Developing a program

The VCE Theatre Studies Study Design outlines the nature and sequence of teaching and learning necessary for students to demonstrate achievement of the set of outcomes for a unit. The areas of study broadly describe the learning context and the knowledge required for the demonstration of each outcome. Outcomes are introduced by summary statements and are followed by the key knowledge and key skills which relate to the outcomes.

Teachers must develop programs that include appropriate learning activities to enable students to develop the key knowledge and key skills identified in the outcome statements in each unit.

In preparing programs the practical and theoretical components of each unit should be integrated wherever possible. Each unit is structured so that students can work in a production team, using resources available through their school and community to research theatrical styles and conventions, contextualise and visualise theatrical possibilities and apply production roles as they interpret scripts. For the purposes of the study, students are considered as theatre practitioners and are encouraged to develop an awareness of different roles in the production team and consider how these can be undertaken within a school context.

Units 1 and 2 are organised so that the program can be delivered as a series of workshops that simultaneously address Outcomes 1 and 2. These workshops should be structured around the key knowledge for both outcomes and allow students to practise and demonstrate the key skills. The stages of the theatrical production process – planning, development and presentation – are also useful ways of organising the course.

For Units 1 and 2, teachers must select assessment tasks from the list provided on pages 14 and 18 of the VCE Theatre Studies Study Design. The tasks should include a variety of assessment types to demonstrate the fact that different types of tasks suit different knowledge and skills and different learning styles. Tasks do not have to be lengthy in order to make a decision about student demonstration of achievement of an outcome.

In Units 3 and 4 assessment is more structured. For some outcomes, or aspects of an outcome, the assessment tasks are prescribed. The contribution that each outcome makes to the total score for School-assessed Coursework is also stipulated.

In Unit 3 Outcome 1, students will need to be guided in the most effective ways to document their process during the creation and realisation of the performance.

Unit 4 Outcome 1 is the vision of the monologue’s creative interpretation. Outcome 2 is the realisation of that vision, with decisions clearly justifying the interpretation.

Plays in performance

Attending and analysing live theatrical performances in a diverse range of styles is a central part of VCE Theatre Studies. The expectation is that students will attend professional performances as part of the completion of teaching and learning activities and outcomes in each unit. In Units 1 and 2 there are no prescribed works. In Units 3 and 4 the performances will be selected from prescribed lists: the VCE Theatre Studies Unit 3 Playlist and the VCE Theatre Studies Unit 4 Playlist.

Selecting scripts for study

Scripts selected for study may include texts that are used in a diverse range of theatrical performances, including but not restricted to, plays, multimedia productions, opera, music theatre and other presentations such as rituals.

For Units 1 and 2 and Unit 3, Outcomes 1 and 2, schools select scripts for study. Three or more scripts or excerpts/scenes should be selected for study for each of Units 1 and 2. In Unit 3 two scripts or excerpts/scenes should be chosen for Outcomes 1 and 2. Teachers can use criteria or questions to guide their selection, for example:

• What aspects of this script make it an excellent example of the theatrical style?
• Which aspects of pre-modern/modern theatre are manifested in this script/excerpt?
• Which aspects of pre-modern/modern theatre are manifested across this set of scripts/excerpts?
• Will this assist students to develop a comprehensive understanding of key developments in this era?
• What opportunities does this script provide for application of production roles?
• What dramaturgical opportunities does this script/excerpt provide?
• What themes and ideas are explored in this script? How are these similar to or different from themes and ideas in other scripts selected for study in this unit?
• Does the selection of scripts provide for a diversity of content and characterisation with which the students can engage?
• How many actors are required for this script? If there are not enough students in the class who are willing to act, are there other performers available to realise this script?
• What design opportunities might students explore when they interpret this script?
• Are the performance rights available for this script? (This issue is of particular relevance for Unit 3, Outcome 1.)

In Unit 3, Outcome 3, students must study the script for the production they attend and analyse the performance selected from the VCE Theatre Studies Unit 3 Playlist. Students are only required to study the script for the production selected from the Playlist. For example, if the production is an adaptation of a ‘classic’ text, students should study the script that the theatre company is using as the basis of the production rather than the original text.

In Unit 4, Outcomes 1 and 2, students must study the script from which the selected monologue and scene have been drawn. The monologue must be selected from the list published annually by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority in the Theatre Studies Monologue Examination.

