Black
studies theater course resurfaces after
three years
By Monica Levette Clark
On-line Forty-Niner
After
a three-year hiatus, the black studies department
is offering black theater as a general education
course option for Cal State Long Beach students
next semester.
The
three-unit class, taught by professor Erica
Fuller, is an introduction to black theater
as a historic medium, according to the black
studies department description of the course.
The
course will focus on the humanistic, literary,
social and cultural heritage of black theater
as it relates to Africa, America and the
Caribbean.
“Black
theater, like so many other aspects of African-American
culture, brings together a tangle of influences
and issues that are central to black life,”
professor Reiland Rabaka said.
Rabaka,
who teaches the department’s new hip-hop
lecture course, said that black playwrights,
actors and directors offer a unique glimpse
of portrayals of their own culture and people,
and the world in which it exists at any
given time.
“To
turn blind eye to their work is to overlook
an important aspect of African American
culture,” Rabaka said.
Fuller,
who also teaches black studies language
skills and black writers workshop courses,
has an extensive background in drama and
theater.
“Because
we have a small faculty, it is not always
possible to offer a certain course as often
as it should be,” sai department Chairman,
Bede Ssensalo.
The
course was not offered for three years,
Ssensalo said, because no professors in
the department had any real, substantial
experience in theater like Fuller has.
“I
think it all boils down to two things: [Fuller’s]
intense understanding of African-American
theater history, and her ability to excite
students with her own personal passion for
her theater,” Rabaka said of Fuller.
The
department encourages students to enroll
in the course to experience the rich history
of black theater in the past and the flare
of contemporary black theater.
“If
you are in America you should know something
about African-American theater,” Ssensalo
said.
Currently
the department is planning a proposal to
make the theater course a major requirement
for all CSULB theater arts students.
“We
are trying to make sure our courses meet
the needs of CSULB students by connecting
with other departments on campus,” Ssensalo
said.
The
course is listed under black studies 346,
and meets Monday, Wednesday and Friday from
10 to10:50 a.m., in PSY-236. An activity
portion will also accompany the course.
Fuller
was not able for comment about the course.
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