THE DRAMA CURRICULUM AT UCC

The Drama curriculum across Key Stage 3 and 4 at Uppingham Community College is centred around the key skills Drama provides for the wider development of our students. We call these the 5Cs of Drama – Confidence, Communication, Co-operation, Commitment and Concentration. Students are able to use these skills in the study of a variety of themes, performances, practitioners and texts. They are encouraged to learn the knowledge about the work of theatre makers whilst gaining many opportunities to develop their understanding of how theatre is made through the creation and appraisal of their own performance work. Skilful application occurs when students create theatre which uses style and techniques in interesting ways for their audience, performing with confidence and successfully identifying ways to improve their work.

Below are two examples of this in practice:

Knowledge: When studying the theatre practitioner of Stanislavski, students develop a working knowledge of the main parts of his system for actors.

Understanding: Students will be encouraged to make links between these parts of the system and the style of performance Stanislavski was striving for, understanding how preparing a role for performance using this method creates a particular outcome or effect for the audience.

Skill: Students will demonstrate their knowledge and understanding through developing their own character within an extract of a contemporary play text.

Knowledge: When studying Physical Theatre students will be able to know and identify the differences between literal and metaphorical concepts and select appropriate theatrical techniques to communicate this effectively to an audience.

Understanding: Students will develop an understanding of how they can create meaning through their use of theatrical techniques to show the audience what is real, what is representational and what is only happening in a character’s mind.

Skill: Students will demonstrate their knowledge and understanding through devising their own dream sequences using the appropriate techniques for the desired impact on the audience.