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Drama TechniquesBy Hannah

Sherwood-Smith

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Contents

• Hot seating• Thought tracking• Conscience alley • Auditions• Exam questions • Role-play • Monologue• Cross-Cutting• Genre of films • Genre of films continued• Quiz

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Hot seating• Hot seating is when a character is questioned

by the group about his or her background, behaviour and motivation. The method may be used for developing a role in the drama lesson or rehearsals, or analysing a play post-performance. Even done without preparation, it is an excellent way of fleshing out a character. Characters may be hot-seated individually, in pairs or small groups. The technique is additionally useful for developing questioning skills with the rest of the group.

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Thought tracking

• A group makes a still image and individuals are invited to speak their thoughts or feelings aloud - just a few words. This can be done by tapping each person on the shoulder or holding a cardboard 'thought-bubble' above their head. Alternatively, thought tracking (also called thought tapping) can involve other members of the class speaking one character's thoughts aloud for them. The technique is most often used in conjunction with image theatre or freeze-frames. Equally, thought-tracking is useful preparation for improvisation.

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Conscience alley

• This drama technique can easily be applied to a range of subjects across the curriculum, whenever a character is faced with a decision. It may be that you reach a certain point in your drama lesson, or while reading a story aloud, or describing an historical event, when such a moment occurs. Turn the situation round on the children/students so that they have to consider the issues involved. Then in role as Abraham Lincoln, or Oliver Twist, or Red Riding Hood, you walk down the Conscience Alley as members of the group whisper their advice to you.

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Auditions

• An audition is what every actor has to do In order to get a part. Usually the auditions are held in a private room while you state your name into a camera and the director or writer gives you lines.

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Exam questions• Choose a piece of practical coursework in which you were involved

as actor or designer or technician. You must answer questions 0 1 - 0 4 using the same practical work and the same selected skill.

• 0 1 Describe what the piece was about; state the period, style and genre of the piece, the performance space, your target audience and any technical or design elements used. You should state whether your contribution was as actor, designer or technician. (10 marks)

• 0 2 Explain what skills you contributed to the piece in your role as actor, designer or technician. Give specific examples that demonstrate how you used these skills to contribute to the piece. (10 marks)

• 0 3 Analyse the ways in which you improved your skills during the rehearsal process. You should refer to at least one specific occasion when you made progress as an actor, designer or technician in preparation for the performance. (10 marks)

• 0 4 Evaluate your success as an actor, designer or technician in the final performance of the piece. You should refer to particular moments from the performance which you thought were especially successful or were unsuccessful for you personally. (10 marks)

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Role-play• Role play is the basis of all dramatic activity. The

ability to suspend disbelief by stepping into another character's shoes comes quite naturally to most children. Through the structure of the drama lesson this can be used to great effect, challenging children to develop a more sensitive understanding of a variety of viewpoints whilst sharpening their language and movement skills. By adopting a role, children can step into the past or future and travel to any location, dealing with issues on moral and intellectual levels. Thus role play can be easily utilised to illuminate themes across the curriculum.

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Monologue

• 1.a form of dramatic entertainment, comedic solo, or the like by a single speaker: a comedian's monologue.

• 2.a prolonged talk or discourse by a single speaker, especially one dominating or monopolizing a conversation.

• 3.any composition, as a poem, in which a single person speaks alone.

• 4.a part of a drama in which a single actor speaks alone; soliloquy.

• Some examples of Monologues can be found here; • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10ysF-Ie-7c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10ysF-Ie-7c

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Cross-Cutting

Cross-Cutting Cross-cutting (also called split-screen) is a drama technique borrowed from the world of film editing, where two scenes are intercut to establish continuity. In drama and theatre the term is used to describe two or more scenes which are performed on stage at the same time. This makes it possible to juxtapose scenes or snippets of scenes that happen at different times or in different places, using separate areas of the performance space. The technique is used to highlight or contrast a particular theme or aspect of the story. Using different groupings, both scenes could happen at the same time, or one could be frozen while the other comes alive. This can have a similar effect to spotlighting particular areas of the stage or using a split-screen in a film.

http://dramaresource.com/strategies/cross-cutting

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Genres of filmsGenres Definition

Musical Musicals / Dance Films are cinematic forms that emphasize and showcase full-scale song and dance routines in a significant way (usually with a musical or dance performance as part of the film narrative, or as an unrealistic "eruption" within the film

Horror Horror Films are unsettling films designed to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm, and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience.

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Romance Romance films are love stories, or affairs of the heart that centre on passion, emotion, and the romantic, affectionate involvement of the main characters (usually a leading man and lady), and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage.

Sci-fi Science Fiction Films are usually scientific, visionary, comic-strip-like, and imaginative, and usually visualized through fanciful, imaginative settings, expert film production design, advanced technology gadgets (i.e., robots and spaceships), scientific developments, or by fantastic special effects.

Comedy Comedy Films are "make 'em laugh" films designed to elicit laughter from the audience

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What is a monologue?

1. A part of a drama in which a single actor speaks alone?

2. A strange bird? 3. A drama technique where you sit an

d question your partner?4. A drama technique where you don’t

move?

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