Back to Drama
Year 11
Key Stage 4 Drama Vocabulary list
Explorative Strategies
Freeze frame: The where and when of a drama. Like a photograph taken at a certain time and place. it needs to look visually interesting and should use different heights and levels to make it more three dimensional, adding more depth.
Thought tracking: The process of freezing the action and finding out the characters thoughts and feelings by speaking these out loud. The performer should always try and put emotion, tone and accent into the voice being used. It normally lasts a few sentences long.
Narration: The drama unfolds on stage and one or more persons tells the story to the audience, this could be told by a character featured in the drama or by an outsider to the main action.
Hot seating: Getting into character by sitting in a chair then answering questions as that character. These are put forward by members of an audience. It helps as a rehearsal process to help you create a realistic roles, to find out more about the character.
Role on the wall: A drawing made of a character with writing about that person around both the inside and outside, clearly labelled. It helps the performer get inside the mind of their role. Gives an insight into their person, a character profile.
Monologue: A long speech by one character spoken directly to the audience. It should reveal that characters thoughts and feelings and is normally spoken in the present tense. It should include dramatic pauses, contrasts in volume, lots of body languages and gestures. it could be spoken sat down or with that character moving around the space with eye contact to the audience.
Cross cutting: A reordering of a scene or scenes by cutting forwards and backwards to different moments in time.
Flashback: Cutting to a scene back in the past. The performers can freeze the action on stage to emphasise they are going back into the past or spin round in a circle, or walk backwards to show the passing of time. Flashbacks often use a voiceover to explain what is happening and the scene can be mimed.
Sound collage: A series of sounds that are layered together to create a dramatic effect. They create an atmosphere and set the scene. Musical instruments can be used or peoples voices, hands and feet or any other props available.
Some important drama elements and mediums
Gesture: Those aspect of communication which rely on physical movement. This may mean a particular hand signal, facial expression, shape and movement made by the whole body to communicate meaning.
Mime: Creating a play without words, your body language and gestures should reveal what you are doing, how you are feeling.
Proxemics: A character from the drama stands or sits in the centre of the room. Other students take up positions of distance or closeness to them. The distance represents the relationship between them and how they feel towards one another.
Tension: Building/releasing of tension (or dramatic highlights) in a performance. Tension makes the drama more interesting to watch. Highlights are also called Climaxes or Anti-climaxes. Dramatic silences are one very effective way of building up the tension. Tension is something that the audience can feel.
Pace/rhythm/tempo: The rate at which the action moves along and the extent to which this changes, such as fast to slow to fast. The drama will be more interesting to watch changes of pace which can also build up the tension. Pace can refer to the speed changes in movement or with the delivery of lines spoken.
Dramatic Contrasts: Silence verses noise or stillness verses activity. Contrasts add more interest and variety to a performace and are closely associated with pace and tension.
Characterisation: The physical and vocal changes used to become someone else such as using a different accent or facial expression, posture and body language alteration.
Physical Theatre: Creating objects through the use of an actors body shaped in different ways. A very surreal and abstract technique.
Duologue: A scene consistion of only two people talking on stage.
Diction: The use of clear speech.
Other useful drama words
Proscenium Arch Staging: The audience sits in front of the stage, usually in straight rows. The audience views the stage as if looking through a picture frame. It is as if a forth wall has been taken away and the audience look through this.
Protagonist: The main character.
Antagonist: The bad character, usually in opposition to the protagonist.
Prologue: A speech that starts the play. this sets the scene, introduces the central characters and location. For example: the opening of Romeo and Juliet.
Epilogue: A speech addressed to the audience about what happens after the play has ended. It can also sun up any loose ends at the closing moments of this play.
Chorus: A person or group of people with a narative function. Originated from Greek Theatre. These members of the chorus could give/offer advice to the main protagonist.
Backdrop: This is hung upstage to supply a scenic background.
Improvisation: Making something up by using whatever is immediately to hand; your own ideas.
T.I.E (Theatre In Education): A piece of theatre used for learning derected at a specific target audience. It should be both educational and entertaining. If aimed at teenagers this might focus on the issues of drugs, bullying, self-harm etc.
