Items tagged "Props"

Holly Beardsley is a do-it-all director. She started directing middle and high school students in her early college years and since then has written over ten shows and directed twice as many. Do-it-all directors are responsible for everything it seems – the direction, the costuming, the choreography and of course, the set too. And though directors are ready to direct, to costume and even dance, there is something intimidating about designing and building a set. The Do-it-All Director’s Introduction to Set Design will give you the director, who must do-it-all, the confidence and skills to not only direct but build your own set as well - no matter your experience or budget. This course will teach you set design basics, construction tips, budget tricks, and how to tackle your precious performance space armed with a hammer, and most importantly, without fear.

Students will stage locations using only a finite number of props and pieces. The goal is to show the location using action and imagination (as we often must do in the theatre) without a reliance on exact realism.

In this lesson, students will take what they learn about the different types of props and how props are created or acquired in order to apply it to a specific project. Using their critical thinking skills, they’ll have to invent, design, and create a science fiction style prop for a hypothetical show.

Props add so much to a production, but they can also be challenging to work with. From dealing with a huge list of props, to having trouble using props during rehearsal, to problems with broken, missing, or consumable props, students need to work together to problem solve when a props issue occurs. This is great practice for students working on productions, because props problems will inevitably crop up.

The objective of this lesson is to put students in a theatre production role. Introduce the concept of a master props list to students: what it is, why it is useful, and how to create one.

A guide to the different types of props, and a sorting activity to help students identify props by category (scenic props, hand props, set dressing).

A one-sheet to help students understand the difference between a prop and a costume piece.