This is a short essay about how to put on a play in class. Throughout my paper I will focus on several interesting aspects and difficulties that might occur if a play is performed in class. Further, putting on a play in class can be an inspiring experience for both teacher and pupils and is therefore to be understood as a didactic challenge. Also, performing a play motivates pupils to speak English more readily than just reading the play in class.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Putting on a play in class
- Choosing a play
- Understanding the characters
- Exploring the dramatic premise
- Analyzing the text
- Motivating pupils to adopt the play
- Setting, costuming, and stage management
- Performance as an activity
- Rehearsals
- Acting as co-dependent work
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This text outlines the process of staging a play in a classroom setting, focusing on the practical aspects of production and performance. It aims to provide teachers with a guide for leading students through the adaptation of a literary text into a theatrical production.
- The process of adapting a play for classroom performance
- Student roles in production (acting, stage management, construction)
- The importance of understanding the text and its dramatic structure
- Techniques for engaging students in active participation
- The integration of technical aspects (set design, costumes, lighting)
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The initial sections detail the crucial preliminary steps: selecting a suitable play considering audience and challenging themes (avoiding overtaxing students), and meticulously explaining character traits, particularly focusing on pivotal character development. The text then emphasizes understanding the play's dramatic premise, including the significance of action over narrative, and analyzing the text through rhythm, intonation, and structural divisions into beginning, middle, and end. Later sections cover the practicalities of stage design and production, stressing the roles of stage management, construction, and the importance of understanding the historical context of Elizabethan theatre if staging Shakespeare. The text also discusses the crucial role of rehearsal in integrating various elements and finally, the nature of acting as a collaborative, emotionally involved process.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
Classroom drama, theatrical production, Shakespeare, Elizabethan theatre, student participation, character analysis, dramatic structure, stage management, performance techniques, collaborative acting.
- Quote paper
- Hildegard Schnell (Author), 2006, How to put on a play in class , Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/120125
