Undergraduate Core Courses
Introduction to Theatre for Majors
This course begins with the following prompt. Instead of asking, for the moment, what it is that you want to do in the theatre, I want you to ask: What do I want to do with theatre? What do I want theatre to do? Where do I want theatre to go? What possibilities for theatre have I not yet thought? And how can I start to be able to think those possibilities better?
Introduction to Theatre for Non-Majors
This course introduces non-majors to European and U.S. theatre traditions. My approach works to avoid the theatre-history-in-miniature model and aims, instead, to give students greater access to the theatre being produced, the theatre they are likely to see. In effect, the goal is to make better theatre audiences.
Play Analysis / Script Analysis
Introduces students to methodologies of play analysis using the traditional tools of Aristotle and Brecht, as well as more modern critical methods such as Hodge and Freytag, through to Una Chaudhuri and Pierre Bourdieu.
History of African American Theatre
This course covers the history of Black drama in the United States beginning with Victor Séjour, William Alexander Brown, James Hewlett, and Ira Aldridge and covering important periods in Black theatre in the US such as the Black Arts Movement, Black musical theatre, and the Federal Theatre Project, through what scholars have come to call the post-Black period.
World Theatre History Part I / Theater & Society I
This survey course covers the historical context of important theatrical periods from ancient Egypt and Greece through to the end of the medieval period in Europe. I am interested in paying specific attention to the origins and development of the Japanese Nō tradition, as well as the often-neglected areas of ancient Roman tragedy, comedy, and spectacular performance.
World Theatre History Part II / Theater & Society II
This course examines the early 1800s through the present day beginning with melodrama as an international form. The course emphasizes European Modernism, U.S. American playwriting, and post-colonial theatre in a global context.
Undergraduate Specialty Courses
Violence and Pleasure in British Drama: Renaissance Corpses, Modern Bodies
This course reads revenge plays from the Early Modern tragedians Shakespeare, Middleton, Webster, Ford, and Massinger beside performances of atrocity in the twentieth-century theatre of the New Jacobeans. We then explore the Renaissance as a model for Sarah Kane and Mark Ravenhill, the “feast of filth” that shocked Britain in the 1990s. In this way, this course aims to rethink subjectivity across the centuries, examining time, the staging of history, and theatrical images of the body in both pain and pleasure through British drama.
Parisian Avant-garde Theater, 1887-1930
This course introduces students to the avant-garde in Paris as it was attempted by performers in the traditions of Naturalism, Symbolisme, Futurism, Surrealism, and the Theatre of Cruelty. I am interested in focusing, especially, on the thread of anti-establishment thought running through this period: on Alfred Jarry, as well as the loose, international collection of anti-artists known as Dada.
Violence, Ethics and Representation
This seminar explores representations of violence in the theatre. Students discuss and critically analyze theories of violence, torture, and pain as they relate to performance, responding to and debating the ethics of the use of violence in the theatre, as well as responsible practices for the staging of violence.
Sex & Drama: Sexuality Theories and Theatrical Representation
Introduces students to queer-theory methodologies and theories of sex, gender, and sexuality. Students learned how theatre both reflects and produces the concepts of sex, gender, and sexuality for several time periods in the context of theatre history.
Graduate-Level Seminars
Advanced Theatre History: Ancient and Medieval
This intense course serves both PhDs and MFAs and consists of an in-depth survey of ancient and medieval performance history, incorporating a range of performance practices across the globe. Periods covered included ancient Egyptian performance, Athenian tragedy, comedy, and mime performance, Roman tragedy and comedy, Chinese drama from the period, Indonesian puppet theatre, Cairene puppet theatre, European medieval drama, English morality plays, and the epic tradition from Imperial Mali.
Advanced Theatre History: Renaissance(s)
This intense course serves both PhDs and MFAs and consists of an in-depth survey of performance history from roughly the sixteenth century through the early eighteenth century, incorporating a range of performance practices across the globe. Periods covered included Italian Renaissance tragedy and comedy, English Renaissance drama, Spanish Golden Age, Mayan performance, Japanese kabuki, Chinese chuanqi, Turkish puppet traditions, performance in Venetian Crete, and French neoclassical drama.