For Unit 4, Outcome 3, students must attend and analyse a production from the VCE Theatre Studies Unit 4 Playlist but are not required to study the script.

Production roles

In all units students research context/s and explore theatrical possibilities of selected scripts. They make dramaturgical decisions and apply production roles to interpret the scripts.

Across Units 1 to 4 students should apply a range of production roles. These experiences will give students a broader and more comprehensive understanding of the theatre styles with which they are working. In all units students are required to apply two production roles. However, participating in a range of production roles will provide greater depth in understanding. For example, some students may choose to focus only on design-related production roles for assessment but also undertake acting or directing roles during performance activities.

In their production work for all units, students should be involved in planning and making decisions about the context for the interpretation of the selected script/s. As they apply specific production roles, students consider the impact of their work on, and the relationship of their work to, the work of other students; and they evaluate their work against the context determined by the whole group for the interpretation. Teachers can support this work through the use of evaluative strategies such as questions or documentation, or by adapting strategies such as hot-seating to focus not on a character but on how application of production roles realises specific production aims.

In any student-produced work, students might take on non-assessed roles as well as the ones on which they will be assessed; for example, stage management. The Unit 3 production may be led by the class (as a creative team) but other people may also be involved in the production; for example, additional actors or a stage manager.

In Units 1 to 3, students apply selected production roles. Students should demonstrate ongoing communication, collaboration and creative cohesion between all members of the creative team. The production roles and types of work undertaken in each are:

• Acting
  • Demonstrating an understanding of the text, its style and context; and the use of acting skills such as voice, body language, gesture and movement to realise that text

• Direction
• Demonstrating an understanding of the text, its style and context; and the role of performers and those involved in other production roles to realise that text

• Design (costume, make-up, properties, set, lighting, sound)
• Demonstrating an understanding of the text, its style and context; and how the chosen production role(s) can facilitate the vision of the director and the skills of the performers.

Additional non-assessed production roles can be shared among the students in the class, or involve other students, in order to facilitate the realisation of the performance. These might include stage management, marketing and any production areas that are not fulfilled by the students undertaking the unit studied.

In Unit 4, for Outcomes 1 and 2, students select and apply either:

• Acting and Direction

or

• Design – any two of: make-up, costume, set, properties, sound and lighting.

For Unit 4, Outcome 3, students analyse acting, direction and design – any two of: make-up, costume, set/set pieces, properties, sound and lighting (as appropriate to the production).

Pre-modern theatre/modern theatre

For the purposes of this study design, 1920 has been selected as the dividing year between pre-modern and modern theatre. It is rare that a period can be neatly categorised with universally agreed beginning and ending dates. Teachers should take these considerations into account when selecting material for study in Units 1 and 2. Any of the broad range of theatre styles that feature across the relevant time-frame can be selected; the challenge is to make selections that will best assist students to explore significant developments in theatre practice and have a connection to the students’ own work in interpreting scripts.

In Unit 1 particular attention needs to be given to innovations and theatre styles from the pre-modern era; that is, works prior to the 1920s.

In Unit 2 it must be remembered there are modern theatre styles and practices that may have begun prior to the 1920s but that had their greatest impact post-1920. If a style or practice does not clearly sit post-1920s, it should not be used for this unit. It is, however, important to acknowledge that there are events from the beginning of the 20th century that greatly influenced all that followed. These include the advent of film, Bauhaus and Expressionism.

Theatre production process

For the purposes of this study the production process is described as having three distinct but interrelated stages. The lists below indicate tasks that can be undertaken in each stage. These lists are indicative rather than exhaustive and provide a guide rather than a list of requirements.

The planning and development stages of the theatrical process are often cyclic and intuitively intertwined. Students will need to be clear about their progression through this process in their evaluations.

1. Planning

This is the stage in which the script is chosen, ideas are proposed, practicalities are negotiated and roles are decided. It includes selection of/introduction to/read-through of the script, preliminary research, exploration of theatrical possibilities and constraints, annotation of text, responding to dramaturgical materials including stimulus images and the development of a treatment, allocation and establishment of production area roles, establishment of scheduling and timelines, seeking copyright and other permissions, identifying appropriate performance space/s and completing bookings as required, confirming copyright and other permissions, identification and consideration of audience characteristics and needs.

