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DT 6. Students
analyze and critique informal and formal theatre productions.
DT 6.3.1. Observe
and discuss a formal theatre production.
DT 6.3.2. Identify and describe visual and auditory
elements of informal and formal theatre productions.
DT 6.3.3.
Demonstrate responsible audience behavior.
DT 6.6.1.
Observe and describe a formal theatre production.
DT 6.6.2. Describe
and explain personal preferences and emotional responses about drama
performances.
LA 3.8.3.
Respond appropriately in a variety of social and cultural situations.
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Experience traditional American theatre. Take students to see the plays.
There is a small fee, but
discounts for classes are available if arranged in advance. Contact Melody Actouka at NMC: 234-5498 x1734.
Before
attending the play, discuss the differences between theatre and movies:
Time: The actors are working in present time at
theatre. In movies, there work is
completed.
Action: The performance is live, unique. It may be repeated time after time, but
each performance varies in ways from others.
Theatergoers will see different performances each time. In movies, there
is one performance captured on film that all see, every time.
Interaction: In theatre, the audience and actors are
together. They can hear each other,
see each other. In movies, the actors
are absent, neither seeing nor hearing the audience.
Review some
rules of courtesy:
Enjoy your written program: Read through the program to see the names
of the actors and actresses, director, producer and other people who worked
on the play. Check how many acts and
scenes will be staged and note whether and when there will be an
intermission.
Taking your seat: The lights are sometimes dimmed to indicate
that a performance is about to begin.
There may be other cues. Look
for them.
Noise: Stop talking and making noise when the
performance is about to begin.
Laughter, gasps, applause and other audience reactions are acceptable,
but must not interfere with the next scene, line, action in the drama.
Restroom breaks: Use facilities before performances and
during “intermission.”
Discuss
what happens after a performance:
Applaud: If you didn’t like the play, clap politely
for the effort of the actors. If you
liked it, clap enthusiastically. If
you thought it was spectacular, give a “standing ovation,” stand up and clap.
Wait for the curtain calls to end: Usually, the actors and actresses come out
and bow, sometimes as a group, sometimes in small groups, sometimes one at a
time. Clap for the actors and
actresses. What pattern do you see in
their curtain call?
Meet the cast and Director: After some productions, actors, actresses,
and other important production people circulate among the audience and give
autographs. Get your program signed.
Before you
leave the theatre:
Check around: Make sure you have your belongings.
Check for friends: Make sure your friends and classmates are
all there and have a ride back.
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DT 5. Students
understand and relate the role of theatre arts to culture and history.
DT 5.3.1.
Identify the various settings for creating drama and theatre.
DT 5.3.2. Describe
history and culture through drama activities.
DT 5.6.1. Describe universal characteristics in
plays and productions from various cultures and historical periods.
DT 5.6.2. Analyze the emotional and social impact
of important events…in the community and in other cultures.
DT 7.3.2. Use various art forms such as music,
visual arts, and dance to enhance dramatic activities.
LA 3. Students
engage in the speaking and listening process.
LA 3.1.2. Respond to oral and body language.
LA 4. Students
read, understand and appreciate literature.
LA 4.1.2, 4.4.2. Understand story elements.
LA 4.1.5. Use illustrations as an art form for
enjoyment and imaginative expression.
LA 4.4.4, 4,8.2. Understand the characteristics of
a variety of genres.
LA 4.8.3. Analyze, compare, and contrast the
elements of literary forms.
LA 4.11.1. Identify effects of culture and
historical period on literature.
LA 4.11.3 Analyze figurative, idiomatic, and
symbolic language.
LA 5.1.1, 5.4.1. Recognize and understand that
different purposes require different forms of reading, writing, speaking and
listening.
LA 5.4.3. Understand the characteristics of
different forms of reading, writing, speaking and listening
C 2. To understand the basic values and principles of
American democracy and the importance of shared political and civic belief in
order to maintain a constitutional democracy.
