Issue Based Drama

ISSUE BASED DRAMA

WHAT?

Create a drama that deals with a real life issue/problem

HOW?

In this unit of work, pupils will work in small groups to create a

Drama based on a real life issue. They will be developing

and consolidating knowledge and understanding gained in

the first half of this year.

Pupils will:

Select a theme from a list of SQA themes

Work in a group to complete the devising process

Use K&U developed so far to portray a character

Write part of a script

Perform to class

WHY?

Pupils will experience what is required to achieve Unit One of the Intermediate course – Drama Skills. They will develop their skills and knowledge and understanding that will support them in attaining Unit One at the beginning of their 4th year.

The Devising Process

Brainstorm themes
Present top three ideas to group
Select theme
Decide on sub-theme
Research
3 Storylines – B M E
Select top storyline
Complete detailed B M E draft
Character Profiles and Casting
Improvisation
Final copy of B M E
Decide on form, add conventions and structure
Write script – each person responsible for a scene
Rehearse
Dress Rehearsal
Performance

(N.B: Throughout the process, you will be evaluating the work of; the group, your peers, yourself)

Themes and Issues

In the early stages of the creating process you will have several ideas that you could develop into a drama. If all of the ideas you had were to be included in presentation it would be very confusing for the audience. At this stage it is necessary to select an idea in order to focus the action of your drama. The focus is what you want the audience to think about and remember about your drama. The focus can also be described as an overall theme.

EXAMPLE:

A group was given a stimulus from which they created a drama. The stimulus was a photograph of a new-born baby. After brainstorming the group selected the idea of creating a drama based on the story of a baby being abandoned by its teenage mother. This was the focus.

After deciding on your chosen the focus, theme of your drama you must then decide on the issue(s) to be explored through the action. In the example given above there are several issues that could be explored:

Teenage pregnancy
Child abuse
Abandonment
Fear
Sexual health
Secrets

Again if you were to explore all of these issues your drama would be very confusing for the audience so you must focus the action so that the audience concentrates on the theme and issues you want to explore.

TARGET AUDIENCE

WHO is your drama performance for? Thinking about who your drama is aimed at will help you be specific and think carefully about the message you want to put across. Audiences could be: primary children, the elderly, families, teenagers – think about how appropriate the language is in your drama, the issue you are addressing and reasons why they would find it enjoyable/informative.

Setting

The setting of a drama refers to its time and place. The choice you make as to where and when to set your drama is very important, as it will have an impact on its believability. The location will limit the characters you choose to represent and how these characters interact with each other. If your drama is set in a public location the characters may interact quite differently than they would in a private location. For example, if two characters are arguing in the street they may do so in hushed voices where as if they are at home they would be more likely to raise their voices.

The time in which you choose to set your drama will also have an affect on your choice of characters and their interaction. If a drama is set in Victorian times the language used will be quite different to if it were set in a contemporary time. The social conventions of a time period will also dictate how characters interact with each other.

When you are creating an outline of your dramas plot there are two different elements to be explained for the reader to understand the location and time of your drama;

Big place (the geographical area)

a village in Italy.

LOCATION

Wee Place (specific location)

A church, a house, a school etc.

Big time (historical period)

World War II, Elizabethan times etc

TIME

Wee time (time of day, year).

Morning, summer

THE SET

Once you have decided on the setting of your drama you must then decide how you are going to create a set that will suggest the location. You must choose your set carefully to ensure that it is clear for the audience and the actors. When you are designing your set consider the following:

Space – an airport will require a lot more space than a prison cell.
Furniture – a field could be played on an empty stage where as a kitchen may require more furniture.
Arrangement – a church will need a different arrangement than a waiting room.
Split focus – using different areas of the stage for different locations is interesting for the audience and cuts down on lengthy scene changes.

Remember there are many different ways of staging a drama. Experiment with staging so that you utilise the space available to best suggest your location and create mood and atmosphere.

Staging

In Drama we can perform in various types of theatres, not just Proscenium Arch. As the National Theatre of Scotland has proved… we don’t need to be in a Theatre to see a play! Plays can happen anywhere we want, all we need is an audience and then theatre is created.

The main types of staging are as follows…

END ON THEATRE IN THE ROUND

AVENUE THRUST THEATRE

You also don’t need to stage a play in a theatre you can do it site specific too!

PROMENADE THEATRE

Performing a Character

Most characters represent real people with believable personalities. Use the following ideas to help you portray characters onstage.

The Given Circumstances

These are clues about a character’s personality and behaviour. You can find the given circumstances from:

What your character says or does
What other characters say.
How other characters react
Stage directions
Character notes the playwright has provided.

The Context of the scene

This helps build up a picture of how a character should be behaving on stage. Ask yourself:

What have I been doing?
What time is it?
What am I thinking and feeling?
Where is the scene set?
Has anything happened between my character and the others on stage?
Has anything happened which may effect my character’s mood?

Establishing Relationships

Work out what you want to show the audience about your character’s relationships with the others on stage.

What are they thinking and feeling?
Are they close or distant?
Are they happy with each other?
Are there underlying tensions?
Do they know each other?
Which character has more authority, status and power?
What are they talking about or doing and why?

REMEMBER:

You are playing a specific character, don’t just be yourself on stage!

THEMES & ISSUES

What theme has your group chosen to base a drama around?

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Why did your group choose this theme?

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What issues will all be explored in your drama?

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What audience do you think this Drama will appeal to and why?

SETTING

SCENE NUMBER? / WHERE? (Big place and wee place) / WHEN? (Big time and wee time)

SET

How are you going to stage your drama?

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What effect will this type of staging have?

Draw a ground plan of your opening scene below:

PLOT

Describe the plot of your Drama as if telling to a stranger who had never seen before.

What is the structure of you drama?

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What is the drama form you have selected?

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What drama conventions are you using?

How are you creating tension in your drama? When does it happen?

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CHARACTER

Give a full character description of the character you are playing (full name, age, personality, occupation, appearance, background)

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What is your characters relationship with the other characters in the drama?

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How will you use your voice to portray this character (three examples)?

How will you use your movement to portray this character (three examples)?

Choose another character in the Drama. How do they feel about your character and why?

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How does your character feel at the beginning of the drama and why?

How does your character feel at the end of the drama and why?

How will you show this change?

THEATRE ARTS

List the nine areas of a Theatre Production Team

How will you use costume to portray your character? (Complete the costume card on the back page)

Name two other theatre arts your group has chosen.

What effect do you want these to have and why?