by Alex Taylor
EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVE:
Students will demonstrate their ability to create and define character by developing a character and writing a monologue from that character’s point of view.
STANDARDS:
National HS Accomplished TH:Cr1.1.II: Use personal experiences and knowledge to develop a character that is believable and authentic in a drama/theatre work.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Whiteboard, 3-6 pictures of unfamiliar people (I like to use pictures from makeup books that are close-up and often show people of age and experience)
TEACHING PRESENTATION:
WARM UP/HOOK:
Show the various pictures of people to the class and have them choose the one they like the best by voting and narrowing the choices down as a class.
STEP 1: Transition
Share with the class how any person (like in the picture) can be a character on stage that we can learn about and care about through the skills of a playwright.
STEP 2: Instruction
Together with the class, brainstorm on the board different aspects that make up a person. Have students discuss with the people around them and then have them come up individually to the board to write their response. Some answers could include:
- Personality
- Mannerisms
- Physical Appearance
- Dress
- Emotions
- Reactions to situations
- Social Status
- Education
- Relationships
- Religious Beliefs
- Passions
- Hobbies
- Outlook on Life
Do not let the students get off with “simple answers” or a mind-block after thinking for a few minutes. Encourage them to expand their imagination and think of the hundred different things that make a person different from one another. Hopefully you can fill the entire board with ideas and aspects of a person.
Introduce the idea of the character formula for playwriting:
Character + Want + Obstacle = Action (plot)
STEP 3: Guided Practice
Bring out the chosen picture (from the hook) and together as a class develop that person (writing the answers on the board) …a Character Analysis Exercise.
- Who is this person? (age, occupation, background)
- What is his/her name? (specific)
- What is special about him/her? (way he/she talks, walks, dresses, personality – refer to the previous list of a person’s aspect)
- Where is he/she? (specifics)
- How does he/she feel about being there? Why? (what does facial expression say, emotional tone)
- What does the character want, need, or dream about? (something important)
- What is stopping him/her from getting it? (specific)
STEP 4: Instruction
Write the following three questions on the board:
- What does he/she need to tell?
- Who is he/she telling to?
- Why is this day different from any other day?
Introduce these questions as “The Need to Tell” that every character on stage needs to be able to answer in order to show why they are on stage talking. Their conflict is that they need to tell this something but don’t necessarily want to for some reason. Share the quote: “Conflict (or the need to tell) is the tool to reveal character.”
STEP 5: Individual Practice
Have the students write a first-person monologue from this character’s point-of-view as if he/she is just beginning to speak after the picture was taken. They can use the information brainstormed about the person as background for their characterization. The above three questions need to be answered at some point somehow in the monologue.
STEP 6: Checking for Understanding
Have a few students share their monologues with the class. Be sure to note in each character analysis what the character needed to tell.
STEP 7: Discussion
Relate the exercise to playwriting by discussing possibilities such as what the next scene in the character’s life might be, how the listener might react, who other characters around them are, where it takes place, etc.
STEP 8: Individual Practice
Have each student choose an inanimate object – anything that does not breathe and is not alive (examples might include a couch, toaster, television, rake, blanket, book). Once the students have decided on their inanimate object, have them write a first-person monologue from the point of view of that object. Let their writing “be” that object’s monologue. They can write on anything they want as long as it is from that inanimate object’s point of view.
STEP 9: Modeling
Have the students take turns reading their monologues and then discuss as a class how the monologue showed what the object was. Point out any wonderful things that this new point of view brings up.
ASSESSMENT:
Students can be assessed through their character and inanimate object monologue readings and writings.