SECTION A
I have put together some help, advice and examples for each question in section A. These are to read through and then use as a revision aid.
Question 1 should be answered in short, clear, informative sentences.
· Describe what your piece is about e.g the Plot.
Who do you play? State your Character.
What is the Style?
· Performance Space? (the stage configuration)
· What is the genre?
· What is the time period? Please give a date, don't just say 'modern'
· State what theatrical skills you have contributed to it e.g Acting.
Answer in statements, not long justifications. Answer in short sentences. You must identify that your chosen skill is ACTING. LOOK AT THE QUESTION AND MAKE SURE YOU ANSWER EVERY POINT YOU ARE ASKED FOR IN Q1 SECTION A. YOU SHOULD GET 9/10 MARKS FOR THIS QUESTION IF YOU DO THIS CAREFULLY.
2) Explain what you have contributed that made you proud. Give details of one part of the play to support your answer.
This question is marked against AO1 'To recall, select and communicate their knowledge and understanding of drama to generate, explore and develop ideas' This question has a REHEARSAL focus.
Make it clear you are applying your knowledge of your chosen skill of ACTING to your piece.
You need to write about the following:
· Characterisation (What methods did you use to get into character? Hot-seating? Role-on-the-wall? Don't just state what you used explain HOW it developed your character and the way you acted)
· Voice, movement, gesture, facial expressions (give as much detail as possible)
· Creation of moments of pace, rhythm and energy.
· Your theatrical style
· The effect on the audience
· How you interacted with each other on stage
This is James' homework, it is a good example of a concise answer to questions 2.
In our performance, I multi rolled, playing both the father and a policemen. To distinguish between the characters, I played the father with an upright, open stance, a soft, even voice when calm and a loud, forceful voice when I was angry and the use of gestures around my son to show that I cared deeply for him but also to show me as a parental figure with control as the naturalistic style demanded. This use of acting skills was displayed in the scene with my son in whom I admonished and then consoled him, shouting and then using a pat on the cheek to make him feel better to maintain the naturalistic feel of the piece and to make the audience sympathetic towards my son and me. When I played the Policemen, when I had a strong stance, a stern voice and a disapproving glare to show that I was a negative figure in the play. This was a useful tool, as when I arrested Sam’s character, it made the audience feel both shock and dread and drew them in to the story more.
3) Analyse the work by taking one key section in the piece that developed in rehearsal and give details of one occasion where progress and improvements were made.
This question is marked against AO3 'to analyse and evaluate their own work and that of others using appropriate terminology' This question is looking for you to reflect on your acting and how you developed your skills during REHEARSAL. It should be a detailed answer using lines from your piece and analysing exactly how you acted them (movement, vocal and facial expression) and evaluating the improvement you made.
Explain a KEY MOMENT where you piece dramatically improved and really started to come together. For Year 10 this was the rehearsal lesson. You needed to create an ending, overcome the problems of slow pace and lack of focus and make your characters more realistic. You used hot-seating, backstory and spontaneous improvisation to do this.
a. What did YOU have to master and do to make your character come to life?
b. Did you add an accent?
- Background?
EXAMPLE ANSWER
One key section that developed in rehearsal was the ending of our piece. We found that as we moved through developing our pieces, the storylines became more complex; the pace of the plot slowed, finishing was not easy and our characters were not clear. In our rehearsal, we used concentrated individual character development to give us a clearer idea of who our characters were and how they would react in different situations, meaning we could improve them by adding accents, body movements etc. To clarify this further, we used hot seating with another member of our piece to practice behaving in character. We then performed a non-stop, spontaneous piece, in which we had to perform the entire plot in 20 minutes. This meant we had to draw our plot to a close in time, and the spontaneous nature of the activity meant we could change the plot to shorten it, making it less complex and easier for the audience to understand. We then reflected on the performance, which meant we could draw what was good from the spontaneous piece but could also say what could be improved, allowing us to perfect the plotline so the pace never became sluggish.