2. Development

This is the stage where timelines are locked in leading to final decisions, practicalities are finalised, designs are implemented and rehearsals are conducted. This includes: establishing a shared vision for the production, experimentation with and exploration of context and possibilities for recontextualisation, theatrical styles, design, trialling of design elements and characterisation options, use of technology, the application of individual and collaborative dramaturgical and directorial decisions, creative problem-solving to interpret the script imaginatively, rehearsals, the application and refinement of production areas, construction, stage management, budget adherence/management, sourcing materials, production/production areas team meetings, review of and adherence to agreed schedules and timelines, publicity and marketing strategies, pre-performance publicity and marketing, and adjusting approach as required.

3. Presentation

This is the stage in which the production is realised. This includes: bump-in, technical rehearsals, dress rehearsals, performances to audiences, stage management, production areas evaluation review and refinement, repair and maintenance, production team meetings, directorial feedback/notes, rehearsals/reworking as required, seeking and processing audience feedback, budget review, publicity and marketing, bump-out, reflection and final evaluation.

Evaluation should be undertaken throughout the entire production process – informally and formally. Use of a range of evaluation strategies and tools is encouraged. For example, this might be incorporated into regular production meetings. Rigorous evaluation at each stage of the production process will enhance the students’ work on interpretation of a specific script and support them to achieve more sophisticated realisations of the context they have imagined for the production. Evaluation also builds students’ transferable theatrical knowledge that can then be used when considering interpretive possibilities for previously unseen scripts.

Use of information and communication technologies

ICT tools can be used across all the production stages. Social software and web tools allow students to work collaboratively during and outside of timetabled classes or scheduled rehearsals. Ways in which ICT can be used for different purposes throughout Units 1 to 4 include:

• using a mobile device to record and play back rehearsals for critical feedback from self, peer, critical friend
• use of design and drawing software tools to create set designs
• uploading sketches of design ideas to a website for others to see in order to develop them further, both individually and collaboratively
• documenting online concepts for a script interpretation using individual or group blogs
• designing, producing and distributing marketing and ticketing materials for a production using software and social media
• developing group or whole-class discussions on a web forum
• using mobile devices to record and store multimedia material for use in the production, such as images, sounds
• operating lighting and sound equipment
• using a software application to block a scene
• using a teleprompter on a mobile device to aid learning. Teachers should ensure that students are aware of the copyright requirements for accessing and attributing source material used in the development and presentation of theatrical performances, and appropriate online behaviour during the production process
• developing a production meeting template for students to use in order to: share documents, circulate decisions about production areas and circulate agreed actions to be undertaken by the collaborative team before the next production meeting
• organising and presenting ideas by way of web pages using web design applications (as a class or individually).

Documentation can be recorded, or stimulus material presented, using one or more of the following formats:

Aural presentations

Concepts, narratives and ideas can be presented entirely aurally, making use of recordings on mobile devices, sounds, sound FX and live and pre-recorded voice. Soundscapes can be created to express ideas. Written material, with accompanying visuals, can be presented as a live voice-over.

Visual presentations

These may incorporate the use of presentation software with appropriate accompanying sounds; for example, pre-recorded music, atmospheric sounds and the spoken word. Text may be delivered visually or as a live or pre-recorded voice-over. A single still image may provide the entire visual backdrop to an argued point of view. Background music or sounds may provide the aural backdrop. Multiple images and associated text and sounds may be mixed with a spoken voice-over. Images can be sourced, scanned, taken via digital camera and manipulated.

Film presentations

Films come in many forms. Animations and manipulations of text can be effective methods of bringing life and further meaning to the content of text. Films can be sourced or taken with digital cameras. Animations can be created with many basic software programs. Basic film editing programs can be powerful tools for the creation of meaningful presentations. Delivered via data projector, the smallest ideas can be magnified many times.

Electronic scrapbook

This may incorporate extracts of DVDs, visuals, website visitations, pre-recorded sound and music and be offered with or without a spoken or recorded voice-over.

Digital newspapers and magazines

These may be individual submissions or collated on behalf of a group. Content can be manipulated through desktop publishing applications. A presentation can be delivered in a form that is familiar and appealing to many people, using design elements and principles to effectively manipulate, for example, the use of colour and black and white, headlines, topic headings, photographs and newspaper and magazine typesetting, formatting and structure. A theatre history file might be an unfamiliar format for some students. A file in the form of a newspaper or magazine might suggest content ideas and give students a greater sense of familiarity.