IN SECTION 1 YOU WILL WRITE ABOUT A PLAY YOU HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN, EITHER AS AN ACTOR OR DESIGNER. THIS CAN BE THE PLAY YOU PRESENTED FOR YOUR EXAM, OR ANOTHER PLAY YOU HAVE TAKEN PART IN DURING YOUR COURSE.
IN SECTION 2 YOU HAVE TO MAKE NOTES AND DECISIONS TO EXPLAIN AN IMAGINED PIECE OF DRAMA. YOU WILL BE GIVEN A CHOICE OF STIMULI AND YOU NEED TO LET THE EXAMINER KNOW WHICH YOU HAVE CHOSEN. ALL OF YOUR ANSWERS WILL BE ABOUT THE PLAY YOU IMAGINE YOU MIGHT CREATE BASED ON YOUR CHOSEN STIMULUS. YOU WILL BE ASKED ABOUT LOTS OF THINGS TO DO WITH THE PLAY YOU WOULD CREATE, LOOK AT ALL OF THE LISTS BELOW TO MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND AND REMEMBER WHAT THEY ALL MEAN
THE THINGS LISTED BELOW WILL ALL BE VERY IMPORTANT IN YOUR EXAM. QUESTIONS YOU ARE GIVEN ARE LIKELY TO ASK ABOUT SOME OR ALL OF THE THINGS LISTED, SO PLEASE DO MAKE SURE YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH WHAT EVERYTHING MEANS.
MANY OF THE QUESTIONS ASK YOU TO JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWER. IF YOU DON'T DO THAT YOU WON'T GET THE FULL MARKS!
WHAT IS A STIMULUS?
- The starting point of a drama - Anything which suggests ideas which can be developed into a drama.
WHAT IS THE DRAMA PROCESS?
The process of developing your drama might happen in the following order:
Discussing stimuli to help generate ideas ---- Discussing ideas for situation ---- Experimenting with and selecting ideas for the development of the drama ---- Considering drama form, genre and style ---- Considering the target audience ---- Developing character (using rehearsal activities) ---- Planning overall structure for drama ---- Reflecting and discussing improvements ---- Organising, making decisions, solving problems ---- Adding in production (lights, sound, costume, props, make-up and set) ---- Rehearsing, Presenting, Reflecting/Evaluating
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
Structure is the way in which your drama is put together in terms of time, place and action. You can choose to have either a linear or a non-linear structure.
LINEAR MEANS YOUR PLAY FOLLOWS A TIMELINE FROM START TO FINISH (CHRONOLOGICAL)
NON-LINEAR MEANS YOU USE FLASH FORWARD OR FLASHBACK TO MOVE AROUND IN TIME
WHAT IS PURPOSE?
The purpose of a drama must be established in order to communicate meaning.
You could have more than one purpose, these might include:
To communicate a message ---- To explore a theme or issue ---- To tell a story ---- To educate ---- To entertain
WHAT IS STATUS?
You will need to consider the status of your character.
Status is a character’s importance in the context of your play; their position in relation to others.
Status refers to how confident and powerful a character feels inside themselves.
Background, life circumstances and personality are all things that might influence a character's status. You should know your characters status throughout the whole drama. Does it change at any point? Does it change due to another character?
Two characters who appear to have equal status can lose or gain power because of events. This could happen in the course of one scene, based on something that is said or done.
Think about how you would show your character’s status effectively through voice and movement and how you would show the shift in status between two characters. This could be as simple as one character moving to a higher position on stage, or it might be done with voice or gesture.
WHAT ARE FORM, STYLE AND GENRE?
FORM
A Play, Scripted or Improvised: Another word for a drama
Dance drama: A drama presented through dance moves
Mime: Stylised form of movement which creates an illusion of reality
Monologue: A character speaks their thoughts aloud
Movement: Use of the body as a means of communication
Musical: Drama which includes song and/or music
Pantomime: Christmas theatrical entertainment usually based on a fairy tale
Forum theatre: The audience suggest changes to a drama in order to affect outcomes
GENRE
Comedy: A drama which is funny/comical
Tragedy: A drama about unhappy events and with a sad ending
Crime drama: A drama based on crime
Docudrama: A documentary style drama, including reconstructions of events
Commedia dell‘artre: A theatrical form characterised by improvised dialogue and a cast of colourful stock characters; masks are usually worn
Farce: A comedy that aims at entertaining the audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant and improbable.
