Unit
in Technical Theatre Mini Units Curriculum
Staging
Created by Josh Hatt
This is a mini-unit on staging. Along with the driving question for the unit, students will explore about how staging affects the performance. Students will draw a plot design (ground plan) to emphasize the need to plan where scenic elements will be placed. They will also practice taking cues from the script, in order to create staging.
Start here
The overview lays out the objectives for the unit and reviews the content in each lesson.
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1Lesson 1Introduction to StagingStudents are introduced to staging through video demonstration and discuss the role of staging in a performance. How does staging help to visualize a location? The lesson concludes with a Greek Myth Staging Activity.
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2Lesson 2Staging EffectivenessStudents complete a Staging Vocabulary Activity. They are then given a setting description and have to draw a set based on the description. The point of the activity is not to excel in drawing but learning how to plan and translate a description into a physical setting.
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3Lesson 3Changes and TransitionsStudents discuss scene changes and transitions. How can a poorly rehearsed transition hinder a technically effective performance? They then apply this discussion to a Scene Assignment. Groups create a scene and must demonstrate a scene change within the scene.
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4Lesson 4Scene Assignment: PresentationStudents review what makes a scene technically effective. They are given time to rehearse and then present their scenes. The emphasis is on the groups demonstrating a knowledge of staging effectiveness.
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5Lesson 5ReflectionStudents discuss the scenes from the previous class and reflect as a group on the process. They then address how lighting, sound, costume and staging interact together to create a technically effective scene.
Standards Addressed
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - Grade 6
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - Grade 7
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - Grade 8
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - High School Proficient
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - High School Accomplished
Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work - High School Advanced
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade 6
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade 7
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade 8
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade HS Proficient
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade HS Accomplished
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation - Grade HS Advanced
Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work - Grade 6
Refine new work through play, drama processes and theatre experiences using critical analysis and experimentation - Grade HS Proficient
6.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work
7.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work
8.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work
Prof.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work
Acc.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
Adv.TH:Cr1 Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
6.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
7.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
8.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
Prof.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
Acc.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
Adv.TH:Pr5 Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
6.TH:Re9 Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work.
Prof.TH:Cr3 Refine and complete artistic work.
Sixth Grade
- DT.6.1.1.a Students Can: Identify possible solutions to staging challenges in a drama/theatre work.
- DT.6.1.1.b Students Can: Identify possible solutions to design challenges in a drama/theatre work.
- DT.6.2.2.b Students Can: Articulate how technical elements are integrated into a drama/theatre work.
- DT.6.3.4.b Students Can: Analyze the production elements used in a drama/theatre work to assess aesthetic choices.
Seventh Grade
- DT.7.1.1.a Students Can: Integrate multiple perspectives and solutions to staging challenges in a drama/theater work.
- DT.7.1.1.b Students Can: Explain and present possible solutions to design challenges in a drama/theater work.
- DT.7.2.2.b Students Can: Choose a variety of technical elements that can be applied to a design in a drama/theatre work.
Eighth Grade
- DT.8.1.1.a Students Can: Imagine and explore multiple perspectives and solutions to staging problems in a drama/theatre work.
- DT.8.1.1.b Students Can: Imagine and explore possible solutions to design challenges of a performance space in a drama/theatre work.
- DT.8.2.2.b Students Can: Implement a variety of technical elements to create a design for a rehearsal or drama/theater production.
High School - Fundamental Pathway
- DT.H1.1.1.a Students Can: Apply basic research to construct ideas about the visual composition of a drama/theatre work.
- DT.H1.1.1.b Students Can: Explore the impact of technology on design choices in a drama/theatre work.
- DT.H1.1.4.c Students Can: Refine technical design choices to support the story and emotional impact of a devised or scripted drama/theatre work.
- DT.H1.2.2.b Students Can: Use research and script analysis to discover the impact design has for a drama/theatre production.
