Advanced
Acting Class 2008-2009
GOALS
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Provide students with a
thorough foundation of theatrical elements such as staging, vocal
projection and clarity, movement, dance and singing.
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Provide students with the
necessary tools to create an expressive, detailed, believable and memorable
character through the use of scene and monologue work, creating a
character’s history, inventing a character’s physicality and
understanding a character’s psyche.
FALL
SEMESTER
“The Character”
Week 1
“Introduction to acting.” The
students will learn and
practice the
basic elements of theater. What is a play,
really? What does it mean “to act?”
Week 2
“Qualities of the actor.” Students will learn
and work with the
terms and
vocabulary of the theater. We will discuss the
role the
actor plays while in rehearsal for a
production, actor’s etiquette and what is expected
when doing a play. This class is designed to instill a sense of
respect and love for the craft.
Week 3
“Storytelling.” Students will learn
and practice storytelling - How to tell a story
with words. How to tell a story with only
movement. What makes a good storyteller? What
qualities do good storytellers posses? What are the similarities between
telling a story, and acting?
Week 4
“What makes an interesting character?” Who are the
characters you remember? What makes them stand
out in your memory? Each student is assigned a
specific character which he or she will work with for the
duration of the semester.
Week 5
“Understanding our own physical life.” How do we move?
Why do we move this way? Do we move
differently when we are feeling a certain
way?
Week 6
“Understanding your
character’s
physical life.”
Week 7
“Autobiography.” Students share a true life story. This
class is designed to make the student aware of
what we do when we are telling a story.
Students are assigned the task of creating a story for their character.
Week 8
“Character Autobiography.” The student’s character now
shares a story.
Week 9
“A Day in the Life.” Each student will act out specific
moments of their character’s day.
Week 10
“Acting ‘as if.’” Students are introduced to various
techniques actors use accurately display
emotion.
Week 11
“Where to stand, and how you stand when you get there.”
This class is designed to give the students
tools to make sure they are clearly understood by the audience.
Week 12
Stage demonstration for parents
WINTER SEMESTER
“The
Actor”
Week 1
“What is Drama?” Introduction to the basic seven elements
of drama. What makes something dramatic?
Week 2
“What’s So Funny?” Introduction to the elements of
comedy. What makes something comedic? Students will learn some the
“rules of comedy,” and ways in which to use these rules in rehearsal and
performance.
Week 3
“The Monologue.” Students are assigned a monologue which
they will be working on for the duration of the semester. Students are
shown how to “break the monologue down” to its core, and are coached and
directed line by line.
Week 4
Students continue monologue work in an “open directing”
setting.
Week 5
“Getting What We Want.” Characters are compelling because
they want something - even if it’s only a glass of water. What does my
character want? What does my character do to get it? What are the
obstacles that keep my character from getting what he or she wants? How
do I make other people feel in order to get what I want?
Week 6
“The Scene.” Students are assigned a scene to work on in
class, as well as
a scene
partner. In the preliminary stages of scene work, students will be
guided through listening and reacting exercises designed to aid in the
scene study.
Week 7
Students continue scene work in an “open directing”
setting.
Week 8
“Your Life vs. Your Character.” In this class, students
will be introduced to the basic principles of method acting. Here,
students will be encouraged to use their own life experiences to inform
the characters they are creating on stage.
Week 9
“Shakespeare: Yes, You Do Understand It, and, Yes, You
Can Do It!” In this class, students will be introduced to Shakespearean
language for the actor. Through the use of emotional and physical
interpretation of the text, this class is designed to make Shakespeare
accessible to the students, and give them the tools to handle eloquent
language as an actor.
Week 10
Stage demonstration for parents
SPRING
SEMESTER
“Movement and Dance”
Week 1
“A Leg to Stand On.” This class is designed to introduce
the students to traditional dance terms and
vocabulary. Additionally, time will be spent familiarizing the students
with the core dance steps that are used in musical theater.
Week 2
“Movement and dance as storytelling.” What can we learn
about a character from the choreography of a song? Students will also
begin incorporating the core dance steps into a musical theater song.
This song will contain all of the styles and elements of traditional
musical theater choreography.
Week 3
Continue work on the choreographed dance piece.
Week 4
Finish and polish the choreographed dance piece.
Week 5
Students are guided in choreographing a new song
themselves using the elements we have learned.
Week 6
Continue work on the student choreographed dance piece.
Week 7
Finish and polish the student choreographed dance piece.
Week 8
“Warm Up.” Students are given to tools to create their
own physical warm up which they will use before rehearsals.
Week 9
“How to make a good dance look great.” Students learn how
to give their movement a sense of energy and
spectacle for the stage.
Week 10
Stage demonstration for parents
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