OVERVIEW

The course offers a specialist approach to Italian theatrical literature, addressed through theoretical issues and close reading of texts, following a historical perspective from the fifteenth to the twentieth century.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

To analyse Italian literature themes and issues in its relations with theatre and performance in terms of both the production of dramaturgic texts as well as texts (news stories, autobiographical writings, letters etc) that can contribute to the knowledge of the history of performance.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• identify and recognise the specific features of the dramatic text throughout its history
• identify, name and recognise genres, forms and parts (dialogues, monologues, soliloquies, etc.) of the dramatic text
• apply the knowledge acquired in original work such as open-book assignments, reports and analytical summaries
• understand and map theatrical literature through specific research perspectives

PREREQUISITES

 A thorough knowledge of the history of Italian literature (at the level of a three-year degree in Italian Studies or equivalent). Critical analysis, interpretation and contextualisation skills. The ability to express ideas clearly and with appropriate critical language.

TEACHING METHODS

Lectures, commented in-class readings, participatory sessions. The lecturer encourages the recording of classes, provided that recordings are managed by students and made available to all via a Teams channel opened by the lecturer.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

For students taking the course for 6 ECTS:

1. Analysis of the dramatic text. The theatrical book, textual organisation, dramatic language. 12 hours. A text published within the last two months will be selected for full reading, to examine the specific features of theatrical language and the theatrical book format. Plus 2 or 3 from the 9 ECTS programme (see below).

For students taking the course for 9 ECTS:

1. Analysis of the dramatic text. The theatrical book, textual organisation, dramatic language. 12 hours. A text published within the last two months will be selected for full reading, to examine the specific features of theatrical language and the theatrical book format.
2. Dismantling Six Characters in Search of an Author: Pirandello at the crossroads of theatrical tensions between the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. A reading of Pirandello's masterpiece exploring its connections with bourgeois drama, cabaret theatre, satirical theatre, Futurist texts and D'Annunzio's tragedy.
3. Writing for the theatre in the 2000s. Proposed in-class and independent reading of theatrical texts written over the last thirty years, starting from their European and Italian roots (e.g. Neapolitan dramaturgy of the 1980s).

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Simona Morando, La letteratura teatrale italiana. Il testo drammatico e la sua storia dal Medioevo al Novecento, Rome, Carocci, 2023. A theatrical text to be specified.
• Selection of essays and texts on Aulaweb. Starting with: Luigi Pirandello, I sei personaggi in cerca d'autore, Milano, Mondadori, 2023 o altra.
• Selection of essays and texts on Aulaweb. "inOpera" no. 7, 2026, available online.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

first week available February 2027

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral examination, based on an assessment rubric agreed upon with the class during the final lecture.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

 Based on the assessment rubric, a specific number of questions will be agreed upon, covering the three parts of the course. Some questions may start from the reading of a text, others from theoretical issues addressed during the course. Both approaches aim to assess students' ability to: identify and recognise the specific features of the dramatic text throughout its history; identify, name and recognise genres, forms and parts of the dramatic text; and recognise the historical perspectives, authors, genres and key issues addressed in the course.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Please contact the lecturer for any information not included in this course sheet.

Students with disabilities or specific learning disorders (DSA) who wish to request examination adjustments must first upload their certification on the University website at servizionline.unige.it, under the "Students" section. The documentation will be verified by the University's Support Service for Students with Disabilities and DSA (https://rubrica.unige.it/strutture/struttura/100111). Subsequently, at least 7 days before the examination date, students must send an email to the examining lecturer, copying in both the School Disability and DSA Referent (Prof. Elisabetta Colagrossi: elisabetta.colagrossi@unige.it) and the above-mentioned Service. The email must specify: the course name; the examination date; the student's surname, name and registration number; the compensatory tools and dispensatory measures considered appropriate. The referent will confirm to the lecturer that the student is entitled to request adjustments, which must then be agreed upon with the lecturer. Requests must be submitted at least 7 days before the examination date. In particular, if students intend to use conceptual maps (which must be considerably more concise than those used for study purposes), failure to meet this deadline will not allow sufficient time for any required modifications.

Pourpose 4 of Agenda 2023