The inspiration for psychoanalysis arose through visits by Freud to the theatre. Meanwhile, in Western medical circles of the time, "hysterics"-most often, troubled women-were displayed as theatrical objects themselves. What do the spaces of the theatre and the psyche have in common? In what ways is theatre just a more legitimate form of "insanity"? How, and why, does Western theatre, from the Classical period onward, progress from models of tragedy to individual trauma and wider cultural disaster? How might non-Western theatres, and productions by women and artists of color, approach psychic issues differently? How do the realms of theatre and performance function, creatively, psychically, and politically, to re-enact, rework-and even induce-trauma? Materials studied might include: writings by psychoanalytic critics Charcot, Freud, Lacan, Melanie Klein, Foucault, and others; classic through contemporary plays based on the stories of Oedipus and Electra, and on psychoanalytic notions, by Sophocles, Shakespeare, O'Neill, Helene Cixous, Paula Vogel, Suzan-Lori Parks, and others; and recorded performance works by Robert Wilson, Chris Burden, Karen Finley, Ron Athey, Bill T. Jones, Min Tanaka, and more. Requirements: brief weekly writings, two longer written projects, and a final exam. No prerequisites; but one Theatre, English, Comparative Literature, or Psychology course preferred. Enrollment limit: 15.