The unit aims to understand the intricacies of a playful, physical acting style using techniques such as comic timing, clowning around and slapstick humour. Students will meet the characters of Commedia dell'arte and explore a variety of typical scenarios.
Ongoing formative assessment.
Effect
The impact of something on someone or something else.
Gesture
The definition of a gesture is an expressive movement of the body, or something that is said or done to show a feeling.
Character
A person represented in a drama, story, etc.
stance
how someone stands
emphasis
stress given to a word or action to indicate particular importance
evaluate
to say what is good about something
Commedia dell'arte
the Italian style of theatre popular in the 1600s
Develop the individual:
Develops non-verbal communication as well as verbal skills. Explores different theatrical style/culture (Commedia del'arte).
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share/celebrate their practical work.
Students explore the roles of the actor and director while considering the themes and characters in the play 'Noughts and Crosses'. They will perform extracts of the play in groups.
Scripted assessment in groups.
Plot
The outline of a play
Script
A piece of text with specific conventions that actors use to learn lines for a piece of drama
table read
where the actors read the play ( around a table )
cold read
the actors read the play for the first time
director
the creative visionary who shapes and guides a production from its initial stages to the final performance
objective
what a character wants
rehearse/rehearsal
to practise scene/s to improve them
empathise
to put yourself in the position of the character ( other person )
scene
a section of text
blocking
working out the actors' positions on stage
Develop the individual:
Students explore a different style of theatre giving them a better critical understanding of how theatre has developed. Explore issues of right and wrong.
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share / celebrate their practical work.
Drawing on the exaggerated gestures and expressions from the Victorian era, students will use a variety of techniques to understand the style and genre of Melodrama and perform it using 'stock characters'. Students are required to use exaggerated movements and voices to create their characters. They will explore emotions, feelings and character motivation, and demonstrate their ability to understand the effects their actions have on an audience.
Ongoing formative assessment.
Characterisation
The role of somebody else, created by an actor
Facial Expressions
A facial expression helps to convey how a character might be feeling
stock characters
characters with typical elements/attributes eg the hero
stereotypes
characters with repeated characteristics
melodramatic
exaggerated/over the top emotionally
villain
the evil character
damsel
the female who is often depicted as weak and vulnerable
hero
the character who has good elements and saves the day
cliche
a phrase/situation/character that is overused
Develop the individual:
Moral and ethical issues explored.
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share/celebrate their practical work.
This unit is intended to explore elements of world theatre, such as the work of Augusto Boal, Noh theatre and puppetry.
Students create their own puppet play in groups.
Story Telling
Giving information about something that has happened or has been imagined to happen.
Plot
The story.
Narration
The telling of a story, a reader.
Tension
Building emotion in the audience through story telling.
Theme
A key idea running through a story.
technique
a means of communicating eg mime, still image, narration
devise
to create your own original version of a story
stimulus/i
a starting point
hotseating
asking a character questions to establish backstory
thought-tracking
tapping a character on the shoulder to determine their thoughts
improvisation
perfroming without a script - can be spontaneous or polished ( ie rehearsed )
Develop the individual:
Consideration of right and wrong. Development of communication skills.
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share/celebrate their practical work.
Using stimuli that link to the idea of identity, students will develop pieces that give them opportunities to devise original work, while considering their place in the world.
Ongoing formative assessment.
mask
a facial item of costume
forum theatre
where the audience are empowered to make decisions about what happens on stage
ritual
a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed in a particular order
chorus
a group of actors moving and speaking as one
Theatre of the Oppressed
style of theatre devised by Augusto Boal that includes interactive elements to help the audience ( who may be oppressed )
Spec-actor
In Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed, audience members can come up and perform
narration
when someone tells the story as it is performed
Develop the individual:
Students consider reasons crimes are committed and the moral/ethical issues facing the characters in the story.
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share/celebrate their practical work. Shared exploration of difficult issues.
Students will be introduced to the musical 'Bugsy Malone' and explore accent, characterisation, staging and design elements of the show.
Students will perform a short section of the play.
Lighting
How a stage is lit up and when.
Sound
The noises required for a performance, this can include background noise, speech and special effects.
Back drop
The back ground for the scene.
Staging
The method of presenting a play or other dramatic performance. "The quality of staging and design"
dialogue
the lines the characters say
canon
one after another
motif
a repeated action
synchronised
in time with one another
ensemble
working together as a group
stage directions
the instructions to the actors/director about the playwright's intentions eg a character enter a scene
Develop the individual:
Communication skills, confidence, collaborative working. Exploration of a different time period and culture (1930s America).
Create a supportive community:
Students work collaboratively and share/celebrate their practical work.