High School - Advanced Pathway
High School - Professional Pathway
Speaking and Listening
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
- CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.2 Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Language
Reading: Literature
Critical Thinking & Reflection
- TH.68.C.1.4 Create and present a design, production concept, or performance and defend artistic choices.
- TH.68.C.1.5 Describe how a theatrical activity can entertain or instruct an audience.
- TH.68.C.2.2 Keep a rehearsal journal to document individual performance progress.
- TH.68.C.2.3 Ask questions to understand a peer's artistic choices for a performance or design.
- TH.68.C.2.4 Defend personal responses to a theatre production.
- TH.68.C.3.1 Discuss how visual and aural design elements communicate environment, mood, and theme in a theatrical presentation.
- TH.912.C.1.4 Research and define the physical/visual elements necessary to create theatrical reality for a specific historical and/or geographical play.
- TH.912.C.2.1 Explore and describe possible solutions to production or acting challenges and select the solution most likely to produce desired results.
- TH.912.C.2.3 Analyze different types of stage configurations to determine the effects of each as potential production solutions.
Historical & Global Connections
- TH.68.H.1.1 Explore potential differences when performing works set in a variety of historical and cultural contexts.
- TH.68.H.1.5 Describe one's own personal responses to a theatrical work and show respect for the responses of others.
- TH.68.H.2.4 Discuss the differences between presentational and representational theatre styles.
- TH.68.H.2.5 Compare decorum, environments, and manners from a variety of cultures and historical periods to discover and influence historical acting styles and design choices.
- TH.68.H.2.6 Describe historical and cultural influences leading to changes in theatre performance spaces and technology.
- TH.68.H.2.8 Identify and describe theatrical resources in the community, including professional and community theatres, experts, and sources of scripts and materials.
- TH.68.H.3.3 Use brainstorming as a method to discover multiple solutions for an acting or technical challenge.
Innovation, Technology & the Future
- TH.68.F.1.1 Manipulate various design components to imagine the world of the character.
- TH.68.F.1.4 Survey an aspect of theatre to understand the ways in which technology has affected it over time.
- TH.68.F.2.1 Research careers in the global economy that are not directly related to the arts, but include skills that are arts based or derive part of their economic impact from the arts.
- TH.68.F.2.2 Identify industries within the state of Florida that have a significant impact on local economies, in which the arts are either directly or indirectly involved in their success.
- TH.68.F.3.2 Develop a list of line items that would typically be found in a production budget for a performance.
- TH.912.F.1.1 Synthesize research, analysis, and imagination to create believable characters and settings.
- TH.912.F.2.4 Apply the skills necessary to be an effective director, designer, stage manager, and/or technician in the mounting of a theatrical performance.
Organizational Structure
- TH.68.O.1.2 Discuss how color, line, shape, and texture are used to show emotion in technical theatre elements.
- TH.68.O.1.3 Explain the impact of choices made by directors, designers, and actors on audience understanding.
- TH.68.O.1.4 Discuss how the whole of a theatre performance is greater than the sum of its parts.
- TH.68.O.2.1 Diagram the major parts of a play and their relationships to each other.
- TH.68.O.2.2 Explain how a performance would change if depicted in a different location, time, or culture.
- TH.68.O.2.5 Explain how the contributions of significant playwrights, performers, directors, designers, and producers from various cultures and historical periods have influenced the creative innovations of theatre.
- TH.68.O.3.1 Compare theatre and its elements and vocabulary to other art forms.
- TH.912.O.1.1 Research and analyze a dramatic text by breaking it down into its basic, structural elements to support development of a directorial concept, characterization, and design.
- TH.912.O.1.3 Execute the responsibilities of director, designer, manager, technician, or performer by applying standard theatrical conventions.
- TH.912.O.3.2 Analyze a variety of theatre and staging configurations to understand their influence on the audience experience and response.
- TH.912.O.3.6 Apply standard drafting conventions for scenic, lighting, and sound design to create production design documents.
Skills, Techniques & Processes
- TH.68.S.1.3 Describe criteria for the evaluation of dramatic texts, performances, direction, and production elements.
