Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum Content Area: Performing Arts Unit Title: Unit 1: Theatre vs. Theater: Team Bonding & Improvisation Target Course/Grade Level: Drama Grades 9-12 Approximate Length of Unit: 6-8 weeks / ongoing Primary interdisciplinary connections: Chorus, Physical Education, Technology, & English Unit Overview In order for students to feel comfortable performing in front of the class; develop access to their emotions; free their body and their voice for a variety of character interpretations; and feel confident taking risks during the creative process, they must develop a bond and trust with their classmates and feel confident in their abilities. The students will develop communication skills through personal exploration and social interaction. The student will develop an awareness of and better understanding of his/her own impulses and instinctual behavior through improvisational games. Students will be able to independently articulate and demonstrate the many facets of the theatre and theater including the following: aesthetics, elements of, terminology, safety procedures, parts of a theater, theatrical jobs/roles, and actor-audience relationships. 1 2018 Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum New Jersey Student Learning Standards: Visual and Performing Arts (NJCCCS) Standards: 1.1 The Creative Process: All students will demonstrate an understanding of the elements and principles that govern the creation of works of art in theatre. 1.3 Performance: All students will synthesize those skills, media, methods, and technologies appropriate to creating, performing, and/or presenting works of art in theatre. Content Strand: 1.1C The Creative Process: Theatre 1.3C Performance: Theatre CPI# 1.1.8.C.2 Determine the effectiveness of various methods of vocal, physical, relaxation, and acting techniques used in actor training. 1.1.8.C.4 Define the areas of responsibility (e.g., actor, director, producer, scenic, lighting, costume, stagehand, etc.) and necessary job skills of the front and back-of-house members of a theatre company. 1.3.5.C.2 Demonstrate how active listening skills, vocal variety, physical expression, stage business, sensory recall, concentration, and focus affect meaning in scripted and improvised performances. 1.3.8.C.1 Create a method for defining and articulating character objectives, intentions, and subtext, and apply the method to the portrayal of characters in live performances or recorded venues. 1.3.8.C.2 Create and apply a process for developing believable, multidimensional characters in scripted and improvised performances by combining methods of relaxation, physical and vocal skills, acting techniques, and active listening skills. 1.3.12.C.2 Create and evaluate performances by citing evidence of specific physical choices, sustained vocal technique, and clearly motivated actions 2 2018 Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum Enduring Understandings Students will understand that… • Concentrating on a task on stage leads to confidence • Drama inspires creativity and risk –taking. • Improvisation is a key factor to any performance • Scenes must have a beginning, middle and an end. • Scenes must have a conflict. • Scenes must develop complications that build toward a climax/closure. • The actor-audience relationship is vital in creating theatre. • A theater is full of equipment that must be respected at all times and used properly to ensure safety. • Theatre artists use precise vocabulary when working in their craft. Essential Questions • How can I overcome stage fright? • How do I develop confidence to perform in front of people who may be more talented than I am? • How can I connect to an audience? • How can I develop my imagination so that I can create different characters? • How can I develop the ability to take risks when I perform? • How can I learn to work with my scene partners? • How can I create a scene with no preparation? • How can I stay safe while working in a theater? • How can I communicate effectively with other theatre artists? • How is theatre an art form? 3 2018 Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum Cumulative Progress Indicators (CPI’s) Content Standards and Key Knowledge (What students should know and be able to do…) 1.1.2.C.1 The elements of theatre are recognizable in theatrical performances Identify basic elements of theatre and describe their use in a variety of theatrical performances. 1.1.2.C.2 Theatre artists use precise vocabulary when staging a play. Express stage directions, areas of the stage, basic stage movements, and parts of a script using correct theatre terms (e.g., setting, costumes, plot, theme, etc.). 1.1.2.C.3 Creative drama and storytelling use voice, movement, and facial expression to communicate emotions. Creating characters is an act of intention in which actors play themselves in an imaginary set of circumstances Distinguish between characters, actors, and the self by demonstrating respect for personal space, creative movement, and pantomime skills while interacting with others in creative drama and storytelling. 