In this workshop we will explore and experiment with contemporary methods of improvisational theater, which is the art of making up theatrical moments on the spot, without a script. It is one of the liveliest and most current forms of theater of today and ingrained in US popular culture. You will first learn the basic principles of improvisational theater and then apply them to improvised scenework. We will also reflect on the impact of improvisational theater on popular culture, its applications e.g. in teaching, explore its practical approaches to comedic as well as dramatic narrative structures and draw comparisons between communication in improvised dialogue and other types of communication.

There will be a regular meeting on Wednesdays 9.45 - 12.00 during the semester, in which we will cover the basics of improvisational theater, followed by an intensive in the lecture-free period, in which we will work on a specific form and prepare for a performance. If you only want to participate in the intensive you need to have some experience, either from this or a previous semester. There is no obligation to be part of the performances. You can also support the performances by helping with the organization and marketing.

This course welcomes students who wish to complete the following modules:
M.A. E_SC ExMo 1 – Extension Module 1
M.A. E-SC ExMo 2 - Extension Module 2
M.A. TnL Vertiefungsmodul
M.A. TnL Profilmodul I: Literatur
B.A. E-SC “Key Topics in Literature”- D2-c; WD-2a and WD-2b
Academic Exchange Students

Teaching method: We will meet in weekly face to face sessions on campus. You will need access to Stud.IP. and a laptop or tablet with sound and audio capabilities. Please make sure to attend our first session if you wish a placement in this class.

This course seeks to familiarise students with a number of selected authors, poets and writers, in general, who have held lifelong connections with London, may it be historic or contemporary. We will aim to discuss their continued engagement with the city by exploring a selections of excerpts clustered around five major topic choices: Queer London; Women Writers and London; London’s Imperial Past and Postcolonial Present; London Theatreland and the Shakespearean Stage; London and Crime, and London and the Long Eighteen Century. By virtually tracing forgotten as well as prominent landmarks of the urban centre, we seek to connect the literary representations of the city with historical and cultural developments, present and past. A reader with primary and secondary reading materials will be available for download on Stud.IP.

Please register on Stud. IP and explore the sections “Information” and “Schedule” on Stud. IP. for further details.

Requirements:
• Interest in the topics discussed and ideally a regular attendance and informed participation in class discussion (not part of your formal assessment);
• in-depth knowledge of the selected reading material and course materials,
• final exam according to module choice.

In this class we will learn about approaches and tools to literary analysis and we will look at how we read texts specifically from a postcolonial perspective. We will read and discuss William Shakespeare’s play The Tempest and several rewrites: Aimé Césaire’s play A Tempest, Dev Virahsawmy’s play Toufann: A Mauritian Fantasy, Julie Taymore’s film The Tempest, and Margaret Atwood’s novel Hag Seed. Please purchase the following books at the university book store (on Universitätsboulevard): Shakespeare The Tempest Norton Critical Edition (12 €), Aimé Césaire A Tempest. Translation by Richard Miller (16 €) and Margaret Atwood Hag Seed. Shakespeare Hogarth Series (12,50 €). All other texts are provided via StudIP.
Class requirements are regular attendance and active class discussion as well as in-depth knowledge of reading and viewing material. Reading the texts and watching the film is mandatory. Please note that prior enrollment through StudIP is mandatory. Maximum number of participants: 30.

In the course of this seminar we shall analyse three contemporary films and TV productions which highlight diverse aspects of the (imagined) lives of Queen Elizabeth (1533-1603) and William Shakespeare (1564-1616).
Shekhar Kapur's film ELIZABETH: THE GOLDEN AGE (2007) foregrounds a Queen who is threatened with assassination while her country has to cope with a large-scale invasion. In SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE (1998), directed by John Madden, a specific biographical reading is offered that locates the phenomenon of greatness in progress in an intricate web of a romantic love narrative. And finally, Barbara Willis Sweete's TV-production ELIZABETH REX (2002), which focusses on Elizabeth I and her Bard, features some lively debates about masculinities and femininities as well as about literary and royal power.
The aim of this seminar is to have a close look at the way in which each film or TV production ventures on a biographical reconstruction of Queen Elizabeth I and the playwright William Shakespeare. And it will be interesting to see how their iconic images are being refashioned by means of the multimodal quality of the corpus under scrutiny.

requirements:
• active participation
• oral presentation (handout) or
• research in progress and final paper

Prior enrolment via Stud.IP is mandatory. The enrolment period ends on March 15.

