by Jess Plewe
Objective: Students will demonstrate an understanding of script analysis techniques by annotating a monologue for performance from The Glass Menagerie.
Standard L2.T.CR.8: Generate ideas from research and script analysis to devise a performance that is believable, authentic, and relevant in a drama/ theatre work.
Essential Questions
- How does analysis improve understanding?
- Why is background information important?
- Why do people do what they do?
- How can I be truthful while performing?
Enduring Understanding(s)
- Subtext improves characterization
- Analysis deepens understanding
- People’s actions are influenced by their past and their desires
Materials:
- The Student Spotlight Response Sheet
- Whiteboard and markers
- Copies of The Glass Menagerie and Actions: An Actor’s Thesaurus for each student
Spotlight
- Pull up the Student Spotlight Responses Sheet and choose a student who has not been spotlighted yet.
- Without reading their name, go through all of their answers. After reading all their answers, have students guess which student is the spotlight for today.
- Once correctly guessed, allow the class to ask a few questions of the student spotlight to get to know them better.
Warm-Up
- One student starts in the middle of the circle and is given “something” to do (e.g. getting ready for a big event”).
- The next student enters and asks the student: “What are you doing?”
- The first student responds with a different activity (different to what they have been doing) and leaves the circle.
- The second student immediately starts acting out the new activity until the next student enters and asks: “what are you doing?” They must then come up with a new activity.
- Encourage actions and words in the short improvised activities.
- Example: The first student is brushing their hair and the next student comes in and asks "what are you doing?" and the first student says something like 'riding in a bike race' then leaves. The next student immediately starts acting out a bike race scenario.
- Keep playing around the circle.
Transition
- “You will have the majority of class today to work on your monologues, including applying your script analysis, as well as rehearsing your monologue.”
Instruction
- Remind them that they are preparing these monologues to perform at the end of the unit, clarify that this “performance” is more of a workshop than a traditional performance. Each student will have about 5-7 minutes of time to perform their monologue, receive feedback and coaching from me, and implement it in real time.
Review
Discussion
Review with the students the importance of script analysis, beats, objectives, tactics/actions, given circumstances, asking:
- What is script analysis and how does it help you as an actor?
What are beats?
- Moments when there is a change of topic/energy. Breaks up the monologue and makes it more interesting
What are the objectives?
- What your character wants
- If there are two character objectives, one might be an obstacle to the other
What are the given circumstances?
- Information, events, setting, relationships, etc. that inform character choices
What are tactics/actions
- Different choices/methods used to accomplish your objective
Instruction
Explain that in their same document (from last lesson) where they have been assigning actions to each sentence of their monologue, they will continue applying their script analysis by writing down beats, objectives, and given circumstances.
Instruct students that the goal of class today is to complete actioning their text, and complete their script analysis for their monologue, writing the following on the board:
What to do today.
- For analysis - write down your character’s objective, mark the beat changes in your monologue (you should have at least two!)
- For actioning - one per sentence, “I (verb) you”, use the thesaurus
Individual Work
- Give students time to individually work on their monologue analysis, walking around to facilitate and answer questions as needed.
- If you notice students who are finished with all of their analysis, check their work for the assessment, and instruct them to start memorizing and rehearsing their monologue for the workshop performance.
Wrap-up
- If there are any students who did not complete their script analysis work, inform them that they must finish the rest of it at home, as the next class will be dedicated to rehearsal and memorization in preparation for the workshop performance.
Assessment: Ask students to show you their written monologue with the script analysis and actions they’ve chosen. Give feedback on “actions” that do not match the criteria of action words, or objectives that are not backed by script analysis, etc.