Advanced Theatre History: Historical Avant-garde
This course serves both PhDs and MFAs and consists of an in-depth survey of the historical avant-garde from the point of view of performance, incorporating a range of theories of historiography and cultural study. The course covered Naturalism, the Grand-Guignol, Symbolism, Expressionism, Futurism, Dada, and Surrealism, through to the Theatre of Cruelty of Artaud, and Brecht’s Epic Theatre.
Race, Gender and Performance
This course examines gender and sex theory along with critical race theories and asks Masters students to examine theatre texts in relation to those critical approaches. This course also includes a brief examination of Black theatre history in the U.S.
Kae Twichell – MA Thesis Committee Member – 2023
“Precendeted Times, Precedented Measures: Exploring the Theatre-as-body’s Recurrent Adaptations to Plague and Pandemic-induced Trauma” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Jordan Mattson – MA Thesis Committee Member – 2023
“Envisioning a Fat-positive Theatre: Critical Receptions of Fat Bodies Onstage” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Stephen Simpson – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2023
“‘In Their Twentieth-Century Clothes’: African American Living Newspapers of the Federal Theatre Project” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Laura Waringer – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2024
“Triple Threat: a Study of American Musical Theatre Training” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Cassandra White – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2023
“A Woman’s Worth: Selling Sex and Virtue in Antebellum U.S. Melodrama” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Teresa Simone – PhD Dissertation Chair – 2023
“On the Natchez Confederate Pageant” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Ahon Gooptu – MA Thesis Chair – 2023
“Perform to Belong: New Affective In-Betweens for Transnational Minorities” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Hannah M. Fazio – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2023
“Performing Intimacies: Exploring Intimacy Choreography through Arts-Based Research” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Merritt Denman Popp – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2023
“Mothering the Nation: Maternity as Political Identity on U.S. Stages, 1890–1930” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Mike Franz – PhD Dissertation Co-Chair – 2022
“‘The Best There Was, the Best There Will Ever Be’: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Candace Parker, and Performances of Surrogation in NBA and WNBA Basketball” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Lauren Abel – MA Thesis Chair – 2022
“Circus Subjects: Genderful Bodies in Aerial Motion” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Elaine Smith – MA Thesis Committee Member – 2021
“Theatre and Anxiety: from Society to the Stage” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Aaron Moore Ellis – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2020
“The ‘Total Work’ and Political Implications of the Open Program of the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards: Shuttling between the Workcenter and ‘Our World in Crisis’” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Alana Scheuerer – MA Thesis Committee Member – 2020
“Miss America 2.0: Redefining Femininity with a Title, Sash, and Crown” (Florida State School of Dance)
Allison B. Gibbes – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2019
“The Star-spangled Consciousness: Musical Theatre Anthems of Unity and the Performance of National Identity” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Deborah A. Kochman – PhD Dissertation Committee Member – 2019
“Violence, Trauma, and Aging: Dramatic Women Escaping the Presumption of Decline” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Nicholas Richardson – MA Thesis Chair – 2019
“‘Trouble In His Brain’: Queering William Finn’s A New Brain” (Florida State School of Theatre)
Terence Lee – MFA Thesis Committee Member – 2019
“Mindful Acting” (University of Central Florida School of Performing Arts)
Michelle LoRicco – MFA Thesis Chair – 2018
“When Coquis Sing: Introducing Young Audiences to Death and Bereavement through an Original Play” (University of Central Florida School of Performing Arts)
Michael Nilsson – MFA Thesis Chair – 2017
“From Dude to Dad: a Study on Prenatal Fatherhood and Its Representation in Theatre” (University of Central Florida School of Performing Arts)
Kody J. Grassett – MFA Thesis Committee Member – 2017
“Rebirth of the Renaissance Man: Creating Actor Agency through Ensemble Theatre” (University of Central Florida School of Performing Arts)
Joseph D’Ambrosi – MA Thesis Committee Member – 2016
“Christ on the Postmodern Stage: Debunking Christian Metanarrative through Contemporary Passion Plays” (University of Central Florida School of Performing Arts)
Students
I remember walking into class on a rainy day. Everyone was drenched and complaining that they had run to get inside the building. Aaron stood at the front of the classroom and told us that he had never run in the rain: he just walked like a normal person would walk, albeit slightly covered in water. Whenever I get stressed out, I think about that. I’m normal, just slightly covered in water. Aaron has a way of putting things into perspective.
