The workload was a bit overwhelming at times, but only when we had to read 2 plays a week. One play a week was super manageable, and they were always super engaging! He goes over any concepts you had trouble with in lecture, and often makes jokes to keep us engaged. I'm super STEM so it was nice to go to lecture and experience a new side of UCLA. His exams are superrrrr easy. Just read over your notes and write down the things he says are important during lecture (he'll literally say "write this down" or "this will be on the midterm"). They consisted of multiple-choice followed by a few T/F questions. Overall, would definitely take a class with him again! If you're having doubts about this course, take it! You won't regret it.

I'm not going to lie, I feel like I only received an A because COVID-19 occurred and the final was cancelled. I legit had to swing an A on the final to get an A in the class, so my GPA really dodged a bullet. I read every play that was assigned. The secret to getting the two plays done per week was to watch the free, public performances of them on YouTube and follow along with the script. There were often multiple performances or staged readings online, and there was only one obscure one that I actually had to read without the help of seeing it visually. There's a lot of historical questions on the midterm, and I think that's where I messed up. Same with some tricky questions about the plays that I wouldn't even think about like "What is the name of the lady that Biff caught Willy cheating with against Mom?" and I was like I know the story, but I didn't pay that close attention to the one line that said she was nameless. So it can be tricky like that sometimes. I had a friend in the class who only showed up on the lectures that had pop quizzes, and she missed every other class. She got extremely lucky. Attendance isn't taken unless it's those pop quizzes, so you can choose not to show up sometimes. It's a three hour course with no AC, so it can get pretty bleh in the room sometimes. And the TA's are pretty lenient on grading the essays. And the professor does care about what he's teaching. I would take this course again if I needed to get rid of another upper division theater credit, so I definitely recommend this one.

I have conflicted feelings about this class, as it really isn't difficult to get an A, but there was also a weird amount of work and stress that went into it. The professor expects you to read 2 whole plays and usually an extra super long essay or textbook excerpt each week, occasionally asking you to watch them as well, which takes a shit ton of time to do. However, for most of the plays, you can probably just read a summary and keep up during the lectures, although it helps to read the plays for the essays.
He doesn't post his lecture slides online and the lectures aren't bruincasted, and he talks VERY quickly.
There are two essays required. They seemed to be graded very nicely, as pretty much everyone I talked to got an A+ on them. However, the prompts were incredibly confusing and complex. The word count on the essays was supposed to be 700-800 words, but the prompts asked so many different questions that it would have been easier to write the essay if the word count was doubled.
The midterm was multiple choice and hilariously easy. I expect the final would have been the same, but it was cancelled due to COVID-19 (he gave everyone 100% on it, probably because he knew most people would get 100 anyway).
So overall, the class is an easy A, and you read a wide range of plays, but the professor is unclear and annoyingly vague and elitist.

This class is not the easiest A you will ever take, but it is manageable. I saw this as an upper div and GE, so I took it. I did all the work for it. I read all the plays and studied for the tests and tried decently on the essays. If you are willing to read a couple plays a week and study for a few hours, this class should be a breeze. There are also two 700 word papers, but I spent minimal time on them and got A's. I recommend if you need the GE credit.

I'm not a theater major, but I really enjoyed this class! It's a little intimidating at first, because you end up reading ~2 plays each week and he doesn't upload his slides/ allow you to record him. So, the first half of the class, I diligently took notes and practically wrote down every word he said. The class before the midterm, he pretty much told us every question that was on there, so I found out I didn't need to worry too much about remembering everything he said in lectures. As long as you read the plays, you should be able to get 100%. The two papers were graded pretty leniently, but the prompts were kind of confusing. But, I didn't spend that much time on either paper and got high A's on both.
It's very easy/doable to get an A in this class, you just need to put the time in to read the plays. Also, try to come to every lecture because there were a few random in-class responses that counted for our grade. But, I found myself never missing a lecture because I enjoyed what he lectured on. And, he made it so we ended 20 minutes early each time instead of it being a two hour class!

I love Prof. Fitzgerald!! The readings are kinda tough but he's more than happy to schedule office hours, and is very clear about what he wants written in the essays. I learned so much about Black theater I think this was my most interesting theater class freshman year. Take this class! It will make you a better student and teach you to think critically.