Term 1

Creating Character - Character Monologue

Students will use a variety of drama techniques to create, refine and express characters. Students will work individually and collaboratively to apply a range of improvisation and other strategies to create scripted and improvised characters. Students will explore the character's inner thoughts and feelings. Students will explore how character affects dialogue, convey emotion and develop character through frozen images. Students will also refine and perform improvised, rehearsed and scripted drama work. Students will explore stereotypes,  assist peers in developing characters and explore the issue of bullying through drama, using personal experience and knowledge to create a character. Students will learn how to make character choices set within an improvisational scenario. Students will also demonstrate literacy in drama vocabulary, write, rehearse and perform a naturalistic monologue.

TERM 1 COURSE OVERVIEW - Creating Character

Term 2

Creating Theatre for Festival Performance (Intersection Festival)

This unit immerses Year 9 Drama students in the process of creating performance work for a youth‑theatre festival setting, modelled on the Australian Theatre for Young People’s (ATYP) Intersection Festival. Students explore the unique voice of youth theatre, analysing scripts, developing character, and building ensemble cohesion as they work towards a polished festival‑style performance. Throughout the term, students engage with professional practices in script interpretation, rehearsal methods, stagecraft integration and performance refinement.

TERM 2 COURSE OVERVIEW - Creating Theatre for Festival Performance (Intersection Festival)

ATYP Intersection Festival 

Term 3

Shakespeare From Page to Stage to Film 

In this unit, students will undertake an in‑depth exploration of Elizabethan Theatre with a particular focus on the works of William Shakespeare. Students will examine the historical and cultural context of the Elizabethan period, gaining an understanding of theatrical conventions, performance practices and the enduring significance of Shakespeare’s contributions to dramatic literature.

Throughout the course, students will study Shakespeare’s language, themes and character construction, analysing how meaning is shaped through poetic devices, verse structure and rhetorical techniques. Students will also investigate the use of Shakespearean insults, interpreting their dramatic purpose and experimenting with their delivery through practical performance workshops that develop vocal and physical acting skills.

A key component of the unit involves exploring adaptation and transformation. Students will reimagine one of Shakespeare’s works for a contemporary audience by translating it into the video‑drama medium. This process includes analysing the original play’s themes and plot, crafting a modernised screenplay, and making creative decisions that maintain the integrity of the source text while enhancing relevance for today’s viewers.

Students will further develop foundational skills in film production, including camera work, shot composition, sound recording and editing techniques. Through this hands‑on filmmaking experience, they will produce a polished visual performance that demonstrates their understanding of dramatic storytelling, adaptation and multimodal communication.

TERM 3 COURSE OVERVIEW - Shakespeare From Page to Stage to Film

Term 4

The Art of Comedy: Stand-Up Comedy 

This unit introduces students to stand-up comedy by exploring influential comedians, comedic performance styles, and the dramatic techniques used to entertain and engage audiences.

Across ten weeks, students will investigate a different comedian each week, analysing how performers use voice, movement, facial expression, gesture, timing, characterisation, improvisation, storytelling and audience interaction to construct humour.

Students will participate in practical workshops, analyse selected performances, experiment with comedic conventions and progressively develop their own original 3–5 minute stand-up comedy routine.

The unit emphasises that successful comedy involves more than simply telling jokes. Students will learn to construct humour through observation, dramatic tension, exaggeration, contrast, character, rhythm, physical expression and the deliberate manipulation of audience expectations.

The unit culminates in a Class Clowns-style performance showcase, providing students with an opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of comedy as both a dramatic form and a performance skill.

TERM 4 COURSE OVERVIEW - The Art of Comedy: Stand-Up Comedy