During Aaron’s brief year at Dartmouth, he quickly became my favorite theater history professor. His enthusiasm for performance traditions of the past and their relevance today was evident every time he taught class. He understands how to structure class time to balance learning historic background with discussing and analyzing play texts. Aaron is open and inviting, and made me excited to learn theater history.
Aaron Thomas has made impact not only in my academic pursuits, but also in my life as a theatre professional. As an academic writer Dr. Thomas encouraged me, and throughout his classes I was able grow as a writer. His lessons extend far beyond the classroom walls. I find myself analyzing popular culture and films with the arsenal of information that Aaron provided me. I can’t adequately express how wonderful of a teacher he was and is; as well as how much I appreciate his insight on how to analyze theatre on a day to day basis.
Aaron Thomas seamlessly makes learning an interesting, captivating adventure. He invites his class to think critically and investigate the questions and mysteries of the class work. The final paper I wrote for Aaron Thomas’ class was my proudest work in college.
Under Aaron C. Thomas’s tutelage I discovered my voice as an artist. He taught me that I mustn’t ignore my identity; that I should wear my history proudly, not like it’s a vulture on my shoulder. Dr. Thomas’s lessons have carried me on from the classroom to my professional life.
Aaron Thomas is such a motivational teacher. He respects his students and truly listens. I am a hard-working student, but of course there were times when I would not want to put in 100% in every college assignment. However, in Aaron’s classes, that was never the case. I always felt the need to do my best because I respected him as a teacher and a person. It may be silly, but I never wanted him to be disappointed with my work. I took multiple classes from Aaron because I loved his way of teaching and enjoyed attending class. His classes came highly recommended to me, and now the cycle continues as I recommend his classes to new theatre students.
I loved the masterful facilitation style Aaron exhibited in teaching my graduate level Race and Gender in Performance class, but the greatest impact he made in my life happened outside of the classroom. When I expressed interest in pursuing a PhD in Theatre, Aaron provided the encouragement and guidance I needed. Throughout the following year, he made himself available through the entire application process, answering questions, providing thoughtful insight, and offering support. I am finishing my first semester as a doctoral student, and I can’t thank Aaron enough for the instrumental role he played in this new journey.
I would not be the person I am today without the wisdom of Aaron Thomas. One of the critical shifts in my development as a human being lies in my being exposed to his brilliant and creative mind both inside and outside the classroom. I did not know how to think about the world, let alone critically examine the multitude of ways one could think about the world, before taking five of his classes, and I am certain that I would not have fared well at all at overcoming the obstacles I’ve faced thus far as a young freelance artist without the knowledge, critical thinking skills, logic, and awareness he imparted to me while I was his student.
Professor Thomas somehow manages to combine an awesome classroom atmosphere with stimulating, real discussion. I only realized later how rare this combination really is – we were always free to speak our minds and there was no intimidation, but the class still kept a high level of discussion. He must have some secret superpower of subtly avoiding excessive detours and somehow making clear that he won’t take your empty b.s./that your argument should be properly thought through while still being extremely approachable and engaging.
Never before has a teacher been able to bring so much life to a subject that I, until now, have never been particularly passionate about. Aaron got me excited to come to class every single day to learn more about Hrotsvitha and American melodrama, and he’s inspired me to the point that I still find myself (a year removed from my last class with him) researching the Grand-Guignol theatre on my own time. He unearthed a personal passion in me that I never knew I had, and the world needs more educators like him.
The short time I had with Aaron was one of the most effective learning experiences in my time at the Florida State University School of Theatre. His teaching approach is down to earth, which makes learning much more accessible and interesting. I always looked forward not just to going to class, but reading the material as well because I was always surprised by the level of appreciation I ended up having when Aaron taught us about the material. Not to mention, he is incredibly knowledgeable. I wish there was a way to continue taking classes with him even after graduating, because he was always one of the best parts of the School of Theatre.