Get it done in a week! A one-week intensive course with a focus on academic vocabulary.

Mon 26th Sep 2022 till Sat 1st Oct 2022
Time: 9am till 1pm + research and self-study time in the afternoon.
ROOM: GW2 A3.390 (FB10 CIP-Labor, big room)

This course is a hands-on, research based course combined with good ol’ vocabulary exercises. You will explore aspects of vocabulary-learning techniques, vocabulary formation, (academic) word choice, and avoiding some “pit-falls”.
The results of your research will be presented in class and will be discussed. You will work individually as well as in mini groups. Depending on whether you need a numerical grade or merely a Pass/Fail grade, you will be graded on your work.

CP: 3

Open for:
BA English-Speaking Cultures (General Studies)
MA English-Speaking Cultures: Language, Text, Media
MA TnL, Transnationale Literaturwissenschaften

See you in class.

Get it done in a week! A one-week intensive course with a focus on skills required for academic writing.
Mon 26th Sep 2022 till Sat 1st Oct 2022
Time: 2pm till 6pm + research and self-study time in the morning.
Room: GW2 A3.390 (FB10 CIP-Labor, big room)

This course is a research based course in which you will explore aspects of academic writing techniques when paraphrasing or quoting text, style, formatting, and punctuation.
The results of your research will be presented in class and will be discussed. You will work individually as well as in mini groups. Depending on whether you need a numerical grade or merely a Pass/Fail grade, you will be graded on your work.
CP: 3
Open for:
BA English-Speaking Cultures (General Studies)
MA English-Speaking Cultures: Language, Text, Media
MA TnL, Transnationale Literaturwissenschaften

See you in class.

This course welcomes students who wish to complete the following modules:
M.A. E_SC ExMo 1 – Extension Module 1
M.A. E-SC ExMo 2 - Extension Module 2
M.A. TnL Vertiefungsmodul
M.A. TnL Profilmodul I: Literatur
B.A. E-SC “Key Topics in Literature”- D2-c; WD-2a and WD-2b
Academic Exchange Students

Teaching method: We will meet in weekly face to face sessions on campus. You will need access to Stud.IP. and a laptop or tablet with sound and audio capabilities. Please make sure to attend our first session if you wish a placement in this class.

This course seeks to familiarise students with a number of selected authors, poets and writers, in general, who have held lifelong connections with London, may it be historic or contemporary. We will aim to discuss their continued engagement with the city by exploring a selections of excerpts clustered around five major topic choices: Queer London; Women Writers and London; London’s Imperial Past and Postcolonial Present; London Theatreland and the Shakespearean Stage; London and Crime, and London and the Long Eighteen Century. By virtually tracing forgotten as well as prominent landmarks of the urban centre, we seek to connect the literary representations of the city with historical and cultural developments, present and past. A reader with primary and secondary reading materials will be available for download on Stud.IP.

Please register on Stud. IP and explore the sections “Information” and “Schedule” on Stud. IP. for further details.

Requirements:
• Interest in the topics discussed and ideally a regular attendance and informed participation in class discussion (not part of your formal assessment);
• in-depth knowledge of the selected reading material and course materials,
• final exam according to module choice.

In this class we will learn about approaches and tools to literary analysis and we will look at how we read texts specifically from a postcolonial perspective. We will read and discuss William Shakespeare’s play The Tempest and several rewrites: Aimé Césaire’s play A Tempest, Dev Virahsawmy’s play Toufann: A Mauritian Fantasy, Julie Taymore’s film The Tempest, and Margaret Atwood’s novel Hag Seed. Please purchase the following books at the university book store (on Universitätsboulevard): Shakespeare The Tempest Norton Critical Edition (12 €), Aimé Césaire A Tempest. Translation by Richard Miller (16 €) and Margaret Atwood Hag Seed. Shakespeare Hogarth Series (12,50 €). All other texts are provided via StudIP.
Class requirements are regular attendance and active class discussion as well as in-depth knowledge of reading and viewing material. Reading the texts and watching the film is mandatory. Please note that prior enrollment through StudIP is mandatory. Maximum number of participants: 30.