1.1.8. C.2: Actors exercise their voices and bodies through a wide variety of techniques to expand the range and the clarity of the characters they develop. Determine the effectiveness of various methods of vocal, physical, relaxation, and acting techniques used in actor training 1.1.8.C.3 Emotion and meaning are often communicated through modulations of pitch, rate, and volume. Differentiate among vocal rate, pitch, and volume and explain how they affect articulation, meaning, and character. 1.1.8. C.4 A team of artists, technicians, and manager who collaborate to achieve a common goal uses a broad range of skills to create theatrical performances. Define the areas of responsibility (e.g. actor, director, producer, scenic, lighting, costume, stagehand, etc.) and necessary job skills of the front and back-of-house members of a theatre company. 1.1.2.C.1 The elements of theatre are recognizable in theatrical performances 4 2018 Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum Identify basic elements of theatre and describe their use in a variety of theatrical performances. 1.1.2.C.2 Theatre artists use precise vocabulary when staging a play. Express stage directions, areas of the stage, basic stage movements, and parts of a script using correct theatre terms (e.g., setting, costumes, plot, theme, etc.). 1.1.2.C.3 Creative drama and storytelling use voice, movement, and facial expression to communicate emotions. Creating characters is an act of intention in which actors play themselves in an imaginary set of circumstances. Distinguish between characters, actors, and the self by demonstrating respect for personal space, creative movement, and pantomime skills while interacting with others in creative drama and storytelling. 1.1.2.C.4 The technical theatrical elements and theatre architecture are inherent in theatrical design and production. Describe the use of the technical theatrical elements by examining examples of theatrical design in productions. Apply basic terms of theatre 1.1.5.C.1 The well-made play uses a specific, identifiable narrative structure (e.g., inciting incident, climax, dénouement, etc.). Evaluate the characteristics of a well-made play in a variety of scripts and performances. Apply warm-up techniques 1.1.5.C.2 The actor’s physicality and vocal 1.1.5.C.2 Interpret the relationship between the actor’s techniques have a direct relationship to character development. Interpret the relationship between the actor’s physical and vocal choices and an audience’s perception of character development by identifying examples of vocal variety, stage business, concentration, and focus. Create emotional and sensory recall 1.1.5.C.3 Time, place, mood, and theme are enhanced through use of the technical theatrical elements. Analyze the use of technical theatrical elements to identify how time, place, mood, and theme are created Apply stage movement 1.1.5.C.4 Sensory recall is a technique actors commonly employ to heighten the believability of a character. 5 2018 Roselle Public Schools High School Drama Curriculum Explain the function of sensory recall and apply it to character development. Express, understand and analyze thoughts, feelings, and actions of a character 1.1.8.C.1 Distinct pieces of dramatic literature and theatrical trends reflect cultural traditions and periods in history. Analyze the structural components of plays and performances from a variety of Western and non-Western theatrical traditions and from different historical eras. Describe, express and analyze roles of theatre in American society 1.1.8.C.2 Actors exercise their voices and bodies through a wide variety of techniques to expand the range and the clarity of the characters they develop. Determine the effectiveness of various methods of vocal, physical, relaxation, and acting techniques used in actor training. Define terminology and process of evaluation 1.1.8.C.3 Emotion and meaning are often communicated through modulations of vocal rate, pitch, and volume. Differentiate among vocal rate, pitch, and volume, and explain how they affect articulation, meaning, and character. Apply the process to performances using appropriate theatre vocabulary 1.1.8.C.4 team of artists, technicians, and managers who collaborate to achieve a common goal uses a broad range of skills to create theatrical performances. Define the areas of responsibility (e.g., actor, director, producer, scenic, lighting, costume, stagehand, etc.) and necessary job skills of the front and back-of-house members of a theatre company. Identify and analyze the lives and works of representative theatre artists 1.1.12.C.1 Theatre and the arts play a significant role in human history and culture. Analyze examples of theatre’s influence on history and history’s influence on theatre in Western and non-Western theatre traditions. Compare and Contrast the lives and works of representative theatre artists 1.1.12.C.2 Characters have physical, emotional, and social dimensions that can be communicated through the application of acting techniques.