The best word I have to describe Aaron C. Thomas as a teacher and overall human being is generous. During my entire time as a student at UCF, Aaron generously gave his time and talents to make sure all of his students were successful. No student ever wanted for his attention; he gave it selflessly. His door was always open and he was always available to talk. Aaron was the professor we all turned to. Even after college, I still turn to Aaron’s guidance. For several auditions, I’ve asked for Aaron’s help with choosing material and he has generously provided every time. Most recently, I auditioned for the Atlanta Shakespeare Company’s production of The Country Wife. Thanks to Aaron’s monologue suggestion, I had a successful audition and was cast as the titular character. In the simplest of terms, my education, and ultimately my life path, were forever changed by Aaron and his wonderful influence. Thank you, Aaron.
Dr. Aaron C. Thomas or ACT as most of my fellow students lovingly referred to him as, is an outstanding professor. I’ve never felt so motivated to learn in a class as I was in his. As a theatre major I had some base level interest in theatre history, but the way that ACT presents topics keeps you totally engaged and eager to learn more. I am a fairly competitive student therefore I am always aiming for high scores. However, in Aaron’s theatre history classes I was so much more focused and dedicated because I have immense respect for him as a teacher and I wanted to do my best for him. His syllabus and class structure are also very clear and designed in a way that makes it easy for any student to succeed. Naturally students talk and complain about their teachers, but I never once heard anyone complain about Aaron or his classes.
I myself am a teacher now and ACT is always in the back of my mind as a model for not only for my teaching style but more so for the way that I talk to and care for my students.
I’ve never been a fan of history classes, which is unfortunate because I had a series of amazing teachers in high school. They tried to get me involved and interested in history, but the study of the past and the goings-on of dead people never appealed to me. And then I took a theater history class with Aaron Thomas. It was such an amazing experience that I signed up for the class that he was teaching the next term, eager to continue learning from him. Over the course of those two terms, he instilled me with a joy for studying history, for putting a play in its historical context and analyzing the effects that the play may have had on society and vice versa. This allowed me to more fully understand plays and how they can work, which has greatly improved my work as a theater designer and aspiring director. Aaron Thomas brought life to an ordinarily dead subject, and I’ll never forget the days spent in his classroom.
Aaron is one of those rare types of educators who isn’t only an expert within his field, but an expert in teaching. He has a staggering breadth of knowledge and makes learning moments seem transferable to all students regardless of their interests outside of the class. I recall one class where, within the same lecture, he connected his lecture to both Jacques Derrida and ’90s sitcoms. His range of knowledge from both high and low topics, from populist and literary entertainments, means he engages nearly every classmate nearly all the time, regardless of previous skill level. His class is the only class where I’ve been completely convinced that I can get as much out of it as I’ve put in. It simply is not possible to work harder or be more engaged than Aaron.
If there was ever a single moment that fully expressed the scale of Aaron’s dedication, it must be the time Aaron critiqued a play I’d written for a local play festival on his own time. Until that moment, it had been a challenge for me to get honest feedback from any professor besides the ones paid to lead workshops; however, Aaron took time out of his own schedule to give me a thorough breakdown complete with suggestions and structural analysis. This event on its own wasn’t significant, though I appreciated it. What made it linger with me was that when I thanked him more than was necessary (or comfortable), he told me to stop and that I “wasn’t special”, that he “would have done this for any of [his] students.” It wasn’t a jab, it was the truth. I’m not exceptional; Aaron is.
Dr. Aaron C. Thomas is not one of the best professors I’ve ever had. He is the best professor I’ve ever had. I can probably say that for most of my peers as well. The door to his office is always open. I’ll pass by and he’ll be typing up some essay on staged violence, or reading some book about masculinity in 18th century theatre, and he’ll always stop to glance up, just in case it’s a student in need. In the event that it is a student in need, he’s always willing to pause his work to be of assistance—no appointment necessary.
The best part about asking for a chunk of his time is that it doesn’t have to strictly relate to his class. Yes, of course he’s available to point someone in the right direction for research on a class essay, but he doesn’t stop there. I’ve approached him with broader issues that he’s been willing to lend an ear to, and even offer helpful advice.
During a semester when I wasn’t registered for classes, he was conducting an independent study on playwriting. I couldn’t enroll in it, but that didn’t matter. He asked his class if they were all right with including me in their final workshop, which they were, so he invited me to participate. I gave and received quality criticism on the plays we were all working on. I learned how to improve my writing, both then and in the future. The play I revised from that workshop received perfect scores from the readers at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater when I submitted it to their PlayFest.
