Acting I
Course Description
Acting I builds on the foundation that is set in Theatre Arts. Students must pass Theatre Arts if they are to take Acting I. Acting I focuses solely on performance and intermediate acting theory. Students will learn more advanced techniques for the stage and screen through more improvisation, structured performances, and acting-theory discussions. The course will end with participation in the Acting I Show where students will select, prepare and perform a one-act play of their choosing.
Course Big Ideas
- Unlocking the Text: From Words to World and Subtext. This big idea moves beyond memorizing lines, challenging students to delve deeply into a script to discover its layers of meaning. It focuses on identifying subtext (what a character really means or feels beneath the spoken words), understanding the playwright's intentions, and using historical or social context to build a rich, believable world that informs every character choice.
- Embodying Emotional Truth: Accessing and Sustaining Complex Inner Lives. This idea pushes actors to move beyond surface-level emotions to truly connect with and portray the intricate inner workings of a character. It explores techniques for accessing, sustaining, and controlling a wider range of genuine emotions, understanding how personal experiences can inform (without becoming) the character's feelings, and communicating emotional arcs authentically.
- The Actor's Physicality and Voice: Crafting Distinctive and Expressive Characters. Building on basic vocal and physical presence, this big idea focuses on using the body and voice as precision instruments to differentiate and define distinct characters. Students will explore how specific physical gestures, posture, vocal quality, rhythm, and breath work can transform their own habits into unique character traits, enhancing storytelling and audience engagement.
- The Art of Performance Refinement: Precision, Consistency, and Polish. This big idea centers on the disciplined process of taking a scene or monologue from initial character work to a polished, consistent performance. It focuses on making specific, repeatable choices, integrating all elements of acting (text, emotion, physicality, voice), receiving and applying nuanced feedback, and understanding the demands of sustaining a performance for an audience.
- Producing a Play: Bringing a Vision to Life Through Strategic Planning and Teamwork This big idea focuses on what it takes to turn a play from an idea into a real performance that an audience can see. It's about the producer's role in making everything happen behind the scenes – handling the money, organizing the people (actors, crew, designers), managing schedules, finding a space, and making sure all the pieces fit together. It emphasizes that producing is a mix of business savvy and creative problem-solving, all aimed at supporting the artistic vision and ensuring the show can actually go on!
Course Essential Questions
- How do actors uncover the unspoken meaning (subtext) within a script, and why is understanding subtext crucial for a truthful performance?
- What techniques can an actor use to genuinely access, sustain, and effectively express complex emotions required by a character, without simply "faking" them?
- How do specific physical choices (posture, gesture, movement) and vocal qualities (pitch, pace, tone, articulation) create a distinctive and believable character that goes beyond personal habits?
- In what ways does an actor's active listening and truthful reaction to their scene partner elevate the stakes and deepen the relationship within a performance?
- How do actors research and incorporate historical, social, or psychological context to build a rich and informed understanding of their character and the play's world?
- What is the process of making specific, repeatable choices as an actor, and why is consistency important for a polished performance?
- How can an actor analyze and break down a scene or monologue into playable units to clarify intention and arc?
- What does it mean to "play the moment," and how does staying present in a scene allow for spontaneous and authentic reactions?
- How do actors integrate all elements of their craft – text analysis, emotional connection, physicalization, and vocal work – to create a fully realized and compelling character performance?
- How does a performance / play get produced?
Course Competencies
- Students will demonstrate advanced script analysis skills by identifying objectives, obstacles, and subtext, and applying contextual research to inform nuanced character choices.
- Students will effectively access, sustain, and truthfully express a range of complex emotions and inner states, integrating them authentically into character portrayal.
- Students will skillfully utilize physical and vocal techniques to create distinctive and consistent characterizations, enhancing communication and storytelling on stage.
- Students will demonstrate heightened responsiveness and active listening, engaging truthfully with scene partners to build dynamic relationships and elevate the stakes within a given scene.
- Students will refine performances by making precise and repeatable choices, consistently integrating all acting elements, and effectively incorporating constructive feedback to achieve a polished presentation.
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of the theatrical production by effectively collaborating with the creative and technical team (e.g., director, designers, crew) and adapting their performance to integrate seamlessly with technical elements and the overall production vision.
Course Assessments
- Since We Last Met Response
- Get Real Monologue Writing Benchmarks
- Get Real Monologue Performance
- Final Class Play Production (Select, Organize, Prepare, Rehearse, Perform)