DISCOVER THE STAGE - Sydney Opera House

digital education program
DISCOVER
THE STAGE
TEACHERS’ RESOURCES: STAGE 3
1 house:Ed 2012

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
DISCOVER
THE STAGE
subject links:
HSIE/Science & Technology/
English
Teacher’s references:
Guidelines for Classroom Drama,
Theatre Superstition Cards, Still
Image Prompts, Stimulus Images
STAGE 3
OUTCOMES AND INDICATORS
Creative Arts
DRAS3.1
Develops a range of in-depth and sustained
roles.
DRAS3.2
Interprets and conveys dramatic meaning by
using the elements of drama and a range of
movement and voice skills in a variety of drama
forms.
DRAS3.3
Devises, acts and rehearses drama for
performance to an audience.
Indicators
• takes on a range of roles challenging character stereotypes, depicting
empathy, different and contrasting attitudes and status
• negotiates and sustains roles and their relationships in shaping the action
collaborates to convey dramatic meaning by responding abstractly to
represent ideas, feelings, objects and situations
Indicators
• responds confidently with gesture, movement and voice skills to a range of
scripts and other texts to structure the narrative or episodes and build on
the action of the drama
• interprets a dramatic context through the use of a combination of various
drama forms, eg improvisation, movement, mime, storytelling, puppetry,
mask, video drama and playbuilding
• combines and manages the elements of drama (eg tension, contrast,
symbol, time, space, focus and mood) to communicate the depth of
meaning of their drama work
Indicators
• devises drama in collaboration with others using scripted and unscripted
material as resources for drama performances
• organises space, props, costumes, artefacts, sound effects and movement
sequences to help define role, place and situation to interpret and convey
the meaning of the drama
• refines and performs drama work for a greater variety of audiences,
e.g. reworks and rehearses scenes which are then performed in places
such as the classroom, the school hall and in spaces beyond the school
environment
• devises, rehearses and acts in drama using voice and movement skills to
convey meaning to an audience
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
DMS3.8
Develops and resolves a design task by planning,
implementing, managing and evaluating design
processes.
indicators
• describe the factors that influence design
• justify the decisions made in designing and making
• justify the combination of materials and techniques in relation to the
properties required for specific end uses
• describes the process of designing and making which can involve
identifying needs and wants, defining a design task, generating and
selecting ideas, assembling or constructing products, systems or
environments, and evaluating outcomes
2 house:Ed 2012

english
TS2.2
Interacts effectively in groups and pairs,
adopting a range of roles, uses a variety of media
and uses various listening strategies for different
situations.
Indicators
• listens to spoken presentations and responds appropriately
• responds to different viewpoints in a discussion
WS3.9
Produces a wide range of well-structured and
well-presented literary and factual texts for a
wide variety of purposes and audiences using
increasingly challenging topics, ideas, issues and
written language features.
Indicators
Joint and Independent Writing
• when necessary, records information from a variety of sources before
writing
• rereads work during writing to maintain sequence and check meaning,
changing words and phrases or checking for errors
• plans writing through discussion with others and by making notes, lists or
drawing diagrams
• contributes to joint text construction activities
• writes more involved literary texts
Channel of Communication
• discusses the similarities and differences between spoken and written
language
• works with different text types using different channels of communication,
e.g. poetry, dramatic performance
3 house:Ed 2012

Lesson Content and Teaching/Learning Activities Resources Register
PRE-WORKSHOP ACTIVITIES
1 Theatre Superstitions
• Elicit from students their understanding of ‘theatre’. Discuss any experiences
students may have had attending or performing in theatre productions.
• Elicit from students the meaning of ‘superstition’. Discuss common superstitions
students may be aware of. E.g.
• Friday the thirteenth is an unlucky day
• If you walk under a ladder, you will have bad luck
• At the end of a rainbow is a pot of gold
• A cat has nine lives
• An apple a day keeps the doctor away
• Explain to students that there are a number of superstitions associated with the
theatre. Split students into groups of 3-4 and give each group a ‘Theatre Superstition’
card (multiple groups will have the same superstition). Groups are to come up with
what they believe is the meaning behind the superstition they were given. Students
should write their agreed meaning down to share with the class.
• Groups share their meanings and be given the correct reason behind each
superstition. Students should have these ready to discuss in their digital excursion.
Theatre
superstition
cards– (to
be put on
cardboard if
desired)
Paper/
Journal
Pencils
Rubbers
2 Technical aspects of the theatre (research task)
• Students should work individually or in pairs and select to research either the
various Technical Aspects of the Theatre or Theatre History.
• For Technical Aspects of Theatre, students should be encouraged to focus on:
• Places in a theatre e.g. Greenroom, Dressing Room
• Jobs in the theatre e.g. Director, actor, Stage Manager, Lighting, Ushers
• For Theatre History, students should be guided to focus on:
• What was the first recognised ‘theatre’ (The Theatre built in 1576 by
James Burbage)
• What are the most famous theatres around the world now and in the
past (E.g. The Globe Theatre, Sydney Opera House, Roman Colosseum)
• Why are theatres designed today the way they are today
• The class should choose to collectively present their information either in a ‘book’
or on a large sheet of cardboard/paper. As students find new information they
should continue to add this information to their growing knowledge of ‘theatre’.
Computer
with
Internet
access
Journal,
paper or
cardboard
for recording
ideas
3 STILL Image (Tableaux) Preparation
The following activities focus on how the body can show expression both individually
and in collaboration and balance with others. It is important to set up the space for a
drama session (see attached guidelines).
Sharing Emotion
• Students form two lines facing each other across the room. One line is line A,
the other line B. Give line A an emotion. On a given cue, both lines are to move
toward one another. Line A should walk demonstrating that emotion while Line B
remains neutral. As they pass, the half of the pair in Line A ‘passes’ the emotion
to their partner in Line B who continues crossing the room in the same manner
that their Line A pair began while the Line A student completes their crossing
neutrally.
• Line B is then given a turn to show and ‘pass’ the emotion.
Guidelines
for
classroom
drama
Still Image
Prompt
cards
4 house:Ed 2012