But this isn’t a single, isolated incident. Aaron has always been available to read my scripts and provide feedback. Finding people to read my stuff is hard enough, finding someone to read it and provide useful feedback is almost nonexistent, but finding someone with a PhD, a full-time teaching position, and who is writing their own stuff: Blessing. The significance of my growth as a writer has happened because of Aaron C. Thomas. Not only for teaching me to be a smarter writer, or even for giving me criticism on my work, but for guiding me on a path to success as a whole.
The point, however, isn’t that he is a wealth of priceless knowledge and wisdom. He is, but that’s obvious. The point is that he cares. The point is that he is wholly invested in the success of his students. Any professor can be full of useful knowledge—most aren’t, but that’s not what this is about—but seldom do they take the time to actually share it, and make certain that a student fully grasps it. The rarity of such a professor is incredible, and clearly unfortunate, but Dr. Aaron C. Thomas is that rarity.
Dr. Aaron C. Thomas is without a doubt the most guiding, encouraging and resourceful teacher I’ve ever had. In a way, it feels weird to call him a teacher, he is more like a mentor, and just a really great friend. The thing I admire him the most for is his unwavering honesty. He doesn’t believe in the same dynamic that most other teachers hold about some strange power differential between teacher and student. Instead, he talks to you like a person. Like a fellow human being that deserves respect and he gives it to you. Along with that respect, he will call you out on your problems, not in an attempt to embarrass or press you, but to bring it to our own attention and to help us work to be better.
He goes out of his way constantly to help his students. There have been so many times I have asked him to come to a rehearsal for a show of mine, or to give me feedback on something I wrote or directed or acted in, or even times where I’ve just come into his office with the world spinning around me and somehow he always manages to ground me in reality and help me find the right path to keep moving forward. This even includes one time where he literally made me call the health center to book an appointment I had been putting off for far too long, thankfully it wasn’t anything serious but still it was a stern talking to that I needed.
Those are just the kind of things Aaron does, he doesn’t have this glossed over, checked out attitude to him, instead he invests in his students like the people we are. He nurtures them, encourages them, challenges them, pushes them, and when they deserve it: he praises them. Let me tell you, nothing feels better than receiving that praise from Aaron, because you know he is honest and means it. I wish I could explain how helpful and inspiring he is as a teacher, but it’s more something you just feel every time you’re with him. I can’t begin to thank him enough for all he’s done to help me find my way, and I can’t wait to continue along that path knowing I can reach out to him for help at any time. Because that’s the thing with Aaron, he cares so much that I know he will always be there, and for that I’m forever grateful.
I’m so grateful I took Aaron’s Gender, Race and Performance class while pursuing my MFA in Performance and Choreography at FSU. In fact, I recommended this class to several other dance graduate students because it was so revelatory for me! It made me think about my own dance-making process in a new way and changed how I view performances and read texts. I still find myself asking “What is this moment/phrase/dramaturgical choice doing for me as an audience member?” Aaron’s methods of facilitating class discussions led to exciting conversations on course material that felt both relevant and urgent, and I often left class feeling charged to be a better choreographer, teacher, and person.
I was the student who took refuge in the back of the classroom with my mouth shut and eyes glued to the desk until I took Theatre History with Aaron C. Thomas at the University of Central Florida. I’ve never felt so engaged in a discussion with an educator before; his passion shined a light on an unquenchable thirst for knowledge within me I never knew existed. Aaron’s desire to teach and inspire his students is like no other educator I have encountered. He carries a fire inside of him that ignites a curiosity and desire in everyone he engages with. He closed our last class together with the words, “It’s okay to be wrong, I think”. These words run through my head every day. Thank you, Aaron, for teaching me the importance of knowledge and passion. You inspire me daily.
I had Aaron as my professor for his special topics course entitled “Sex & Drama” that I took my junior year of undergrad. That course and Aaron as a person profoundly impacted my journey as a theatre maker and a student, especially a queer one. It was the first time in my educational career (at age 21) that I got to be immersed in work about people like me, written by people like me. Aaron gave us a rich variety of queer history, women’s issues, and contemporary theatre that made me more excited to come to a class than I had ever been before. That course redefined the way I view my position in the world and inspired me to make innovative lesbian theatre of my own. I seriously can’t ever thank him enough for the monumental influence he and his teaching had on me!