Module Information

Students will work on the realisation of a Shakespearean text for performance as a member of the performance, production or scenographic team. The performances will be aimed at primary or secondary school children. The poroduction will be directed by an experienced staff director.

As with other modules at this level, students will be required to engage critically with the rehearsal and production processes through a developing and sensitive understanding and analysis of appropriate performance vocabularies, techniques, crafts, structures and working methods.

Students will also devise and construct educational workshops based on the text for the targeted audience.

Entry for this module is by formal interview and/or audition.

Students will be allocated as actors, designers, assistant directors or members of the production team (or any combination of the above) and work intensively on interpreting a Shakespearean play which is specifically targeted for performance to primary or secondary schoolchildren.

During the rehearsal and production process, students will be expected to identify the performance and production possibilities implied by the text, and, as appropriate, realise these sources through directing, stage-management, performance and design. They will also be required to research and discuss different interpretations of the text by identifying production and performance choices made in previous productions.

As well as scheduling and leading the rehearsal and production processes, the director will be required to allocate appropriate workshop/rehearsal time for students to plan and organise their own rehearsals. Students will therefore be expected to create, lead and partticipate in peer-led rehearsals and form their own strategies for investigating, experimenting and working on the text within the guidelines set. Students will consequentky have increased responsibility to manage their personal workloads, meet deadlines and negotiate and pursue goals with others.

Students will also work in small groups devising and formulating educational workshops based on aspects of the Shakespearean play chosen.

This project will be performed at Aberystwyth Arts Centre, in one of the Departmental performance venues or an appropriate site-specific location. As well as performances for local schools there will be public performances which will give an opportunity for parents, friends and members of the publuc to view the practical work of the Department.

During the rehearsal and production processes, students are advised to keep a working notebook documenting significant developments and challenges they have encountered. The notebook is not formally assessed.

At the end of the project, each student will be given a ten minute oral examination. In this he/she will be expected to analyse and appraise his/her experiences of the module from a range of critucal perspectives.

In accordance with the generic modes of assessment at level 3, this reflective analysis:

will be presented by means of a sustained and consistent argument, incorporating discussion of the individual's experience of specific performance environments, and demonstrating a critical awareness of the chosen/assigned roles within a production, setting this knowledgeably within historical trends and relevant theoretical discussions.

During the oral examination students may refer to their working notebooks if they wish.


Criteria for Assessment

1. The rehearsal process: development and progress throughout the period of preparation and rehearsal: 20%

When assessing the above, the examiners will refer to the following criteria (where appropriate) and expect to see evidence of:

. Imaginative and practical responsiveness to directorial concepts, working methods and frameworks for investigation.
. Reading, investigating and engaging with the performance possibilities implied by the text.
. Application and development of acting, directing, scenographic and/or stage management skills.
. Willingness and ability to take initiative, to experiement with new techniques and approaches and work safely and responsibly as part of a team towards the collective realisation of the project.

2. The active manifestation and development of rehearsal work in public performance: 40%

When assessing the above, the examiners will refer to the following criteria (where appropriate) and expect to see evidence of:

. Ability to apply and sustain an active and consistent understanding of the role/s within the guidelines of the project, given circumstances of the text and production schedule.
. Ability to integrate and apply the creative discoveries made during the rehearsal period to live performance.
. A developing awareness of the audience or client group for performance and ability to respond and adapt to it through flexible means.
. Ability to give, receive and apply constructive criticism and feedback.
. Effective handling of stage space, set, costumes, props and technical equipment.
. The ability to work creatively, efficiently and effectively within the production and performance schedules and the context of the role/s allocated.
. Ability to manage personal workloads efficiently and effectively.

3. Contribution to planning, devising and execution of the workshops: 20%

When assessing the above the examiners will refer to the following criteria and expect to see evidence of appropriate:

. Aims, methods, content and pedagogy for the target audience selected.
. Knowledge of the chosen text.
. Interpersonal and team skills required to devise, conduct and deliver the educational workshops within the guidelines set.

4. Individual Oral Examination: 30%

When assessing the above, the examiners will refer to the following criteria and expect to see evidence of:

. An objective self assessment of the allocation undertaken.
. A coherent and critical analysis of the rehearsal methodology and performance process experienced.
. The ability to identify and analyse the complex interrelatedness of theory and practice from a range of critical perspectives.
. Evidence of appropriate reading and research relevant to the project.



Further Details

Entry to the module: All third year Drama and Theatre Studies students are entitled to attend the interview and/or audition processes for entry to the module.

Normally the project requires students to fulfil the following roles:
14 - 18 Cast
Assistant Directors
Stage-Manager, Deputy Stage Manager and Assistant Stage Manager,
Senographers/Theatre Designers for Set, Costume, Lighting and Sound Design,
Publicity and Marketing Officer
Schools' Liaison Officer

Interviews will be held for all students wishes to be members of the directing, stage-management, scenography or marketing teams. Students wishing to interview for any of these positions should make a short presentation (maximum 8 minutes) which should address the following points:

• Relevant previous experience.
• Interest in the project.
• Initial responses to the text.
• Initial ideas and thoughts for early rehearsals and/or realisation of the text in performance.

The presentations will be followed by a short question and answer session.

Auditions will be held for those students wishing to be cast in the production. Students wishing to audition will be required to attend a workshop session on the play and may be asked to prepare two contrasting speeches from the text. Selection will be based upon the following criteria:

• Sense and understanding of the language and given-circumstances of the text.
• Body and voice integration.
• Flexibility and co-ordination.
• Vocal quality, capacity and ease.
• Thought-to-thought impulse.
• Avoidance of cliche, generalisation and emotional overlay.
• Ability to experiment, to be spontaneous, improvise and invent.

Rehearsal Schedule: It is the responsibility of the director of each project to circulate the schedule of work for the rehearsal and performance processes.

Rehearsals and workshops will normally be arranged within the following times:
Tuesday 9.00a.m. - 6.00p.m.
Wednesday 9.00a.m. - 10.00p.m.
Thursday 9.00a.m. - 6.00p.m.
Friday 9.00a.m. - 10.00p.m.
Saturday 9.00a.m. - 6.00p.m.

Normally, the only exceptions to this schedule are made during Production week when it may be necessary to make additional calls outside these working hours to complete the technical and production schedule for each project.

All students should notify their director and Deputy Stage Manager of any lectures, seminars, workshops or meetings timetabled for any other modules being taken during the rehearsal and production processes for the project. Students should ensure that they attend these classes and should not be pressurised by any individual to miss them. The only exception to this is during production week when we respectfully request that students ask permission from the relevant teaching staff to be excused for Departmental technical and dress rehearsals. It is the students' responsibility to ensure that they manage their time effectively and meet the deadlunes set for their chosen modules during the rehearsal processes.

Good Practice

Involvement in Departmental practical work requires each student to learn and to apply consistently appropriate professional standards of personal conduct and self-discipline, and to work as part of a creative team. As with all modules in TFTS, regular attendance and punctuality is important. The student who is frequently late or missing fails to make the most of his/her opportunity and wastes a place which might more profitably have been allocated to another student. He/she also sustantially undermines the work of fellow students by demondtrating a lack of commitment, thereby disrupting the creative eneregy of the group, and becoming the kind of person with whom, eventually, no-one else wishes to work. Students are requested not to be late or miss rehearsals, workshops or meetings without good cause. Students whose punctuality and attendance give cause for concern will be referred to Student Support and may be asked to withdraw from the allocation.