Course Title：Selected Readings in Classical Chinese Drama
Course Description：
This course first introduces the development of classical drama, and the structure of Yuan dramas and Ming-Qing tales. Secondly the instructor advises students to read Yuan dramas, texts in Song-Yuan periods, Ming-Qing tales, and classical Beijing operas. By means of selectively reading classical and contemporary adapted dramas, this course engages in comparing the classical with contemporary dramas in the aspect of style of performance and artistry. Drama is not only a kind of reading literature (antou wenxue) but also stage literature (changshang wenxue) that the former complements the latter, and vice versa. In order to interest students, the class will be taken to drama theaters and videotapes will be used in class as well.