3 Body Part Emotions
• Ask students to find a space in the room to work through the following activities.
First, students are to show the given emotion using the body part selected, as
follows
• Face - sadness
• Hands - happiness
• Knees - scared
• Elbows – Nervous
• Hands – anger
• Face – surprised
• Next, students are to work in pairs and show opposite emotions e.g. Face –
happy/sad, Hands-angry/scared. Then ask pairs to come up with their own
combinations.
Guidelines
for classroom
drama
Still Image
Prompt
cards
POST-WORKSHOP ACTIVITIES
4 Preparation for interaction with Discover the Stage digital workshop
(Omit if class has already done Discover the House)
• Before the day of the excursion have a discussion with your class about
interacting with digital workshop. Topics you might like to cover include:
• What is a digital workshop It is the ability to experience something first hand
without leaving the comfort of your classroom. Digital excursions also give you
the ability to go places that you couldn’t normally, e.g. behind the scenes or under
the sea.
• Being aware that the workshop presenters can hear and see everyone at all times,
just like with any excursion and they are happy to answer questions throughout
the experience.
• Appropriate behaviour towards the workshop presenter and the other schools
that will be present on the digital workshop. Turn taking, speaking loudly and
clearly etc.
• Have fun and don’t be shy!
5 PLAY BUILDING Character and Role Play/Character Development
• Students are to work in small groups (3-4 students). Each group is to be given a
stimulus image (examples provided). Students should work through the following
tasks to support the building of characters based on the given image.
• Discuss the image: where is it, when is it, who is involved
• Decide on the characters involved in the image: give them a name, an age, three
key things about their personality
• Decide on the relationship between the chosen characters
Stimulus
Images
Hot Seating
NB. Hot Seating is an activity to assist the building and exploration of character and can be
used in the development of characters as well as learning about existing characters from novels
or times in history e.g. Captain Cook or Harry Potter
• A volunteer should be selected to take the ‘hot seat’. Students to ask them
questions about their character. These could include basic information (name,
age) as well as more complex questions about likes, dislikes, relationships etc
This activity should be repeated for a number of volunteers
Role Play
• Students should re-form into their original groups and discuss any new or altered
information that may have emerged in the hotseat activity.
• Students to work on a short role play which demonstrates how each of the
characters interact and how they are related to the stimulus image. Students
should be given at least 10 minutes to complete this section of the lesson.
• Volunteer groups to perform their role plays.
5 house:Ed 2012

Lesson Content and Teaching/Learning Activities Resources Register
6 Playbuilding – Script and Set or Costume Design
This could be divided into two lessons if desired.
Students are to work in groups to develop a script (one page) as well as set or
costume design. This activity is part of the Playbuilding process begun in the
previous lesson. This lesson could be done within a 45-60 minute session or
extended to 2-3 lessons if desired.
• As a class discuss ideas regarding important aspects of set/costume design
e.g. realistic space for actors to work in, appropriate design for storyline,
managing unique costumes, costumes that are functional, suitable for space
available etc.
• Remind students of the key components of a script: Title, list of characters,
brief overview of each character, scene heading, dialogue with character
names. Remind students they are recording the ‘spoken’ word as part of the
script and encourage informal language use.
Group script and set/costume development
• Students are to work in their groups and reflect on their group’s still image,
developed characters and storyline used for the role-play activity. They need
to consider any special or unusual effects required and decide whether they
will design a set or costumes.
• Provide students with a script example to remind them of the key components
and layout. The improvised role plays should be used as the focus of the script
with students refining what was said.
• Students to design a set or costumes for their script. This can be done on
paper or computer depending on available resources, time and level of student
skill. If time is limited, students could also be guided to write down ideas for
verbally sharing with the class. If model set are to be built, all designs should
be drawn/planned prior to construction commencing.
Performance and presentation
• Groups to introduce their performance and design/costumes to the class
justifying their choices and describing how it links to their still image.
• Students to perform their scripts to the class.
Open boxes
Scraps of
material
Coloured
pencils
General craft
materials to
assist with set
construction
Glue/Sticky
Tape/
Scissors
teacher’s overview and unit evaluation
6 house:Ed 2012