- TH.68.S.1.4 Discuss the ways in which theatre experiences involve empathy and aesthetic distance.
- TH.68.S.2.1 Discuss the value of collaboration in theatre and work together to create a theatrical production.
- TH.68.S.2.3 Analyze the relationships of plot, conflict, and theme in a play and transfer the knowledge to a play that contrasts in style, genre, and/or mood.
- TH.68.S.3.2 Use the elements of dramatic form to stage a play.
- TH.68.S.3.4 Lead small groups to safely select and create elements of technical theatre to signify a character or setting.
- TH.912.S.2.1 Create one or more technical design documents for a theatrical production.
- TH.912.S.3.4 Apply scientific and technological advances to develop visual and aural design elements that complement the interpretation of the text.
Grade 6 - Performing
Grades 9-12 - ACTING LEVELS I-IV - Creating
Grades 9-12 - ADVANCED DRAMA LEVELS I-IV -Creating
Grades 9-12 - ADVANCED DRAMA LEVELS I-IV -Performing
Grades 9-12 - MUSICAL THEATRE LEVELS I-IV - Performing
Sixth Grade Present
Sixth Grade Respond
Seventh Grade Present
Seventh Grade Respond
Eighth Grade Connect
Eighth Grade Present
Eighth Grade Respond
Beginning High School Connect
Beginning High School Create
Beginning High School Present
Intermediate High School Create
Intermediate High School Present
Intermediate High School Respond
Accomplished High School Connect
Accomplished High School Create
Accomplished High School Present
Advanced High School Create
Advanced High School Present
Beginning High School Standards - Aesthetics
Intermediate High School Standards - Analysis
Intermediate High School Standards - Aesthetics
Proficient High School Standards - Aesthetics
Advanced High School Standards - Aesthetics
MS 117.211 LI - Creative Expression: production
MS 117.212 LII - Creative Expression: production
MS 117.213 LIII - Creative Expression: production
- B.3.A recognize and select specific technical elements to suggest environment, establish mood, and support character and actions for performance.
- B.3.B create theatrical elements such as scenery, properties, lighting, sound, costume, makeup, and publicity using the principles of design.
- B.3.D use technology in theatrical applications such as live theatre, video, and film.
MS 117.213 LIII - Critical evaluation and response
HS 117.315 LI - Foundations: Inquiry and Understanding
HS 117.315 LI - Creative Expression: production
- C.3.A develop and practice technical theatre skills.
- C.3.B apply technical knowledge and skills safely to create or operate theatrical elements such as scenery, properties, lighting, sound, costumes, makeup, current technology, or publicity.
- C.3.C perform a role such as actor, director, designer, technician, or editor in production decision making and collaborate with others in a production role to tell a story through live theatre or media performance.
- C.3.D demonstrate responsibility, artistic discipline, and creative problem solving by concentrating in one or more areas of theatre production such as acting, technical theatre, or theatre management.
HS 117.316 LII - Creative Expression: production
- C.3.A develop and practice safe and effective stagecraft skills.
- C.3.D perform a role such as actor, director, designer, technician, or editor in production decision making and collaborate with others to tell a story through live theatre or media performance.
- C.3.E develop responsibility, artistic discipline, and creative problem solving by concentrating in one or more areas of theatre production such as acting, technical theatre, or theatre management.
HS 117.317 LIII - Creative Expression: production
- C.3.D perform a role such as actor, director, designer, technician, or editor in production decision making and collaborate with others to tell a story through live theatre or media performance.
- C.3.E perform the role of actor, director, or technician, demonstrating responsibility, artistic discipline, and creative problem solving.
