ARTS 15
Shadow Puppetry Winter 2019

Cross-listed THEA 15
This is not the current course catalog

Class Details

The ancient art of shadow puppetry has seen a resurgence in contemporary art and theater. William Kentridge writes, “It is in the very limitations of shadows that we learn…It is in the gap between the object and its representation that the image emerges, the gap we fill in.” In this course, students will explore a range of techniques in shadow theater and build towards a culminating performance. We will survey the history of the form, from Asian traditions such as wayang kulit, through Victorian shadow plays, to the uses of shadow by contemporary theater makers and artists (e.g. William Kentridge, Kara Walker). Shadow puppeteer Karen Zasloff and visiting artists will guide students in creating shadow imagery from flat cutouts, sculpted objects and their bodies, and choreographing scenes on a classroom overhead projector and translucent screen. In small groups, we will interpret excerpts of prose and poetry through these handmade projections, exploring relationships among text, image sequences and music, culminating in a public performance. We will meet three times/week for three-hour sessions, with additional supervised lab and rehearsal periods according to our needs. Some basic equipment will be supplied, but students will be expected to purchase some of the materials. Adjunct Instructor Bio: Karen Zasloff has created performances in the US and abroad with shadows, toy theater, giant puppets and video, on themes of political violence and the unconscious. She has performed in NY at PS1, Saint Ann’s Warehouse, National Sawdust, PS122 and Here Arts Center, and for 20 years with the Bread and Puppet Theater. Her drawings feature in “Banished”, which premiered at Sundance 2007. Recent projects focus on Rwanda and South Africa, including a Fulbright with the Handspring Puppet Company.
The Class: Limit: 15
Grading: pass/fail only
Requirements/Evaluation: short presentations and works in progress
Prerequisites: none
Enrollment Preferences: students will be asked to submit a letter of interest
Materials/Lab Fee: $215
Notes: This course is cross-listed and the prefixes carry the following divisional credit:
THEA 15 ARTS 15
Attributes: EXPE Experiential Education Courses

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