The Department of Performance Studies explores performance in all its forms, extending and deepening the understanding of performance as central to the human condition. Students majoring in performance studies engage performance both as an object of study'something to be documented and analyzedand as a method of study'something to be experienced and enacted. From the adaptation and staging of texts, to the exploration of rituals and festivals, to the study of performance in everyday life, students in the department enter the world of performance and performance theory as an important and emerging field of study.<br><br>Specific courses in the Department of Performance Studies focus on the study of literature through solo performance, the ensemble adaptation and staging of poetic, narrative, and nonfictional texts, intercultural performance, cultural studies and performance ethnography, performance theory and criticism, and performance art. Outside the classroom, additional performance opportunities enable students to develop further their performance work and bring it to a wider audience.