GCSE Mark Bands Practical
Objective 1 - 'Demonstrate ability in and knowledge and understanding of the practical skills in drama necessary for the realisation of a presentation to an audience, working constructively with others'
Excellent
Band 1
25-30 - Demonstrates and excellent command of the appropriate movement and/or vocal skills and have a clear and through understanding of the creation of mood and atmosphere. They will exhibit complete command of pace, pitch, pause, projection, intonation, inflexion and rhythm. This will be matched by complete command of use of body, facial expression,gesture and space. They will create a role with sensitivity, originality and flair. The response to the text, theme or stimulus will demonstrate a high degree of creativity. Through awareness of audience and strong commitment to the group will be evident.
Good
Band 2
19-24 - Have a good control of physican and/or vocal skills and will be sensitive to the creation of mood and atmosphere. They will exhibit a secure comand of pace, pitch, pause, projection, intonation, inflexion, and rhythm. This will be matched by secure command of the use of body, facial expression, gesture and space. They wil create a role which is most appropriate to the needs of the piece and respond to the text, theme or stimulus with creativity. They will be very aware of audience and respond positively to others in a group.
Satisfactory
Band 3
13-18 - Be able to use movement and/or vocal skills appropriate to the needs of the piece. There will be reasonable command of pace, pitch, pause, projection, intonation, inflexion and rhythm. This will be matched by their use of body, facial expression, gesture and space. They will be able to create a role fitted to the needs of the piece. The response to the text, theme or stimulus will show some creativity. There will be an awareness of audience and they will work well in the group and respond to the leadership of others.
Weak/Poor
Band 4
7-12 - Demonstrate, occasionally, the ability to use appropriate movement and/or vocal skills relevant to the piece. Pace, pitch, pause, projection, intonation, inflexion and rhythm will occasionally be used effectively, as will body, facial expression, gesture and space. Sometimes the role will be adequately performed but this will not be sustained. The response to the text, theme or stimulus will be unimaginative and rather pedestrian. They will show some awareness of audience and will provide some support to the group.
Very Weak/Poor
Band 5
0-6 - Have a limited command of appropriate movement and/or vocal skills. Their use of pace, pitch, pause, projection, intonation, inflexion and rhythm will lack effectiveness, as will their use of body, facial expression, gesture and space. A simple role will be created and the response to the text, theme or stimulus will be at a superficial level. There will be a fleeting awareness of audience and little obvious support to the group.
Docudrama
The Docudrama is a fact based representation of real events. It may deal with older historical events or represent contemporary social issues.
Features of Docudrama
*Use of interviews
*Use of photographs
*Use of official reports e.g.: police
*Newspaper television/reports
*Tape recordings of sounds
How a Docudrama is created
A writer edits all information to create a dramatic response to a subject/event.
The dialogue is primarily Naturalistic although often it is put together in a non Naturalistic way to create dramatic effect. For example, a ch***** effect may be used in which a number of characters speak either the same or different lines at the same time.
An intimate atmosphere is often encouraged with an actor adopting an understated rather than highly dramatic response to a range of emotions in the style of an interview.
Movement often switches between Naturalistic and Stylised. Stylised movement helps to give dramatic impact and is often used to recount past events and underline the main theme or pivot of the Drama. Naturalistic movement helps to establish character and is used to create empathy for a characters situation.
Although there is often a “message” contained in the Drama, characters tend to be created in a way which encourages the audience to empathise with them and understand why they took a particular course of action. There are never completely good or completely bad characters in a Docudrama.
Docudrama is mostly character driven. Strong characters need to be created by the actor/director in order to drive the action. The audience’s relationship with the characters is central to the play’s success or failure.
Action is not always portrayed as a linear chain of events.
An early example of Docudrama is,"Cathy Come Home” 1966 by Jeremy Sandford. This play tackled issues around homelessness.
In a Docudrama characters always have the real names of the real people they represent.
Other examples of Docudrama include:
The Exonerated by Jessica Blank & Erik Jensen
Based on interviews with people released from death row for wrongful convictions.
Aftermath by Jessica Blank & Erik Jensen
Based on interviews with Iraqi refugees living in Jordan.