Drama

What is the purpose of Drama?

‘All students make progress through the opportunity to perform in front of an audience displaying confidence and resilience. The ability for students to access a culture of live performance through extra-curricular activities.’

Why do students need to be taught Drama? 

Pupils gain a large amount of confidence when studying Drama and also build up their resilience in the process. In Drama, students have the opportunity to act or direct scripted and devised (their own creations) plays. They act upon their instincts and use stimulus for inspiration when creating their own plays.

Drama sets students up for success by building their confidence for public speaking and also teaches them to be empathetic too. This is not only for practical but for theory too. Students analyse, compare and evaluate a range of texts, genres and performances. This is more prominent at GCSE level.  To aid their public speaking and evaluation skills students use Oracy to widen their vocabulary and cut out fillers when speaking.

What is magical about Drama?

  • Students can use and exaggerate their imagination through performance.
  • Drama is magical as it is not real, students put themselves in a different scenario than their own for at least one hour.
  • Students have the opportunity to broaden their cultural experiences through theatre trips and workshops by external providers.
  • Extra-Curricular shows performed in the academy allow all students to be involved in an aspect of performance, whether that be acting, design or backstage crew. During this time students have an insight into a theatre company and also make a new wide circle of friends in the process.
  • Drama is fun and often very practical, it also features a large amount of group work.

What does a Drama student look like?

  • Enthusiastic, determined, confident and resilient.
  • Use of imagination and first thoughts.
  • Not afraid of what others think of them.
  • Rehearse effectively devised and scripted performance.
  • Ability to direct actors and influence choices for the performance.
  • Apply Drama skills and techniques appropriately to a performance.
  • Analyse and evaluate a performance text either written or verbally through oracy.
  • Analyse and evaluate a live performance, professional or performed by peers, again written or verbally through oracy.
  • The ability to perform a range of genres and study a variety of practitioners.
  • Baseline
  • pantomime
  • Macbeth’s witches
  • devising/ bullying
  • Aberfan Disaster and Documentary
  • Soap Opera Devising
  • Teechers
  • Road & Devising
  • Greek Theatre
  • Crime Devising/ Theatre in Education
  • Playwright focus
  • Documentary Theatre devising (focus on Extremism)
  • Blood Brothers
  • The GCSE set text is Willy Russell’s, Blood Brothers. The students will explore the text practically and theoretically.
  • Scripted – students will perform 2 chosen scripted extracts for the visiting examiner in Year 11.
  • Devising – students will create their own piece of theatre from a given stimulus, this will be supported by a portfolio.
  • Students will visit theatres, both amateur and professional, throughout KS4. They will learn how to analyse and evaluate the live performance.

All Students will have the opportunity to visit theatres, both amateur and professional. They will learn how to analyse and evaluate the live performance.