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
DISCOVER
THE STAGE
Guidelines for
Classroom Drama
GOOD WEBSITES:
Drama Resource
dramaresource.com
Drama NSW
dramansw.org.au
Teach Kids Drama Stuff
teachkidsdramastuff.com/index.html
Drama in the classroom can be used to support learning in a
variety of key learning areas by giving students the opportunity
to explore ideas and issues in a meaningful and realistic manner.
Drama has been considered to assist with the development of
self-esteem, communication skills, problem-solving abilities
and in the development of focus and team building through fun
activities.
Incorporating drama in a primary school classroom presents a
number of challenges for teachers, but reaps many rewards for all
involved when attempted. The following suggestions are designed
to provide some food for thought in relation to doing drama in the
classroom and are intended as a guideline only.
When doing drama in the classroom ensure:
• A clear work space is available for the drama activity.
If desks can not be moved in the classroom, try to use the hall or outside open area.
• You talk to the students about the creation of a ‘safe space’. In this space students don’t laugh at each other, but support
and encourage (forming a circle at the beginning and end of a session or sitting with eyes closed are simple ways to focus
students for a drama session).
• You incorporate a reflection session at the end of every drama activity. This allows the students to consider what has been
done and take more meaning away from the activity than it just being fun (which it will be!).
• You are firm with the students. If a student does not follow instructions, they should be removed from the activity. This
will allow the other students to see that you as the teacher are assisting in maintaining the safe space for them to work.
• You always begin every drama session with a warm-up. This could include a focus activity, drama game or pure physical
warm-up. There are good books and websites available with suggestions of warm-up activities and drama games.
• Don’t be afraid to participate in the activities yourself. The students like to see you as the teacher taking a role in an
activity. This can also allow you to help any improvisations or role plays flow and move forward more easily.
(Dorothy Heathcote’s work on Mantle of the Expert and Teacher in Role discusses this in more detail).
7 house:Ed 2012

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
DISCOVER
THE STAGE
DISCOVER THE STAGE
STUDENT RECORD SHEET, STAGE 3
year:
Term: 2012
Student:
mark: /40
Percentage:
Insert or glue sample of the student’s work here or a photo of
them completing an activity. Highlight the appropriate face below
corresponding to students progress for each criteria.
=5 =3 =1
Student interacts effectively in groups, adopting a range of roles and using various
listening strategies for the different activities.
Student uses technology effectively to research places and jobs in the theatre.
Student takes on and sustains roles in emotion activities.
Student sequences the action of the drama to create meaning for an audience within
the still image group activities.
Student builds the action of the drama using movement and voice skills as they
develop characters.
Student devises, acts and rehearses drama for performance through the playbuilding
process
Student develops and resolves the set/costume design task by planning, implementing,
managing and evaluating the design process.
Student produces a literary or factual research report and/or script through the
research and playbuilding processes.
8 house:Ed 2012

Still Image
Prompt Cards
Emotion / Setting
COPY THESE ONTO
CARD AND CUT OUT
happy
BIRTHDAY
CELEBRATION
surprised
GOOD MARK
AT SCHOOL
worried
DOING PUBLIC
SPEAKING
excited
LAST DAY
OF SCHOOL
9 house:Ed 2012

theatre
superstition
cards
COPY THESE ONTO
CARD AND CUT OUT
BREAK A LEG
CHOOKAS
NO WHISTLING
MIRRORS
FLOWERS ON
STAGE
THAT SCOTTISH
PLAY
BAD LUCK TO
WEAR BLUE UNLESS
WITH SILVER
DON’T LOOK
THROUGH
THE CURTAIN
10 house:Ed 2012

theatre
superstition
cards
COPY THESE ONTO
CARD AND CUT OUT
People threw money onto the stage if
they liked the show, so when the actor
bent their legs to bow and pick up the
money, they broke the line of their leg.
This started in Australia with dancers. If
they danced well then they’d make
money and be able to have chicken for
dinner that night.
Before we had walkie-talkies people
backstage used whistling to give cues.
If someone was
whistling it could make a curtain come
down at the wrong time that would
muck up the show.
People think it is bad luck to have a
mirror on stage. It will reflect light into
the audience’s eyes.
Real flowers are too expensive and
they would wilt under the lights.
Companies that were not doing well would
wear blue to make people think they
were doing better as it was expensive to
buy blue clothes.
Don’t say MacBeth backstage at a
theatre as it is considered bad luck.
One thought is that Shakespeare met
with some witches to write the play
they weren’t happy so cursed it.
Don’t look through the curtain as you
might see people you know,
get really nervous and not perform well.
11 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
12 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
13 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
14 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
15 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
16 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
17 house:Ed 2012

Stimulus Images
print in colour
18 house:Ed 2012