Technical Theatre/Design 10-20-30 - Management - Set
- 1 demonstrate understanding of the purpose of stage scenery
- 10 demonstrate understanding of and use ground plans
- 11 demonstrate understanding of proper placement of stage scenery: balancing, angling, masking, sight lines, backdrops, scrims
- 2 recognize the importance of illusion in set design
- 4 recognize and use theatre terminology related to the proscenium
- 6 recognize different types of stages: proscenium, thrust, arena, flexible
- 8 recognize different types of scenery: bare stage, curtain set, drop and wing set, box set, unit set, suggestive or selective set, flats, projections, scrims, cyclorama
- 9 demonstrate understanding of and use scale
Junior Orientation
- demonstrate a willingness to take calculated and reasonable risks
- focus concentration on one task at a time
- generate imaginative and creative solutions to problems
- listen effectively
- meet deadlines and follow through on individual and group commitments
- offer and accept constructive criticism, given specific guidelines, with a desire to improve
- share ideas confidently with others
- support positivity the work of others
- work cooperatively and productively with all members of the class in pairs, small groups and large groups
Junior Goal I Objectives
- develop a sense of responsibility and commitment
- develop self-discipline
- develop the ability to initiate, organize and present a project within a given set of guidelines
- develop the ability to interact effectively and constructively in a group process
- develop the willingness to make a decision, act upon it and accept the results
- extend the ability to explore meaning through abstract concepts
- extend the ability to think imaginatively and creatively
Technical Theatre - Levels I, II, III - Awareness
- 1 recognize the basic terminology associated with the component being studied
- 2 demonstrate understanding of the basic functions of the component being studied.
- 3 show awareness of the importance of research
- 4 show awareness of available resources pertaining to the component being studied; e.g., supplies, libraries and theatre companies
- 5 demonstrate understanding of the various conventions of the components being studied
Technical Theatre - Levels I, II, III - Readiness
- 10 demonstrate understanding of and use appropriate methods and tools for designing the project; e.g., makeup charts, cue sheets, working drawing
- 11 arrange and sequence time, ideas, information, materials and/or personnel for achievement of the project
- 6 demonstrate understanding of the importance of planning and organization
- 7 select a project appropriate to the component being studied
- 8 demonstrate understanding of the use of colour, shape and texture to achieve a desired effect
- 9 use sketching to explore ideas for the project
Technical Theatre - Application
- 12 demonstrate understanding of and apply appropriate regulations, procedures and precautions to ensure safe working conditions
- 13 determine and acquire necessary supplies or substitutes to construct the planned project
- 16 demonstrate the integration of technical theatre with other disciplines in order to enhance dramatic communication
Senior Goal I Objectives
Senior Goal III Objectives
GRADE 9 - DRAMA - Exploring and creating
GRADE 9 - DRAMA - Reasoning and reflecting
GRADE 9 - DRAMA - Communicating and documenting
GRADE 10 - DRAMA - Explore and Create
GRADE 11 - DRAMA - Explore and Create
GRADE 11 - DRAMA - Reason and reflect
GRADE 12 - DRAMA - Explore and Create
GRADE 12 - DRAMA - Reason and reflect
Grades 9 & 10 - Foundations - Responsible Practices
- C.3.1 identify and follow safe and ethical practices in drama activities (e.g., exhibit safe use of sound and lighting boards; follow procedures for the environmentally responsible use of materials and energy; prepare an individual or group seminar report on the nature and purpose of one or more of the following: copyright protection, royalties, public domain, intellectual property rights)
- C.3.2 identify and apply the skills and attitudes needed to perform various tasks and responsibilities in producing drama works (e.g., use active listening and cooperative problem-solving skills; practise punctuality; use tact in suggesting changes and improvements; demonstrate willingness to accept criticism and build consensus)
Grades 9 & 10 - Foundations - Concepts and Terminology
Grades 9 & 10 - Reflecting, Responding and Analyzing - The Critical Analysis Process
Grades 9 & 10 - Creating and Presenting - Presentation Techniques & Technologies
- A.3.1 identify and use a variety of techniques to influence the audience in specific ways (e.g., have actors enter the performance space from the audience to increase audience connection to the drama; use blocking to focus audience attention on key characters or relationships between characters)
- A.3.3 use a variety of technological tools (e.g., light, sound, set design, props, models) to enhance the impact of drama works
Technical Theatre
Technical Theatre
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