By its very existence the Urban Forest challenges the nature/culture binary that locates nature outside of our everyday life, outside of industrial sacrifice zones, outside of modernity. Instead of thinking of nature as something over there or back then, we will encounter nature in the urban environment and examine how it works to stabilize our city, materially, psychically, healthfully, equitably, aesthetically, and in other important ways. In this course, we will make work (theatre, movement, performance pieces) that contribute to the environmental justice campaigns underway in Columbus. Working with community partners, we will imagine, design, rehearse and perform the critical importance of the urban forest.

Objectives:

1. Introduce students to theatrical devising technique for creating work that moves and potentially involves an audience in performance
2. Use our bodies, voices and imaginations to address critical issues affecting our community
3. Engage in deep reflection about what we know (and don't know) about our natural environment
4. Work with community partners in a way that centers their needs
5. Discover and articulate how the arts impact everyday life
6. Have fun, build community across and beyond campus.

** A note about our schedule. Total hours expected outside class per University guidelines for a 3 credit class is 6 hrs. Since our in-class hours are greater than a regularly scheduled class, we will reduce expectations for independent work to 3 hours.