the days listed on the syllabus. See Course Requirements for details.

Performance Groups do 2 dramatic exercises together - an informal presentation of a scene from Old Comedy for the class only, and a more thorough presentation of a scene or short scenes from New Comedy to be pulled together for a public presentation at the end of the term. Those listed below as Performance Group #... are the informal Old Comedy, those marked Group #6...first presentation, etc. are the formal New Comedy. See Course Requirements for details.

NOTE: ALWAYS read the introduction to each play before you begin and use any notes you need for understanding. Try to read as much as possible without stopping to read notes.
 

Date	Topic(s)	Assignments
T 1-15	Introduction. What is Comedy? Greek Old Comedy and 5th century Athens	Comedy Names and Words
Th 1-17	Origins of Old Comedy. Ritual. Drama Festivals. The Comic Poet and Competition.The stage	Aristophanes 1: pp. vii-xxxv; Three Plays by Aristophanes, pp. 3-14, 19-20 Univ of Sask.theaters Greek Theater Web-Link
T 1-22	Aristophanes Clouds Bust of Socrates	Aristophanes 1: Clouds Performance Group #1
Th 1-24	Aristophanes Wasps	Aristophanes 1: Wasps  Performance Group #2
T 1-29	Oral Assignment: 6%	6%!! 1 1/2-2pp. "What makes me laugh: an examination of my sense of humor and the comedy that works on me"
Th 1-31	Aristophanes Birds	Aristophanes 1: Birds Performance Group #3 Group #6 - Terence Eunuch - first presentation
T 2-5	Greek actors and acting. Costuming. Masks. The Chorus. Dance. Music.	Group #5 - Plautus Brothers Menaechmus- first presentation
Th 2-7	Aristophanes Lysistrata	Three Plays by Aristophanes: Lysistrata Performance Group #4 Group #3 - Plautus Stichus- first presentation
T 2-12	The Audience. Greek Tragedy.  Greek Mime and Other Minor Comic Genres	Three Plays by Aristophanes, pp. 15-29 10% Oral Presentations Begin - Brandi Barger Group #4 - Plautus The Persian- first presentation
Th 2-14	Aristophanes Women at the Thesmophoria Kinsman Kidnaps Wineskin	Three Plays by Aristophanes: Women at the Thesmophoria Performance Group #5 10% Oral Presentation - Tina  Saunders Group #1 - Menander Girl from Samos- first presentation
T 2-19	Aristophanes Assemblywomen	Three Plays by Aristophanes: Assemblywomen Performance Group #6 10% Oral Presentation - Jessica Cooper Group #2 - Plautus Puny Punic- first presentation
Th 2-21	MIDTERM EXAM on Old Comedy	STUDY GUIDE
T 2-26	Rehearsal + Oral Presentations	4 - 10% Oral Presentations - Mitch Church, Stuart Johnson Kim Gosnell, Gaby Kohlmeier     Group 6 rehearse
Th 2-28	Shift to New Comedy. 4th-3rd century Athens Menander Menander The Girl from Samos; The Double Deceiver, and Plautus' Two Bacchises	Menander: Intro pp. 3-17  Menander The Girl from Samos, pp. 53-78 Double Deceiver, and The Two Bacchisespp. 173-181  10% Oral Presentation - Derek Hill   Group 5 rehearse
T 3-5	Menander Old Cantankerous	Menander Old Cantankerous 10% Oral Presentation- Jeremy Reid   Group 4 rehearse
Th 3-7	Watch musical A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - cast listed at bottom of syllabus	10% Oral Presentation - Amelia Stevens
T 3-12, Th 3-14	* Spring Break *
T 3-19	Roman comedy (fabula togata) and  Greek New Comedy in Latin (fabula palliata)	Intro to Plautus: Four Comedies, xi-xxiii - Handout Roman theater info from my book Latin Laughs 10% Oral Presentation - Erin Abernethy   Group 3 rehearse
Th 3-2	Plautus Puny Punic	The Puny Punic 10% Oral Presentation - Kevin Barham   Group 2 rehearse
T 3-26	The Roman Comic Poet. Festivals. Competition	Read production notices and author's prologues for each of Terence's six plays, pp. 9-11, 81-83, 153-156, 235-237, 307-309, 359-361 10% Oral Presentation - Andrew Fischer  Group 1 rehearse
Th 3-28	Plautus The Persian	In Plautus: Comedies IV: pp. 3-77 10% Oral Presentation - Darren Clark   Groups 5&6
T 4-2	Roman Actors and Acting. The Stage. Costumes	Roman Theater history Roman theaters 10% Oral Presentation - Joni Vestal    Groups 3&4
Th 4-4	Stock Characters and Society. Music. Audience. Second-century Rome	original prologue of Poenulus (Puny Punic)  10% Oral Presentation -  Brandi Dameron Groups 1&2
T 4-9	Plautus Stichus	In Plautus: Comedies IV: pp. 315-366 10% Oral Presentation - Marian Elliott   Groups 1-3
Th 4-11	Plautus The Brothers Menaechmus	In Plautus: Comedies IV: pp. 81-174 10% Oral Presentation - Vonda Sheppard  Groups 4-6
T 4-16	Terence Eunuch	Terence Eunuch , pp. 147-225 10% Oral Presentation - Jamie La Rue  Groups 1-3
Th 4-18	Roman Mime. Imperial Theater. What Happened to Roman Comedy?	10% Oral Presentation - Andrea Kurten   Groups 4-6
T 4-23	Rehearsal OFF BOOK (8:30 AM)	Run Groups 1-6
Th 4-25	Rehearsal (Class self-directed)
F 4-26	Rehearsal at discretion of individual groups
M 4-29	PRODUCTION WEEK Rehearsal TBA
T 4-30	Rehearsal at location TBA (8 AM)	Run Show
W 5-1	Rehearsal TBA
Th 5-2	Rehearsal outside (8 AM)	Run show
F 5-3	Something Old, Something New performance (2:30 PM call; 4:30 show)
T 5-7 or W 5-8	Arrange time to watch Video of show	2 - 10% Oral Presentations - Heather Lowder, Melissa Clark
Th 5-9	FINAL EXAM on New Comedy (8-11 AM) Terence Brothers	Terence Brothers, pp. 303-352

*Cast: Pseudolus - slave of Hero, Senex and Domina; Senex- the old man, Domina-his shrewish wife, Hero - their lovesick son; Hysterium - slave of Senex and Domina; Lycus - pimp next door, Philia - his virgin prostitute, Gymnasia - the silent prostitute loved by Pseudolus; Erronius - the befuddled old man who lived next door and searched for his son and daughter; Miles Gloriosus - a soldier entirely full of himself