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Rehearsal Articles for Drama Teachers

Browse 69 rehearsal articles

Two Favourite First Rehearsal Activities
Production

Two Favourite First Rehearsal Activities

I love starting the rehearsal process on a new show! There is so much promise and energy in the room when the performers come together for the first time. And of course, I want to focus that energy...
10 Tasks for Student Actors To Do During Rehearsals
Directing

10 Tasks for Student Actors To Do During Rehearsals

When you’re creating a rehearsal schedule for your upcoming production, whenever possible you should only call student actors to rehearse for the scenes they’re actually in. There’s no sense in...
Issue-Based Plays in Rehearsal
Directing

Issue-Based Plays in Rehearsal

So you’ve chosen to produce an issue-based play with your students. Awesome! Issue-based plays are a great learning opportunity for your students and your audiences, as they tackle issues such as...
The Last Few Weeks Before Showtime
Directing

The Last Few Weeks Before Showtime

The last few weeks before showtime can be weird. The initial excitement has worn off but things are not quite ready for performance, so a lot of rehearsal is spent reviewing and doing things “one...
Lines From A Bag
Classroom Exercise

Lines from a Bag

This rehearsal exercise takes its name from one of my favourite improv games, Scenes from a Bag. If your actors are feeling a bit shaky or uncertain with their lines during the rehearsal process,...
Costume Challenge: Rehearsal Blacks, Elevated
Classroom Exercise

Costume Challenge: Rehearsal Blacks, Elevated

If you’re working on a show with a tiny budget, one way many drama teachers have saved funds is by having student actors wear “rehearsal blacks” onstage — plain black pants and long-sleeve shirts....
Tips for Improving Pacing Issues
Teaching Drama

Tips for Improving Pacing Issues

We recently discussed how to help students who are rushing their lines and movements. Now we’re solving the opposite problem: what to do when the scenes are dragging and putting the audience to...
How to Get Student Actors to Stop Rushing
Teaching Drama

How to Get Student Actors to Stop Rushing

A director friend recently sent me a message asking for advice about how to help her students with their upcoming show. _Hi Kerry, _ Any tips on helping my students to slow down and stop rushing?...
The Rehearsal Companion
Teaching Drama

The Rehearsal Companion

You’ve chosen the play, paid the royalties, done the script analysis, held your auditions, and cast the show. Tomorrow is the first rehearsal. Are you ready? Really ready? The Rehearsal Companion...
How to Make Good Rehearsal Notes, For Student Actors
Teaching Drama

How to Make Good Rehearsal Notes, For Student Actors

As a director, I cannot stress enough to my students how frustrating it is to have to give the same note over and over during rehearsals. It feels like I’m not being listened to, and it wastes...
Scene-Specific Exercises
Classroom Exercise

Scene-Specific Exercises

If you’re riding the struggle bus at rehearsals and scenes are looking stagnant, dull, or flat-out boring, you and your students may be suffering from a case of rehearsal rut. Rehearsal rut tends...
What Do You Do When…
Teaching Drama

What Do You Do When…

The rehearsal process is often exciting and often frustrating. The frustrations are the worst when they have nothing to do with the play itself. What do you do when… The cast doesn’t get alongIt’s...