Drama & Theatre Studies

Course Aims

This course is designed for students who enjoy reading and watching plays and taking part in drama, as a performer, director or designer.

Students pursue their interests and develop skills in a range of practical drama elements including acting, directing, costume, setting, mask and technical design. The requirements of the specification, with its 60% written paper weighting, also enable students to gain an entry qualification for courses in higher education, whether in the area of drama and theatre studies or in a host of other subjects.

The specification offers the freedom to choose both the content and the form of practical presentations at each level. At AS, the written unit consists of the study of one set play, in terms of its performance potential, and of live productions seen during the course. Students perform an extract from any play selected to illustrate their understanding of an influential director, designer, theatre company or other practitioner. At A2, the written unit requires the study of a further two set plays. Students devise drama on any topic to be performed in a theatrical style of their choice.

In the practical units, both AS and A2 students present a performance working in a group. Students choose one of the following skills:

• Acting

• Directing

• Costume Design

• Mask Design

• Set Design

• Technical Elements: Lighting and/or Sound

Assessment for the practical units takes account of the contribution throughout the preparation period as well as of the final performance.

AS Outline

Unit 1
Live Theatre Production Seen and Prescribed Play (100 marks)
Section A - response to live theatre seen during the course
Section B - study of one set play from a choice of six

Unit 2
Presentation of an Extract from a Play (80 marks)
Performance by a group of an extract from a published play. The assessment also includes candidates’ preparatory and development work and supporting notes

A2 Outline

Unit 3
Further Prescribed Plays including Pre-Twentieth Century (100 marks)
Study of two further set plays

Unit 4
Presentation of Devised Drama (80 marks)
Performance by a group of devised drama. The assessment also includes candidates’ preparatory and development work and supporting notes