A growing awareness of the richness and beauty of non-western theatrical performance has led Missional University to develop the Undergraduate Certificate in Ethnodramatology in Context. Ethnodramatology is the academic discipline that formally studies world theatrical traditions. The certificate program offers students a culturally-based perspective where indigenous forms of drama are understood and practiced. Students conduct analyses of diverse cultural theatrical styles and traditions and develop performance through global theatrical theory and history coursework.
While biblical Christianity is rooted in eternally universal truths, the ways in which people understand and appropriate those truths in their daily lives are conditioned by their sociocultural context expressed in a specific time, place and people. Missional leaders understand that authentic Christian living grows out of the soil of indigenous forms - expressions that come from within that culture. Through the Undergraduate Certificate in Ethnodramatology in Context, students explore how to discover and understand a culture's drama forms. In addition, students practice performing indigenous theatre and learn to appreciate cultural expressions of theatrical performance.
Today, good theatrical citizenship requires knowledge of one’s own theatrical cultures, as well as those of the others with whom we share our world. This program enhances philosophical, political, and theatrical dimensions, while simultaneously developing practical, hands-on skills. Involving class work, performance, and independent research, the program equips students to enter today’s job market, as well as to continue graduate study in ethnodramatology.
