Drama and Theatre Studies
Course Description
A1
In your first year studying A-Level Drama and Theatre, we will be looking into our set texts and doing all of the preparation necessary for not only the written exam at the end of your 2nd year but also bringing every member of the class to the same level with their knowledge and understanding of Drama and Theatre. The Drama course is a fantastic umbrella subject which can be studied alongside any other subject that is on offer at ASFC. The written exam is made up of 3 sections. In Section A you will answer a question on Live Theatre which is asking you to analyse and evaluate the production which you have seen. This means that we get to visit our local Theatre’s in and around Manchester. The theatre Trips that we go on have involved attending the following Theatre; The Lowry, The Royal Exchange and Home to name a few. This is a wonderfully exciting opportunity for us all to watch professional production that we use for inspiration. Section B requires the study of our first set text ‘Machinal’ with Expressionism. As part of this we look closely at the expressionist movement not only in theatre but also in film and art. You will answer 2 questions in the written exam for this text one from the perspective of a performer and the other as a designer. This lends itself perfectly to be able to practically explore both the performance elements and the design elements to discover how theatre is created. It is integral that we study the theory in the classroom before entering the theatre to apply our knowledge and understanding to the practical aspects of performance and design. This perfectly prepares you for our 2nd set text ‘Lysistrata’ which is Section C of the Written Exam. Lysistrata is an Ancient Greek Comedy which is full of amazing and interesting moments that speak to our modern day and is also choker-block full of hilarious innuendos and double entendre. We look at ‘Lysistrata’ through the lens of a Director which give you the opportunity to explore and develop your directorial skill’s while also utilising the Methodologies of Bertolt Brecht, a German Theatre Practitioner, who is responsible for the development of Epic Theatre which is Political in nature. This then allows you to create and develop your own Production concept to explore putting the play ‘Lysistrata’ on as a full scale production for a contemporary audience.
A2
The A1 year is designed to ensure preparation for the A2 year which is where we have a more performance based focus. During the A2 year students will undertake 3 performance exams and their coursework element totalling 60% of the course. We begin the year with our initial exploration of Artaud and The Theatre of Cruelty, we delve deep into the methodologies, techniques and theories that make up this performance style as well as undertaking research on the Man himself. These are then connected to our Devising Skills as students will be expected to create their own 20-30 minute performance using the Theatre of Cruelty as an influential framework; this is done in conjunction with studying another play that we will use as a stimulus to inspire the student’s own performance. The Devising process is one of creative freedom where the students endeavour to provide research to support their own ideas that can be developed into the aims and intentions of their practical piece of theatre, in which they are in charge of all aspects including design and they will hold and leader production meetings with their teacher and our dedicated technicians who have years of experience of designing and performing in a range of theatrical pieces. The performances will take place before the Christmas break as the student’s will be building their Portfolio (the coursework element) alongside and keeping an actor’s journal which will allow them to theoretically convey the meaning behind their performance. After Christmas in the spring term we have the other 2 exam performances to prepare and perform. They are both scripted pieces that we will perform in our Theatre, one is a Monologue or Duologue and the other is a Group Performance. The script choice change every year so that we can find the best text to suit the student’s strengths as they will be performing in front of a Visiting Examiner. During the Spring Term we will have support sessions for the completion of the student’s portfolio as well as support sessions for the written exam which will continue into the Easter Break. Once we return from the Easter Break we regain a full focus on the Written Exam (40% of the course). The Drama lessons will continue after student’s are on Exam leave and these become troubleshooting/Exam Techniques session that become bespoke once student’s express an area of concern they have.