4) Evaluate what you learnt from your experience of working on this piece. Give details of your own strengths and weaknesses in this piece.
This question is marked against AO3 'to analyse and evaluate their own work and that of others using appropriate terminology' This question is looking for you to reflect on your acting and how you PERFORMED in the final examined performance. It should be a detailed answer using lines from your piece and analysing exactly how you acted them (movement, vocal and facial expression) and evaluating the improvement you made.
You are writing this question about what YOU did, not what your group did as a whole. Please mention the following:
· What you achieved theatrically and how you worked as a team.
· How you made it entertaining for your audience
· Your own strengths and weaknesses.
EXAMPLE ANSWER WITH TEACHER COMMENTS AND EXAMINER REPORT
I believe that I learnt from this play that comedy can work in a piece that is mainly serious and that it can increase the effectiveness for an audience. I learnt that an audience can be emotionally affected by a piece of original work and that the timing of my performance in the suicide scene could affect the impact.( this opening section focuses on the audience and the impact the piece had on them, this is a really good point to start with)
I also learnt that my strengths lie in plays of this kind and I can reach some emotional depth when required, empathising with people in upsetting circumstances. I also learnt that it is possible to create a worthwhile piece in a short time. In fact I think that it is a good thing to do so (in this, and the next blue section the answer looks at her own strengths and what she did well in her piece).
I have learnt the need to shape a devised piece, the need for good, reliable team work and the need to give variety to the linking scenes. I have learnt that a short piece should keep the interest of the audience by working towards a powerful scene late on in the play (this section focus’ on the group working together, structuring a piece, and the demands of creating a successful devised piece.)
This was my suicide scene and I learnt here to pace my approach to the events that happened in the scene, keeping the audience involved and unsure that I will go through with the action (this section should have been extended to give precise detail from what she did in the scene, for example how did she pace her approach and keep the audience involved?). I really enjoyed this play, and particularly this last scene, as it gave me confidence to try other testing roles, created a worthwhile play as a result of good teamwork and did what we set out to do, to create a play that raised issues and involved the audience emotionally.
Examiner Report
There is a good understanding of areas of improvement and an understanding of areas from which she has learnt. There is good reference to strengths that she felt that she possessed through working on the extract. There could have been more specific detail from the scene to raise this to top band. This response would score in Band 2 (7-8 marks).
TWO Example answers for question 4
- Evaluate what you learnt from your experience of working on this piece. Give details of your own strengths and weaknesses in this piece. I learnt from this play that a simple plot with clear characters could be more effective than a highly complicated, intricate plot from an audience perspective. I learnt the important of pause on the audience, allowing them to absorb the action on stage and build the tension and emotion making a more effective theatrical experience. I also learnt that my strengths lie in the naturalistic style as it allows me to develop realistic characters. I also learnt that spontaneity is important in the piece as it prevents the action becoming stale or boring for the audience. I have also learnt that a devised piece needs direction and structure otherwise it will fall apart as it will have no purpose and the pace will become sluggish. I have also learnt that by building towards a more powerful scene late in the play it gives more direction to the piece.
4) What I learnt from the play was that comedy in a play about serious issues could be entertaining, and have as much of an effect on the audience as tension. I learnt that having a character that plays a significant role in the play that delivers comedy lines with good timing could be very effective. I learnt that my strengths in acting is delivering comedy lines, with good timing and emphasis, with the right amount so as its effective, in fact I think it is the right thing to do. The characterisation was good. My movements where clumsy, I never stood upright to show how my character never took life seriously.
This kept the audience entertained and focused. I learnt how to add comedy into a serious play, and work on shaping the plot, so it’s simple and effective. We needed a good team that worked well together to link the various scenes, with a defined and simple story line.
One of the scenes featured as me telling another character of the importance of a position he’d stolen and sold In order to pay his rent. I learnt how hat you sometimes had to be dead serious to create effective tension, as I was still slightly over dramatic witch created comedy rather than tension. Tension was achieved using silence, but I discovered that my weakness was creating tension through my lines and speaking too much.
