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Production Projects B

  • Module code: DA6002
  • Year: 2018/9
  • Level: 6
  • Credits: 30
  • Pre-requisites: DA6001
  • Co-requisites: None

Summary

This is a core requirement for full field Drama students and an option for students taking Drama as a major field. It continues from DA6001, enabling students to develop the ideas and research they have undertaken in that module and carry them through to realisation. It is a capstone project which allows students to draw together their learning from across the Drama programme and apply it in a 'real-world' context through the creation, rehearsal and performance of a theatre production.

This module is largely undertaken through independent group-based rehearsal, although there is also a series of presentations and workshops addressing specific areas such as groupwork strategies, problem-solving, rehearsal planning and scheduling, managing budgets and publicity and marketing. Students form groups, select roles and choose scripts, themes and modes of performance based on the 'pitch' they made and the feedback received at the end of DA6001. The size of groups may vary but groups should not be made up of fewer than 5 students or more than 12. Each group will have a designated supervisor and a budget allocated on the basis of group size. The rehearsal process will be constructed around a series of formatively and summatively assessed stages such as work in progress performances, group and individual reflective exercises, submission of design and technical plans and presentation of publicity materials. Performances will be scheduled across a number of weeks in consultation with the Drama Technical Production Manager.

Aims

This module aims to:

  • actively engage students in the creative and inter-personal decision-making processes necessary to take a theatre production from first rehearsal to final performance
  • offer students an experiential understanding of the connections between and value of research, practice and reflection in the context of theatre-making
  • offer students a realistic experience of the challenges and rewards of real-world theatre production
  • extend and develop students' organisational, time-management, problem-solving and communicative skills 

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:

  • identify and respond to the various intellectual and creative choices that need to be made in order to produce a full theatre production (Key Skill: Creativity and Problem Solving)
  • demonstrate the key skills associated with a specific role within theatre creation and production (eg, actor, deviser, director, designer, dramaturg) (Key Skills: Interpersonal, Management and Leadership)
  • make useful and productive links between research, practice and reflection in the context of a theatre-making process (Key Skills: Self Awareness, Research and Information Literacy)
  • communicate and collaborate effectively in an ensemble context (Key Skills: Communication, Interpersonal)
  • demonstrate skills of organisation, time-management and problem-solving (Key Skills: Numeracy, Creativity and Problem Solving)

Curriculum content

  • Strategies for effective group work
  • Rehearsal planning and scheduling
  • Managing the production budget
  • Technical requirements (eg,creating LX and FX cue sheets)
  • Publicity and marketing
  • Work in Progress presentations
  • Group-based reflective sessions with supervisors 
  • Technical and Dress rehearsals

Teaching and learning strategy

As a final year, final teaching block, capstone project, the largest part of students' learning takes place through independent study, mainly in the form of group-based rehearsals. There are two types of more formal teaching input. The first is a series of workshops, as identified in the curriculum content, which encourage students to engage with the practical aspects of organising a theatre production, require them to reflect on their previous experience of doing so and offer advice about methods and approaches. The second is achieved through interaction with a designated staff supervisor, who is allocated on the basis of the mode and style of production of each group. The supervisor meets with the group on a regular basis and provides feedback on their rehearsal process. In addition, groups share their work with each other through formal and informal presentations of work in progress. Technical staff also advise and assist students in relation to the technical aspects of their productions.

Breakdown of Teaching and Learning Hours

Definitive UNISTATS Category Indicative Description Hours
Scheduled learning and teaching Five 2 hour workshops 10
Scheduled learning and teaching Work in progress presentations 3
Scheduled learning and teaching Technical and dress rehearsal 4
Scheduled learning and teaching Formal supervision sessions 5
Guided independent study Individual independent study 78
Guided independent study Group rehearsal 200
Total (number of credits x 10) 300

Assessment strategy

Students are assessed on process, performance and reflection. Process and reflection will both be assessed through a portfolio (equivalent to 2500 words, worth 40%), submitted towards the end of their process but before their performance. This contains material evidence of their individual creative and organisational contribution and a reflective, critical commentary upon that material. Because students have different roles and the productions take different forms, students' contributions will be demonstrated in a variety of ways. For instance, directors may be asked to submit a rehearsal plan, designers to submit designs, devisers to produce a performance score and actors a character biography. Reflecting the ways in which professional theatre is judged, the largest percentage of the final grade (60%) comes from the Performance, which means the overall success and effectiveness of the final product as well as the specific skills exhibited by each student within that product. Performances will vary in length depending on the size of the group and the nature of the performance.

Formative assessments include the submission of a group rationale approximately 4 weeks into the process, an informal work in progress performance at which students get feedback from both staff and fellow students and roundtable discussions with supervisors during which students are asked to reflect on their work up to that point.

Mapping of Learning Outcomes to Assessment Strategy (Indicative)

Learning Outcome Assessment Strategy
Identify and respond to the various intellectual and creative choices that need to be made in order to produce a full theatre production (KS: Creativity and Problem Solving) Formatively in group rationale, informal work in progress presentation and roundtable discussions; summatively in, portfolio and performance
Demonstrate the key skills associated with a specific role within theatre creation and production (eg, actor, deviser, director, designer, dramaturg) (KS: Interpersonal, Management and Leadership) Formatively in group rationale, informal work in progress presentation and roundtable discussions; summatively in, portfolio and performance
Make useful and productive links between research, practice and reflection in the context of a theatre-making process (KS: Self Awareness, Research and Information Literacy) Formatively in group rationale, informal work in progress presentation and roundtable discussions; summatively in, portfolio and performance
Communicate and collaborate effectively in an ensemble context (KS: Communication, Interpersonal) Formatively in group rationale, informal work in progress presentation and roundtable discussions; summatively in, portfolio and performance
Demonstrate skills of organisation, time-management and problem-solving (KS: Numeracy, Creativity and Problem Solving) Formatively in group rationale, informal work in progress presentation and roundtable discussions; summatively in, portfolio and performance

Achieving a pass

It IS NOT a requirement that any major assessment category is passed separately in order to achieve an overall pass for the module

Bibliography core texts

Bibliography will be developed by the individual student in consultation with academic staff.

Bibliography recommended reading

Recommended texts will differ depending on the mode and style of production and the student's role within it

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