60 Credit Performing Arts Class Notes (September 2018

60 Credit Performing Arts Class Notes (September 2018 - July 2019)

10/09/18 Unit 11: Theatre for Children

Lesson Objectives

Introduction to Unit 11: Theatre for Children.
To understand the features of a Children's theatre.

Introduction

Theatre for Children can inspire a child's first interest in the performing arts.
Drama, Dance, Singing and Music skills will be developed.
This Unit focuses on the Selection, Adaptation, and Shaping of material to make it suitable for an audience of children.
It is specifically aimed at a younger audience.

Learning Aims

On completion of this unit you should:
Know how to research, select and refine suitable material for a Children's theatre.
Be able to devise and shape material for a Children's theatre.
Be able to perform in a Children's theatre.

What is theatre for Children?

Usually works based around Children under the age of 12 years.
Done by professional actors for a Children based audience.

Children as an audience

Enjoy being active participants rather than passive spectators.
They generate a sense of electricity in the theatre.
They can become overexcited and willingly enter into the spirit of entertainment.
They can be uncompromisingly direct and will let you know when they are bored.
They respond to direct audience participation.
Not all children respond in the same way.
The composition of an audience for a Children play is variable.

Common characteristics of a Children's audience

They respond eagerly to justice.
Like being frightened (within limits).
They're logical.
They will respond differently and unpredictably.
Children make noise during a performance.
Children respond to an action.
They don't like being patronized.
They don't like lovey-dovey stuff.
They love animals and toys.
They love stories.

Potential groups

Play Groups
Nursery Groups
Primary Schools
Youth Clubs
SEN Groups
Summer Schools
Parents and Young Children

Purposes of Children's theatre

To Entertain.
To Inform.
To Educate.

Type of Material

Consider the Age Group, Timescale, Venue, and Needs of the audience.

Materials could include:
Classics, Myths, Legends, Fiction, Non-Fiction, Adaptations of Children's Stories, History, Fables.

Notes from videos:

Over exaggerated
Bright colours (Very Visual)
Lots of singing
Humour for Children and adults alike.

14/09/18 Unit 19: Principals of acting

Acting is a mixture of techniques and art. Actors need to connect mastery of their technique with an imaginative and creative approach to their work. Understanding the essential principals of acting is the springboard from which successful performances are launched.

In this unit you will study the key principals of acting. These will be explored mainly through practical workshops, tutor-led rehearsal and performances to a live audience.

Learning outcomes

On completion of this unit you should:

Understand how to interpret and realise text.
Be able to use acting and rehearsal techniques to develop a performance.
Be able to perform as an actor.

You will be assessed on for this unit through two performances!

1. A short group performance.
2. Peter pan pantomime.

You will also be submitting a book for both performances for assessment.

Practitioners:

Stanislavski
Brecht
Berkoff
Artaud
Growtowski
Brook
Fo
Pinter
Craig

Styles

Naturalism and realism.
Expressionism.
Epic.
Physical theater.
Greek, choral and ensemble.
Melodrama.
Grotesque.
Farce.
Theatre of cruelty.
Theatre of the absurd.

Skills and techniques

Movement
Voice
Gesture
Emotional range and investment
Interaction and responsiveness
Use of space
Use of time
Use of weight
Dynamics
Inner and outer characteristics
Physicalisation

17/09/18 Unit 17: Developing Voice for the Actor

Speech Production Process

The 4 processes in Speech Production are:

Respiration: A process in living organisms involving the production of energy, typically with the intake of oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide from the oxidation of complex organic substances.
Phonation: The production or utterance of speech sounds.
Resonance: The quality in a sound of being deep, full, and reverberating.
Articulation: The formation of clear and distinct sounds in speech.

The sound of the human voice tells your listeners an enormous amount about your personality, emotions, confidence and feelings about yourselves, as well as what you are really thinking. Your voice also divulges a great deal about your educational background, social status, health and mental alertness.

Respiration: Power Mechanism

Provides the energy for sound.
Breathing is an aerodynamic process.

2 Phases of Breathing

Inhalation
Exhalation

Breathing for Speech vs Breathing for Life

Breathing for speech uses the same muscles but is more controlled. Whereas Breathing for Life uses both Inhalation and Exhalation phases at the same time. The Exhalation Phase is longer than The Inhalation Phase for Speech.

Phonation: Vibrating Mechanism

Phonation is the rapid opening and closing of the vocal folds for sound. The vocal folds lie horizontally in the larynx. They attach anteriorly to the Thyroid cartilage and posterior to the arytenoid cartilages; They are free in the middle. The opening in the middle of the vocal folds is the Glottis. Adduction of the Arytenoids closes the vocal folds to vibrate. The middle of the vocal folds Vibrate to the mid-line. Vibration of the Vocal Folds Produces voicing.

Position of the Vocal Folds

Open: Abducted
Closed Adducted

Loudness

It is the Intensity of Sound.

Quality

The sound Quality of the voice.

Resonance

The Characteristic Quality of the voice.
The Pharynx is the Primary Resonator.

Articulation

Serves to produce the different configurations which make up the different speech sounds.
Speech is a Dynamic rather than a Static Phenomenon.

Other Factors Influencing Voice

Body Posture
Relaxation of the Muscles of the body and Larynx.

24/09/18 Unit 17: Developing voice for the Actor

Anatomy of the Voice

The Respiratory System

The human respiratory system is a series of organs responsible for taking in oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide. The primary organs of the respiratory system are lungs, which carry out this exchange of gases as we breathe.

Bones and Muscles of Respiration

The ribs are connected by the Intercostal Muscles. The external Intercostal muscles cover the inside of the rib cage. They aid in the Expansion of the ribs during Inhalation and help to expel the air by pulling the ribs together.

The Larynx (Voice Box)

The Larynx is located at the point where the Respiratory and Digestive tracts separate. Internally, the wall of the Larynx is modified to form the Vocal Chords. The Larynx hangs in the mid-line of the Neck and is partly covered by the Thyroid Gland.

The Pharynx (Resonator)

The Pharynx is the part of the Throat that is behind the mouth and nasal cavity and above the Esophagus and the Larynx, or the tubes going down to the stomach and the lungs. The Pharynx is the Main Resonating chamber for the voice. the firm throat generally refits to the pharynx.

Speech organs (Articulation)

Speech Organs, or Articulation, produce the Sounds of Language, Organs used for Speech include the Lips, Teeth, Alveolar Ridge, Hard Palate, Velum (Soft Palate), Uvula, Glottis and various parts of the Tongue. They can be divided into two types: Passive Articulation and Active Articulations.

17/01/19 University Visit: The Royal Central School Of Speech And Drama

In the lesson that we had today, we were visited by The Royal Central School Of Speech And Drama. In this lesson we were taught the necessary techniques needed to enter any Drama schools. We did Various exercises in this lesson, The first one of which was a game called "Space Jumping" (Improvisation) where each time a person got up on the stage they had to create a new scene with the partner that they were with and in the end make it enticing and a piece that would draw the audience in, to join the piece though you had to of said the word freeze and take the position of the previous person.

The next task we did was to create monologues and read it out to the class so that they can tell you what they thought your personal style of monologue is and how you could improve on that. The last task was called "ACE" or (Action, Colour, Environment) and it was were we would read out monologues given to us and people from the audience would be chosen to shout out one of the three words to us and we would have change according to the given word. This was used to help us improve a piece and help us to draw the audience a bit more.