Confessions of a Teaching Drama Queen!

1. Unlocking the Mystery of Language through Drama Confessions of a Teaching Drama Queen!

2. “Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Involve me and I will understand.” Chinese Proverb

3. Communication

4. Warm Ups • Team Building • Improvisation • Guided Interaction • Scene Work • Technical Theatre • Research Projects • Performance

5. Warm Ups • Self Aware • Personal Space • Calm Anxiety • Level the Playing Field

6. Team Building • Collaborative • Cooperative • Considerate

7. What Keeps Us From Success? (student collaboration) • Habitual or purposeful interruptions • Ignoring people you perceive as having nothing useful to offer you • Creating uncomfortable situations by the introduction of sexual innuendo • Creating distractions by making noises (laughing aloud for no reason, tapping, etc.) • Attention Hog: Talking nonstop, Bossy, Taking over • Touching others or their possessions without permission • Avoiding eye contact or communication (Sleeping in class could be included!) • Calling attention to other’s shortcomings • Inability to control vocal volume

8. Improvisation • Processing • Sequencing • Adaptability • Social Appropriateness

9. Guided Instruction • Reception • Revision • Application of Knowledge • Following Directions

10. One Word Game

11. Stage Areas

12. Stage Areas UC UL UR R C L DR DL DC

13. Body Positions

14. Body Positions Full Back ¾ left ¾ right Profile right ¼ left Profile left ¼ right Full Front

20. Scene Work • Monologues • Duet Scenes • Ensemble Acting

21. Scene Work • Study Skills • Interpretation • Critical Thinking • Vocal Dynamic • Physical Awareness

22. Seven Principles of Movement • Movement must have a reason. • Movement should be simplified to its most basic elements. • Movement must be consistent with a character's age and body type. • Movement should be heightened or bigger than life • Movement must be visible to the audience ("open" to the audience) • Movement should reveal character traits or beliefs including status and relationship. • Movement must create pleasing stage pictures

23. Stage Pictures

24. Stage Pictures

25. Technical Theatre • Set Design/Construction • Lighting/Sound • Costuming • Make-Up • Directing

26. Research Projects • Theatre History • Playwrights • Theorists • Styles

27. Theatre History Project Era Choices: • Egyptian Theatre • Greek Theatre • Hebrew Theatre • Roman Theatre • Hindu Theatre • Chinese Theatre • Japanese Theatre • Medieval Theatre • Italian and Spanish Renaissance Theatre • Elizabethan Theatre • French Renaissance Theatre • Restoration and 18th Century English Theatre • 19th Century European Theatre You must research your era and provide the following in portfolio form as well as give a formal presentation to the class. • Social and political information on your era • Description and drawings or pictures of stages from your era. • Descriptions of performances from your era. • Costume examples from your era. • Handout on the main points of the era for each classmate • List and discussion of prominent playwrights. • A visual or some other added attraction to keep us awake during your presentation!

29. Performance • Self Confidence • Self Control • Discipline • Empathy

30. Middle School Improv

31. Assignment Ideas

32. Color Scenes • Small Groups • Assign a color • Students will brainstorm and list things that are associated with that color. • After 5 minutes of brainstorming, students must create a scene that is ‘inspired’ by the color. They can never actually SAY the color in the scene. • Allow 10-15 minutes to prepare scene.

33. Three Things • Give each group three unrelated items. (You don’t actually have to HAVE them… just a list) • Ex: lipstick, paperclip, hard-boiled egg • The students must create a scene that brings these items together in a logical sequence of events.

34. Location Scenes • Give each group a location. • Ex: Funeral, the Mall, the Zoo, a Park • They must create a scene that could only happen at this location. They may never name the location. The other groups should be able to guess where the scene is taking place based on their performance.

35. Family Scenes • Each group must create a scene that is focused on a family conflict. • Assign certain ages to be represented by the group members. • The scenes must show a problem and two different outcomes. Have them present the scenes twice, showing how different choices change the outcome. • This can be modified for classroom scenes, playground scenes, etc. This is a great idea for conflict resolution.

36. Theatre Games • Freeze and Replace • Emotion Party • Airport • Murder • Concerned Citizen • Zip Zap Zop • Farkle • Telephone

37. What every student needs to know to create a developed scene: The Goals of A Play

38. Determining the Goals of the Play An effective way to determine the goals of a play and the motivations for individual characters is to divide the play into the following components:

39. 1. Exposition That portion of the play that exposes the following necessary information to the audience:

40. 1. Exposition • Locales & Time (the specific place and time of each scene) • Character (the names, types, and relationships of the characters)

41. 1. Exposition • Antecedent events ( What important action has occurred before the opening of the curtain) • Form & Type (Comedy? Drama? Tragedy? Melodrama? Romance? Epic? Mystery? Satire? Burlesque Farce? Fantasy? Absurd? Social Drama? High comedy of manners? Etc.)

42. 2. Point of Attack • Specific incident (The earliest incident in the play that arouses strong audience interest and exposes the basic conflict) • Protagonist (The person about whom the play is written) • Antagonist (The person or force opposing the protagonist)

43. 3. Crisis The high point of suspense when a decision must be made – the turning point

44. 4. Climax The moment of highest interest for the audience – the final answer to the basic conflict. In a one-act play the crisis and climax are often the same

45. 5. Resolution or Falling Action Action which occurs between the climax and the final curtain.

46. 6. Evaluation Personal reaction to the theme, mood, style, dialogue, character development, plot construction, entertainment value, and literary value.

47. Theme The theme is generally considered to be the idea that is basic to the thought of the play – is the central idea being presented by the author. Usually the theme can be summarized in a sentence; for instance, “The theme of Agamemnon is that pride, taken to excess, leads to destruction.”

48. Thanks for your time! Melissa McCallmccall@iestutors.usfor a copy of this PowerPoint:sevenbridgesschool.com