Tragicomedy: A type of drama that blends aspects of both tragic and comic forms
Satire: The use of humour, irony etc. to expose and criticise people’s stupidity or vices
STYLE (style can only be one of these two things)
Naturalistic: Imitating or reproducing real life
Non-naturalistic: Away from the norm, for example you would walk in a bizarre way
WHAT SHOULD I WRITE ABOUT REHEARSAL TECHNIQUES?
You are very likely to be asked about rehearsal techniques you might use to develop your play. Rehearsal Techniques/activities can be used in the investigation of characterisation during the rehearsal process. You could write about any of the following.
Role-on-the-wall :This technique can be useful in creating or analysing a character. The outline of a person is drawn on paper and information is written on the inside and outside. This allows considerisation for internal (feelings/thoughts/opnions) and external (looks, movement, dress sense) factors of a character.
Character Card: A character card is a list of character details. The following information can be asked and included in a character card: Full name, Age, Occupation, Personality, Physical Description, Background, Interests, Language and voice, Movement and Motivation. (*Motivation is the reason behind your character’s behaviour. Knowing your character’s motivation will help you know how to react, what to do and how to speak in different situations).
Hot-Seating: This involves sitting in the “hot-seat” as your character (changing voice and movement). You are then asked questions – which you must answer as your character.
Improvisation: This can either be spontaneous (made up “on the spot”) or rehearsed (over a period of time). Both are useful in helping develop characters and deepen your understanding of them.
Writing-in-role: This technique involves writing as your character (perhaps as a diary entry or letter to another character). This allows you to add thought and detail, considering other aspects of your character.
Thought Tracking: This technique can help a performer think about their character within a particular situation. A freeze frame can be used to stop the action, whilst the performer says out loud what their character is thinking or feeling.
Voices in the Head: This involves a recall of words said by others about a character or situation. (E.g. “She is just like her mother”, “How could you be so stupid?”
Thought Tunnel: This is when a character walks through a “tunnel” made by others in the class. As they are walking through, everyone else comments on their situation.
What are Theatre Conventions?
Theatre Conventions are the alternative ways of presenting part(s) of a drama or scene.
They allow you to communicate more effectively with your audience and make your drama more interesting to watch.
Flashback: Acting out an event in the past
Flash-forward: Acting out of a future or imagined event
Freeze Frame: The action is frozen in time
Frozen Picture: Alternative word for tableau
Mime: Stylised form of movement which creates an illusion of reality
Monologue: A character speaks their thoughts aloud
Movement: Use of the body as a means of communication
Slow Motion: Movement performed at a slowed down speed
Narration: Part(s) of the drama are told as a story by a narrator
Voice Over: Recorded speech played during a drama
Aside: A remark to the audience only
Soliloquy: A single lengthy speech, made when no other characters are on stage
Tableau: A stage picture, held without movement
Split Stage: When two or more scenes are set up on the performance space
What are the VOICE terms?
You need to know the following voice terms and be able to use them correctly:
• Accent – Way of speaking use in a local area or country.
• Volume – loudness or quietness of the voice.
• Pace – Speed of speech (fast or slow).
• Pitch – How high or low the voice is.
• Tone – Change of voice to express emotion.
• Clarity – Clearness of the voice.
• Pause – A break in speaking, a period of silence.
• Emphasis – The stress on a word or a phrase.
• Articulation – Clear pronunciation of words.
• Intonation – Rising and falling of voice in speech.
• Fluency – Natural flowing speech.
• Register – Ways of speaking, appropriate to the situation and/or the person being spoken to.
What is Target Audience?
A target audience is an identifiable group of people at whom a drama is aimed.
If you want to identify an age group be specific about their age!
Avoid general terms such as “Old people.” Instead you could write “the older generation between 65-80 years old”
Avoid giving a negative answer to a target audience question (don't state who would not enjoy watching your drama).
You will be expected to give reasons for your answer.
What are the MOVEMENT terms?
You need to know the following movement terms and be able to use them correctly.
Naturalistic Movement:
• Body Language – Messages given by the position or movement of the body.
• Eye-contact – Making eye-contact with another person
• Facial Expression – Look on face which shows emotion
• Posture – Position of the body, how it is held
• Gesture – Movement of hand/arm which communicates a meaning or emotion.
• Use of Space – How the actor moves in the acting area.
Stylised Movement:
• Rhythm – Movements which follow a pattern or beat.
• Stance – Attitude or position of the body.
• Balance – Keeping an even distribution of weight.
• Speed/Pace – Speed of an action or movement.
• Timing – Movement that is timed to an exact beat or sequence.
