Hamlet

Here is the 4-minute Hamlet that we watched in class for your reference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmjWIMMtjDc

Also, I put a new topic page on the portal that contains a lot of resources that might be useful to you.

Finally, the four versions that we explored in class were --

1. Benedict Cumberbatch as Hamlet in the National Theatre of England's production

2. Kenneth Branagh as Hamlet in the film that he also directed

3. Mel Gibson as Hamlet in the film directed by Franco Zeffirelli

4. Ethan Hawke as Hamlet in the film directed by Michael Almereyda

Final Exam prep and materials

IB Theatre Final Exam Review Materials

A.      Theatre Terminology, Theorists, Texts, and Concepts

1. Types of stages (Black Box vs. Proscenium stage vs. Thrust vs. Theater-in-the-Round)

2. Stage directions: Up, Down, Left, Right

3. Voice, Projection, Enunciation

4. Blocking and Movement

5. Actor’s Motivations and Using Backstory to create characters

6. Props, Set pieces, Costumes
7. Straight plays vs. Musical Theatre

8. Realistic Theatre vs. Abstract vs. Fantastical

9. Stanislavski vs. Brecht and associated terms and theories (review the “Five Truths” videos and chapters in TIP)

10. Improv

11. Technical theatre (Lighting, Sound, Set Design, Costumes and Makeup) – theory and practice

12. Directing and Casting

13. Julie Taymor

14. World Theatre Traditions: Cantonese Opera, Rakugo, Commedia dell’Arte

15. Mask work in Theatre

16. Devised Theatre

17. The Caucasian Chalk Circle

18. Les Miserables

19. Hamlet
20. Theatre as “acting truthfully under given circumstances” vs “an artificial medium to prompt audiences to think or act in response”

For this section, you will need to answer some short questions about the above terms. You will also need to write a longer answer that specifically asks you to think about directing and staging a specific scene from a specific production. We will use Hamlet as our text for this as it is the last piece we are studying for this term.

B.       Thinking Like a Director for Next Year’s Project

For this section, you will need to write a 500-word proposal for what play you will choose for your Director’s Notebook project for next year. You will need to read through the IB guidelines for this assignment and choose an appropriate play and explain why you chose it and a little about what you might want to do with it. This will be your summer reading text as well, and you are required to purchase, read it, and take notes on it over the summer. The proposal will need to be done in advance of the final period and posted on your blog by the end of that day.

More resources from this week's presentations

Long and useful video about Scenic design (we did not get to watch this in class):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXYX5YXjYaA&t=1s


Video about working as a scenic designer that we watched in class:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=objDPi0CRt8

Video about costume design:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgxcWne7uzg

Video about Lighting Design:

https://youtu.be/LX066IHgZEM

Link to Helen's presentation on Costume and Makeup Design:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/16_yZwhK_Z63wDEFrIhyGXJYVoLmFFmxb6qLfaXmuhVw/edit#slide=id.g36d57b37d4_0_44

Link to Jenna's presentation about Sound Design:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/13djXO0lbQr4bFsnXaz8snHwzVjRpCN7vFrUvyu2xR_s/edit#slide=id.g12a5760217b77759_68

Tech theater resources

Video about How Music Can Change a Scene:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn9V0cN4NWs&feature=youtu.be

Colour in Storytelling:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXgFcNUWqX0&feature=youtu.be

Reminder of Play Review Guidelines

Play Review Guidelines and Rubric

A review is more formal than a blog post but is still posted on your blog. It needs to have a title, multiple paragraphs, an introduction, body, and conclusion, and be 650-900 words in length.

Be sure to include the title of the play, the author, the date on which you viewed it, and the location. If you have a program, please also include the director and names of the major actors.

The review should begin with a short summary of the plot of the play and discussion of the major themes. Sometimes, one theme is more prominent than others because the director/actors decided to highlight that, so pay attention to the overall plot points that seem most important. Sometimes, in the program, there is a director’s note that explains the particular approach taken – be sure to read this and look for the examples in the play.

The bulk of the play should discuss the staging. For example, consider the following questions: What choices did the production make regarding staging/set, color schemes, costumes, sound, lighting, etc.? What characters were highlighted as most important and how was this done? What characters were positioned as being similar to one another or opposite to one another and how was that effect achieved?

Next, choose one actor who was the best on your opinion or your favorite and explain why. Who was the character created and how did the actor work to make this character so successful? Be specific and use examples from the play to back up your points.

Finally, discuss your opinion of the play. Did you like it or not and why? What did you learn about theater from watching this?

Grading Criteria (see descriptions above for more details)

Structure of Essay (including title, paragraphs, etc.)

Clarity of Writing and Accurate Proofreading

Word Count

Short Summary of Plot and Major Themes

Review of Staging Choices

Review of One Actor

Overall Opinion

Specific Examples and Lots of Details

Ungraded "Quiz"

Hello IB Theatre students,

So, do you think you know all about the IB Theatre course and what is expected of you for the Research Presentation? Do this short quiz below and find out how much you really know!

Look at the 10 questions below and see if you can answer them. If you get all 10 right you are a Research Presentation super star!! Answers are at the bottom:

1. Can I choose to research and present on any theatre tradition I am interested in?
2. Can I use a powerpoint to help explain what I am presenting?
3. When presenting can I read from cue cards?
4. What is the maximum length the presentation can be?
5. Will the examiner watch my presentation if it is longer than the maximum time?
6. Can my moment of theatre have other actors in it to help me?
7. Can I video my moment of theatre and then show it in the presentation?
8. Can I show a video showing how I practically and physically explored the convention?
9. Do I need to do the presentation in the order that is listed in the guide?
10. Do I have to use supporting materials in my moment of theatre?

Answers:

1. No you need to choose from the list on pages 53 and 54 of the guide
2. Yes, you can, but you need to source all the images and other material.
3. Yes.
4. 15 minutes. See page 58 of the guide
5. No. See page 58 of the guide ‘Where the video recording of the presentation exceeds the prescribed limit, examiners are instructed to base their assessment solely on the first 15 minutes.’
6. No.
7. No. The moment of theatre must be live, and done during
8. Yes, as this is work you did before the live presentation and this is a good way to illustrate some practical exploration
9. No, but you do need to make sure you cover all 4 areas.
10. No. You only use what is needed. If you do something for Kabuki that needs a fan then you will need to use a fan in the moment.

Sample breakdown of this project into smaller steps

Step 1 – Decide Tradition 

Step 2 – Next decide: Performance Convention 

                                    Moment of Theatre 

                                    Essential Production Elements (what you will need)

Step 3 – Research and create an outline of your presentation.

              Provide research about the tradition, convention, moment chosen, audience effect.  

              Prepare/create your visuals to make your demonstration come to life.

              Possible Outline:

1)       2 – 3 minutes: Research/Information about your tradition 

2)       2 – 3 minutes: Research/Information about your performance convention 

3)       1 – 2 minutes: Describe your moment of theatre (justify choice) 

4)       5 – 7 minutes: Physical Demonstration 

5)       1 – 2 minutes: Final Reflection (effect on audience)

Step 4 – Research Presentation Tech Rehearsal/Feedback

              Your presentation should be 12 - 15 minutes. 

Step 5 – Final Presentations - recorded with powerpoint submitted as well


Here is a link to a prezi that explains the breakdown as well and includes information on how the work will be graded: https://prezi.com/s_bngytxjhy4/ib-theatre-research-presentation/