Acting

ACT IVITY WRITING

In your activity book (see page 96), write another version of the stage directions for the scene on page 153 to change the audience’s perception of the characters. For example, you could make one of the characters a difficult student, or you could make the teacher angry or too nice.

PERFORMING Create and stage a performance of either Scene A or Scene B from the previous page in a small group. Remember that there are five actors needed for the scene. Others in the group could be the lighting director or the sound engineer. Think about how you will use your classroom to create a stage. Consider how you could use the existing furniture and classroom objects for the set and as props and costumes. Acting Acting in a play requires a lot of careful thought on the part of the actor. First, they need to consider any clues in the script about the character they are playing. Then they need to think about where the scene appears in the plot of the play. They also need to be conscious of their character’s relationships with other characters. Once all these things are considered, an actor can begin to think about how they will portray their character using their voice, facial expressions, gestures and movement. An actor’s voice is their most important tool. Speaking well and pronouncing words clearly allows the audience to follow the plot of the play properly and it also gives an insight into the characters and their motives. Facial expressions tell the audience what the character is thinking and feeling. Actors also use gestures and movement to portray their character on the stage. This could be something subtle, such as a slight hand gesture, or something dramatic, like marching across the stage. Sometimes during a performance, an actor has to use their improvisation skills. Improvising means to invent and create a performance on the spot without any©The Educational Company of Ireland prior rehearsal.

PERFORMING

An actor has to consider a lot of things during their performance. Practise your acting skills by performing this improvisation activity. This activity is best done in pairs. Each of you should choose a character to play from the list below. Then each of you should pick an emotion for your chosen character to portray. Finally, choose a scenario together. Now you need to improvise a short interaction between your partner using your chosen characters, emotions and scenario. For example, you may select: the cowboy (cheerful) and the ballerina (anxious) on a beautiful countryside cycle. Think about what you could do with your voice, facial expressions and gestures, and how you might move around your performance space. Each pair should perform for the rest of the class. At the end of each performance, the audience should try to figure out what characters, emotions and scenario were being acted out. Character Emotion Scenario A cowboy with an imaginary friend A ballerina who believes in vampires A playschool teacher who is easily addicted to things A supermodel who is obsessed with things being clean A used-car salesman who is terrible at selling A gloomy office worker who thinks aliens will soon invade and destroy the earth A scientist who is the most boring person alive Angry Happy Bored Amused Aggressive Anxious Fascinated Friendly Cheerful Confident Hopeless Disappointed Nervous Tormented Outraged Panicked

A wedding where the groom doesn’t show up A commentary box at a GAA match Trying to cheat in an exam At a ceilidh that’s getting out of hand On a beautiful countryside cycle Doing the grocery shopping Putting out the bins Stowing away on a ship Cleaning up after a kid’s birthday party Learning how to fly a plane Getting caught shoplifting ©The Educational Company of Ireland