INART 5Performing Arts

3 credits · Integrative Arts · Penn State

INART 5 is not an "art appreciation" course in any traditional sense of the term. Rather, it is focused on the act of experience and the encouragement of critical thinking about those experiences. No effort is made to encourage students to "like" or "dislike" the things that they experience or to encourage them to accept the view that some experiences are more or less valuable than others. The idea, simply, is to have informed experiences in the performing arts and think about them in a critical context. To satisfy those ends, the course will provide students with exposure to significant examples of dance, music, and theatre as well as give students a practical and theoretical background to enrich their experience of those performing arts. The course will also help to develop students' critical thinking as they evaluate their experiences. This is accomplished through student attendance at six performing arts events on campus throughout the semester and the completion of related assignments.