Syllabus

READ5230-050: Advanced Storytelling, 3 credit hours, July 16-Aug. 3, 4:00-6:45pm

Instructor: David Novak
Office: GA Cubicles
Phone: (828) 280-2718
E-Mail: novateller@aol.com
Office Hours: by appointment

Catalog Description: An in-depth study of specific, advanced techniques of storytelling in both delivery and use.

Overall Objective: To develop and improve the public performance skills and the critical thinking and compositional skills necessary for the student to pursue a storytelling career.

Course Narrative: We will work with a variety of performance exercises, group and individual projects and direct coaching to address specific opportunities for growth with each student. Each student will be required to participate in all class discussions and web log journaling. Because the class schedule has been adjusted to accommodate the summer calendar, classes will meet four nights a week for three weeks with two extra classes to be determined.

Assignments:

1. Share a story from your standing repertory. Days 1&2
2. read Aloud a Dr. Seuss story of your choosing. Days 3&4
3. Present a memorized sonnet. Days 5&6
4. Present a personal story. Day 7&8
5. Present a Solo combinatorial. Day 9
6. Present a Myth. Days 10&11
7. Present an Ensemble combinatorial. Days 12&13
8. Final Reflection. Day 14

Class Schedule:

Day
1 Monday July 16 Existing repertory
2 Tuesday July 17 Existing repertory
3 Thursday July 19 Dr. Seuss
4 Friday July 20 Dr. Seuss
5 Monday July 23 Sonnets
6 Tuesday July 24 Sonnets
7 Wednesday July 25 Personal story†
8 Thursday July 26 Personal story
9 Friday July 27 Solo combinatorial
10 Saturday July 28 Myth†
11 Monday July 30 Myth
12 Tuesday July 31 Ensemble combinatorial*
13 Thursday August 2 Ensemble combinatorial*
14 Friday August 3 Final Reflections*


† time & location to be determined.
* these classes will take place at NC Stage in Asheville.

Bibliography:
Tell Me A Story: Narrative and Intelligence
by Roger Schank
Paperback: 253 pages
Publisher: Northwestern University Press; Reprint edition (December 20, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN: 0810113139

Suddenly They Heard Footsteps: Storytelling for the Twenty-first Century
by Dan Yashinsky
Paperback: 317 pages
Publisher: University Press of Mississippi (October 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1578069270


Suggested Reading:

Art & Fear
by David Bayles and Ted Orland
Paperback: 122 pages
Publisher: Image Continuum Press; 1 edition (April 1, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN: 0961454733

Letters to a Young Artist: Straight-up Advice on Making a Life in the Arts-For Actors, Performers, Writers, and Artists of Every Kind
by Anna Devere Smith
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Anchor (January 24, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1400032385

The Call Of Stories: Teaching and The Moral Imagination
by Robert Coles
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Mariner Books (January 5, 1990)
Language: English
ISBN: 039552815

Creative Storytelling; Building Community, Changing Lives
by Jack Zipes
Hardcover: 280 pages
Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (September 19, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN: 0415912725

Metaphors We Live By
by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 2nd edition (April 15, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN: 0226468011

The Need For Words: Voice and Text
by Patsy Rodenburg
Paperback
Publisher: Theatre Arts Books (August 1, 1993)
Language: English
ISBN: 0878300511

The Right To Speak: Working With The Voice
by Patsy Rodenburg
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Routledge; Reissue edition (June 14, 1993)
Language: English
ISBN: 0878300554

The Story Factor: Inspiration, Influence and Persuasion Through The Art of Storytelling
By Annette Simmons
Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Perseus Books Group; 1st edition (June 1, 2002)
Language: English
ISBN: 0738206717

The Way of The Storyteller
by Ruth Sawyer
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Reprint edition (January 27, 1977)
Language: English
ISBN: 0140044361