#  French 80: French Theater and Performance 

 





 Semester:   Fall 

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 Year offered:  2021 

 

 

 

In this course, we will trace the history of French theater from the early twentieth-century to the present: its major trends, figures, and forms as well as its intellectual, historical, and political contexts. As we read and interpret texts that were written with performance in mind, we will consider how theater has served as a unique representational mode through which to engage with history, politics, and philosophy in ways that are immediate, relational, and collective. We will approach theater and performance primarily through reading and thinking about plays, but the idea of theater as embodied expression, spectacle, and production will be central to our discussions and reflections. Readings may include works by Jean Genet, Marie NDiaye, Jean-Luc Lagarce, and Wajdi Mouawad, among others.