Tuesdays 1-3 PM
January 13 through March 2, 2004
D.O.C. House
This course will trace the role of comediennes in the 20th century, beginning with the early “concert saloon” entertainers who doubled as waitresses and sometimes as sex objects, then on to vaudeville, where women could dance and sing, but, when teamed with male comedians, were often little more than scenery, handing props and feeding lines to their male partners. We will see how silent movies gave some actresses opportunities to do comedy even though it was often slapstick. We will note how women achieved better comedy parts in radio and sound film, and how Gracie Allen went from being a “straight woman” to “a comedy sensation.“ In the “Golden Age of Television” the three stereotypes which have influenced women's comedy for so long began to change, and we will consider later TV and film comediennes such as Goldie Hawn, Carol Burnett, Joan Rivers, Phyllis Diller, and Gilda Radner.
The format includes talks by the study leader on outstanding women of each period, films and videos, readings in a short text, participants' reports on comediennes not covered by lectures or reading, and class discussion about the comediennes.
The course is a study of the change in the role of women in comedy through much of the last century, reflecting changes in women's status generally. A lively interest in American history, life, and culture would be helpful for the class.
Class is limited to 12 members.
Charles R. Chamberlain has always had a love and appreciation of comedy and a deep respect for those who perform it well. This is especially true of women in comedy, where he regards those who do it well not only as “funny,” but he thinks of what they do as art. Charles has been an English and reading teacher for a good part of his professional life in a variety of settings including college and university. He also has been an actor in community and summer theater (preferring comedies, of course) and a performer for civic groups. He has a particular interest in the origins and development of comedy in our country, especially in the first three decades of the 20th century.