C 2.3.2. Identify
some beliefs commonly shared by Americans and why it is important to share
certain values, principles and beliefs.
C 2.6.5. Describe current issues involving the
rights, responsibilities, role, and status of the individual in relation to
the culture of the community.
C 2.8.4. Describe the concept of fairness and
equality.
C 5. To understand the roles and responsibilities of
the citizen in American Democracy and how a citizen can participate in their
government, select their leaders and exercise their rights as Americans.
C 5.3.1, 5.12.1. Explain the meaning of
citizenship, the characteristics of citizenship, the difference between
citizen and non-citizen …
C 5.3.2. Identify their [citizen’s] personal
rights, political rights, and economic rights and explain their importance of
these rights.
C 5.3.3. Explain and identify the importance of personal
responsibilities and civic responsibilities and consequences for their
actions.
H 2. To understand historical perspectives of student’s
…nation…
H 2.12.9. Analyze how specific historical events
would be interpreted differently based on newly uncovered record or
information.
H 2.12.11. Describe
perceptions of past events with historical empathy.
H 2.12.13. Evaluate the validity and credibility of
different historical interpretations.
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Understanding
the story.
What type
of plays are Trifles and 12 Angry Jurors? Discuss: They are not comedy. There may be some light moments, but they
are serious. Nor are they “tragedy” in
the traditional sense, where a hero, engaged in a contest of historical
importance, has a fatal flaw that colors the outcome. The two plays here are tragedy-like dramas,
with serious themes, a central conflict, and a “moral” resolution.
Identify, for each play: What action takes place? What locations are used? These plays have constricted action and
limited setting. They are
psychological dramas. The “action”
takes place through dialogue, not physical movement. Meaning depends on understanding culture
and context of the dramas. List what skills the audience must have to “enjoy”
these plays.
Understand
plot--Trifles.
Discuss: Before the action in Trifles starts,
we must know that a man was murdered and found in his bed at home. His wife has been arrested and is held in
jail. The investigators, men, are
searching for clues as to “motive.”
Why do they want this evidence?
Discuss: The women in Trifles are only on the
scene to gather clothes for the suspect.
What is the relative importance of the jobs of the men and the women
at the scene?
Discuss: Trifles takes place before women
were accorded full civil rights in American society. They couldn’t vote. They couldn’t serve on
juries. How is this important to the
story? Do the men share the larger
societal view that women are “less” than men?
Discuss: Who finds the motive? What is it?
What are the “clues” that show the motive?
Illustrate the plot: What symbolism is suggested by the wife’s
quilting and stitching? Her jam jars?
Her caged bird? (beauty pieced
together and unified or bound by woman’s work; sustenance; the wife’s life as
a singer with her talent limited, her lack of freedom, and dependence). Draw
these symbols. What other symbols
could you use from the era of the story for these ideas? Draw them.
Discuss: How do the men show their opinion of the
women? What is the meaning of the
play’s title? What makes the women
stick together? How do the women judge
the suspect? Why?
Understanding
plot—12 Angry Jurors.
Discuss. Who are the characters? Why do they have
only numbers to identify them and not names?
How is this relevant to the story?
Discuss: What evidence supports conviction of the
accused? For each juror who initially
votes “guilty,” (all but number 8), give their reasons. Are their reasons tied to the evidence?
Were they all quick to vote guilty? Why would a juror vote guilty despite
reluctance?
Discuss: Why does Juror # 8 vote “not guilty” during
the first jury poll? What effect does
this have on the others?
Discuss: What is the difference between prejudice and
bias? (Prejudice is predisposition against, bias is predisposition for) What prejudices and biases do the jurors
demonstrate? How do those shape their
vote? their “deliberation”?
Discuss: What influences jurors to change their
minds? Do things appear different when
examined closely as opposed to the first impression? How long does the jury deliberation
take? Is that a factor?
Discuss: What do the jurors finally decide?
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Reginald Rose’s Susan
Glaspell’s
