Frequently Asked Questions:
What are the dates for the course?
The course materials will be online by August 1, 2008 and you will be expected to read and respond to materials before meeting in Edinburgh. You will arrive on Sunday, August 10 and depart Sunday, August 24. (Most flights to the UK are overnight, which will require leaving on August 9 to arrive on the 10th). You must vacate the apartment by 11am on August 24.
How do I get there?
From theJFK in New York, you can get a direct Delta Air flight to Edinburgh. NWA has excellent connections to Edinburgh through Amsterdam from Hartford, and several airlines fly out of Boston with connecting flights in London. If you are already in Europe or the UK in the summer, you can get to Edinburgh on a discount airline like Ryan Air, Easy Jet, BMI or others. Airfare is often cheaper than the train!
You are responsible for booking your own tickets and arriving on the required date (this keeps course costs down). You will be met at the airport and given directions to the apartments by bus. (You are NOT allowed more than one carry-on for any flight into the UK, so plan accordingly.) The bus from the airport costs about $10.00 and a taxi in town is available if you don't want to carry luggage up the hill 4 blocks.
Where will we stay?
You will share an apartment with the teaching assistant and other students in the Blair House Apartments. Expect to share a small twin room; depending on the number of students participating, we may also be using the fold-out couch. There is a kitchen and living area in both apartments. TV, Washers and dryers are available with an extra charge for wi-fi. For a few images, check out the Blair House in Old Town.
How many plays will we see, and how much will they cost?
We will see at least 10 plays as a group, most of them in the first 4 days. This will give you time to adjust your itinerary for the rest of the stay. The group plays are paid by the program, and will be at the Traverse, Assembly, Pleasance, or St. Stephens theatre. Student tickets range from $8.00 to $12.00 each, and many venues offer discounts (2 for 1 tix) for certain performances. We encourage you to see as many performances as you can with a minimum of 20 performances for the two weeks you are there. It is possible to see 4-6 plays a day since plays are usually around an hour long and begin at 11am and go until after midnight. You must pay for all performances that are not designated to be seen with the group.
What else is there to do in Edinburgh?
Edinburgh is an incredibly interesting historical city, with a medieval castle and a new Scottish Parliament Building; the Queen has a Castle at the end of the Royal mile; there is a new Planet Earth Exhibition Space; and Arthur’s Seat is a wonderful place to climb for a view of the city. There are also several specialized tours (ghost tours, city bus tours, literary tours) and the group will have the opportunity to spend one day in the Scottish Highlands. There are museums and art galleries, old-fashioned pubs, the Royal Botanical Gardens, and with a short bus ride, the Firth of Forth coast.
How will I get around?
Everything is within walking distance from your apartment in Old Town. For about $5.00, you can buy a daily bus card that will get you even further, including to the coast and back. Local taxis are not expensive and may be a good idea if you are out late. The city center is known for its safety, although using good sense in any urban area is a must.
Who goes to the Festival?
Short answer: everyone! You will find students and young people, performers of every age, families and children, retired people, locals, and tourists from all over the world. Half of the experience is meeting new people and sharing tips about what performances are most worth seeing.
What is the cost of the course, and what does it cover?
The course fee for 2008 is $3,400. The cost covers tuition and fees, lodging for two weeks, at least 10 theatre tickets, city tours and the Scottish Highland tour, medical and emergency insurance, and instructional costs. Because accommodations must be booked so far in advance, a non-refundable $750.00 deposit is due when you reserve your spot in the class.
The cost does not include airfare, meals, local transportation, and the additional tickets you will need to complete the required number of performances (20). Most students will want to see more than 20 performances in two weeks, however, so do plan accordingly. Using the apartment kitchen facilities can save money for meals. Edinburgh is a University town, so there are many student-centered places to grab a quick bite between shows. Every venue seems to have its own soup kitchen.
What does the course involve?
You will be assigned readings before you come to Edinburgh and be asked to respond to those readings online. The focus of the course this year is on political theatre, broadly defined. You will learn different approaches to the study of drama, and you will be invited to write about your experiences in a daily journal. We will also consider the festival as a performance itself, using Performance Studies’ approaches in our discussions. We will meet on site approximately 2-3 hours each day (not including theatre viewing) to discuss plays we have seen, plan, and report on performances viewed outside the group. (Because several of the plays we see will have scripts as programs, we will be able to read some of the drama we see.)
Before arriving in Edinburgh, you will choose a particular viewing focus for the festival and begin research related to writing a final paper in that area. Journals are due as soon as the festival is over; the final paper is due no later than September 30. The course is also open, in consultation with the professor, for honors credit (which carries 4 course hours). Graduate students may apply, but they must pay course costs and cannot receive graduate credit without a faculty sponsor from their own institution.
What if I get sick or need medical attention in Edinburgh?
The Royal Infirmary Hospital treats patients in their emergency room, and your international student card insures that your medical expenses will be paid. The insurance also pays for emergency medical evacuation in the unlikely event that you should need it.
Who is the Professor?
Prof. Jenny Spencer will be teaching the course. She has been to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival over six times and is thoroughly familiar with the city and the Fringe operation. Her areas of expertise are British and American drama, performance theory, and feminist theory. She is the author of Dramatic Strategies in the Plays of Edward Bond (Cambridge U Press, 1992), co-edited the anthology Staging Resistance: Essays on Political Theatre (U Michigan P, 1998) and has published essays and reviews in Modern Drama and Theatre Journal. American Studies Ph.D. student Rachel Daniel, who has also traveled abroad and is interested in sharing this festival experience with students, will assist her.
How do I apply?
Let us know you are interested, and we will tell you if there is still room in the course. To apply, download the forms at our website: www.edinburghfestivalcourse.com
In the inital application, you are asked for a statement of purpose (i.e., why you are interested in taking the course and what you think you will get out of it) and to comment on your background (do you have any academic or practical background that might be useful in this course?) You also need to send a transcript or resume. Students outside the University area may be asked for a reference.
If accepted into the program, you fill out the official application form and send it with your non-refundable deposit of $750.00 to Jean Karpinski in the International Program Office, 455 Hills South, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 1003. You will be billed in April.
If you have questions, email eng397d@english.umass.edu.
Are there deadlines?
Our deadines are early: Jan. 30. At this time, a decision is made as to whether or not the course can be offered. Late applications may be accepted if there are spaces left in the program. Applications are now being accepted for the 2009 summer session.
Can graduate students apply?
Graduate students are welcome in the course. In order to receive graduate-level credit, however, they must have a faculty sponsor from their own institution.