• Positioning – Placing of actors on stage.
• Use of space – Covering and using the performance space.
• Use of direction - Varying the direction actions/moves are presented.
• Use of levels - Varying the height at which movement etc are made.
WHAT PRODUCTION AREAS MIGHT I NEED TO WRITE ABOUT?
It is important to be familiar with the following production areas. You could be asked questions about them in section 1 and/or section 2 of your exam. The different production areas you could choose from are below. Remember that you need to understand their use in order to be able to JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS.
The production areas are listed below, but be sure to know the appropriate vocabulary to describe each production area. E.g for lighting – blackout, fade-up, profile spot, gel, etc. The vocabulary can be found on the N5 Terminology page of this website.
DIRECTING
Directing is the process of interpreting a script or scenario, creating a directorial concept and then putting that into a performance – in conjunction with actors and the design team. The directorial concept (the directors vision) defines the central themes, mood, tone and visual appeal of the performance. The director is responsible for:
The interpretation of the script/scenario
Auditioning and casting
Blocking the play
Design and performance concepts
The rehearsal process (planning and organising rehearsals)
MUSIC
Music can highlight an emotional or dramatic moment
PROPS
Can establish time and place (both pre-set and personal)
Personal props can give us more indication of a characters personality
Can create mood and atmosphere Costume
Establishes where the drama is set (place and time)
Gives us information about specific characters – hints at personalities.
Can create mood and atmosphere ü Can help us show the status of a character.
LIGHTING
On a basic level, lighting is used so that the audience can see what is happening on stage.
Helps create atmosphere
Can show time of day
Helps show location
Focuses audience’s attention on a specific area
Creates special effects Sound
Helps create mood and atmosphere
Helps to show location
Create special effects and make drama more realistic (e.g rain, gun shots).
Helps show time – time period and time of day
SET DESIGN
Establishes where the drama is set (place and time)
Helps create mood and atmosphere
Set can show us a change in location (scene changes)
Can give us insight into a particular character (e.g. if they live there).
MAKE UP
On a basic level, makeup is used so the actors can be seen under stage lights.
Shows the age and/or personality of the character.
Can be used for special effects – e.g. cuts, burns, bruises.
Can help with time and place of the drama.
WHAT ARE MOOD, ATMOSPHERE & TENSION
Mood and Atmosphere concern the feelings and emotions provoked by a drama. You must be able to identify and explain what mood and atmosphere you wish to create in your drama. Think about what the mood and atmosphere is like at the beginning of the drama, how it changes in the middle and what is at the end.
There is a link between mood, atmosphere and tension.
Tension is the driving force of a drama. It causes others to want to know what happens next and sustain interest and momentum. It creates a challenge and prevents the drama from becoming boring.
Tension can be created through:
Movement (e.g. timing, positioning, eye-contact). ---- Voice (e.g. pause, emphasis) ---- Conflict and confrontation between characters ---- Silence ----Relationships ---- Status ---- Threat or pressure ---- Mystery ---- Shock or surprise ---- Dramatic Irony (the audience has prior information) ---- Action
Production elements are also used to heighten tension and help to create mood and atmosphere:
Lighting ---- Sound ---- Costume ---- Set ---- Make-up ---- Props
FINAL THOUGHTS
GO THROUGH THE TERMINOLOGY.
MAKE SURE YOU JUSTIFY WHEN ASKED.
LEARN THE AREAS OF THE STAGE (CENTRE STAGE, DOWNSTAGE, UPSTAGE etc.)
LOOK OVER THE TYPES OF STAGING IN THE TERMINOLOGY (PROSCENIUM ARCH, THRUST, AVENUE, END ON etc.)
MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND AND CAN USE AND EXPLAIN ALL OF THE FOLLOWING
Characterisation – practical drama techniques you used to create characters, including rehearsal techniques.
Performance or Design Concepts – Concepts you created to enhance your drama. This may be in relation to target audience, mood and atmosphere, setting, genre, theme etc. Appropriate terminology should be used for the production skill being discussed.
Style/Genre/Form – Scripted presentation, rehearsed, naturalistic/non- naturalistic/comedy, romance, thriller, horror.
Setting – where and when your drama is set
Staging/Venue – what staging, venue and set design you would use in order to make this setting clear.
Themes/issues and message – what are the themes/issues of your drama? You may be asked to identify and justify dramatic message.
Mood and Atmosphere – you must be able to explain the mood and atmosphere of your drama. Target audience - You must be able to identify, justify and discuss the target audience’s reaction to your drama.