Comparative (and connected) exploration of philosophies of the body. In the west, we have inherited a model of the body as object, opposite to the mind - reinforced by a variety of everyday discourses including medical and health discourses as well as those around beauty, capability, and culpability. While this course will historicize continental European theories of mind-body duality, we will dive into specific other philosophical traditions – embodied as well as textual – which offer very different models for the thinking-feeling-subjective body, with their own complexities and critical possibilities. We will address bodies (in motion), perception/cognition, and power (variously defined). Ultimately, these various approaches force us to question what it means to even talk about “a body”.

An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of arts and health, students will engage in daily movement explorations and discussions as well as participate in on-site creative workshops with health professionals. The principles of this arts & health practice will be further explored as they relate to other disciplines such as education, economics, psychology and the health sciences. As a final project, students will create a personal response to their investigations and experiences in an arts discipline of their choosing (dance/movement, theatre, music, voice, visual art, writing.) This in-depth experience will also include a final critical reflection synthesizing their research, theoretical studies and creative work.

In Merida Mexico

Whether working behind the scenes or on stage, theatrical production is the space where imagination meets technical expertise, and creativity blends seamlessly with practical execution. Staging Eurydice is for students drawn to theatrical production backstage and those who want to perform onstage in a fully produced play. Meeting in Block Seven, the class will be a laboratory for the Theatre and Dance Department’s Mainstage production of Eurydice which will have six public performances in Block Eight. Based on the Greek myth of Orpheus’s descent into Hades, MacArthur Award-winning playwright Sarah Ruhl reimagines this classic narrative through the eyes of his lost bride, Eurydice. Dying on her wedding day, the young heroine takes her own journey through a visually striking and poetic Underworld, where she is reunited with her father and struggles to remember her lover. “Full of both woe and wonder,” the play walks “a tightrope between the mythic and the mundane” (Lahr 2007) as it offers a contemporary re-telling of an ageless story of love and loss. While the course meets in Block Seven, students must also commit to either being a member of the cast or crew during the production in Block Eight. Students will receive an additional .25 credit for their participation in the show. Keep an eye out for Actor auditions in Blocks 3 and 6. To be included in the production team please contact Paul Martin or Marie Davis. Professors Marie Davis and Gleason Bauer

An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of arts and health, students will engage in daily movement explorations and discussions as well as participate in on-site creative workshops with health professionals. The principles of this arts & health practice will be further explored as they relate to other disciplines such as education, economics, psychology and the health sciences. As a final project, students will create a personal response to their investigations and experiences in an arts discipline of their choosing (dance/movement, theatre, music, voice, visual art, writing.) This in-depth experience will also include a final critical reflection synthesizing their research, theoretical studies and creative work.