ACTING & REHEARSAL - 2020/1

Module Overview

Acting and Rehearsal explores the role of the Actor-Musician in a range of texts – all of which utilise an integration of acting and musical skill.

In the first term students work on Classical Text usually Shakespeare which encourages them to explore the history and unique challenges that playing classical text has for an actor. Work is then shown to peers as “work in progress” to explore the work in a safe practical performance setting. The second term divides between two projects the first a 20th Century Text – which builds on skills explored and learned in the first Unit but applies them to language that is perhaps more accessible and embraces different musical styles – this again is shown to peers in a safe practical performance setting. In the second half of the term students will work on a project that explores the practical application of work in a community setting – devising and exploring work for a set group of people that GSA has targeted for Outreach – this could cover reminiscence theatre, children’s theatre or take up an educational theme and explore the possibilities of performance in this setting.

The third term of study looks in depth at the genre of Musical Theatre where music, dance, singing and acting are integrated to create a performance of work that is shown to the wide range of peers and staff – with the aim of sustaining and delivering an original score of musical theatre as actor-musicians.

Module provider

Guildford School of Acting

Module Leader

SCRIVENS Nicholas (GSA)

Number of Credits: 45

ECTS Credits: 22.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 5

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Year long

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

N/A

Module content

Indicative content includes:

• Practical Workshop Study

• Rehearsal Workshop Class

• Music Rehearsal Class

• Tutorials (1-1)

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate a practical evidence of a developing methodology as an actor-musician.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

Unit 1: Shakespeare 30% (Teaching Block 1) Student Activity

• Ensemble Work

• Voice Work

• Movement Work

• Solo Character & Text Delivery

• Engagement with process

• Effective Performance Delivery

Unit 2: 20th Century text 20% (Teaching Block 2) Student Activity

• Ensemble Work

• Voice Work

• Movement Work

• Solo Character & Text Delivery

• Engagement with process

• Effective Performance Delivery

Unit 3: Outreach 20% (Teaching Block 2)

• Ensemble Work

• Development Work

• Character & Text Creativity

• Engagement with process

• Engagement with end user and performance

Unit 4: Musical Theatre 30% (Teaching Bock 3) Student Activity

• Ensemble Work

• Voice Work

• Movement/Dance Work

• Singing Work

• Solo Character & Text Delivery

• Engagement with process

• Effective Performance Delivery

Formative assessment

N/A

Feedback

These are practical assessments that provides students with the opportunity to demonstrate and receive feedback sequentially. Students receive verbal and written feedback and also benefit from personal tutorials where this feedback can be discussed after reflection and grading has taken place.

Module aims

• Introduce students to a range of advance acting techniques and concepts across a range of texts. With an introduction to the following genres
• Classical Text
  Typically Shakespeare, but will always involve verse speaking and extended thought patterns.
  
• 20th Century Text
  Generally British, American and Irish playwrights – and covering key skills of integration of music.
  
  
• Outreach (Applied Theatre)
  Typically reminiscence or children’s theatre, but this project can be driven by the specific interests of the cohort and institution at the time of delivery
  
• Musical Theatre
  Generally by an established theatre writer (eg Sondheim, Bernstein, Llloyd Webber et al). Not original work but work that has already been orchestrated and performed in theatre.
  

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

• Place an emphasis on the practical performance skills required as an actor-musician.

The module aims to introduce Level 5 students to the application of text and interpretation of text in a workshop and the practical performance. Key Practitioners are studied and the aim is to integrate skills in voice, singing, music, movement and acting across the length of the module – enabling students to explore their work across a range of performance development methods, rehearsals and performance situations.

The learning and teaching methods include:

Across the year this module is delivered over 450 hours of study with a blend of personal practice and practical class delivery.

Classical Text – Teaching Block 1

20th Century Text – Teaching Block 2

Outreach – Teaching Block 2

Musical Theatre – Teaching Block 3

Throughout the module different learning and teaching strategies are applied to enable students to achieve the learning outcomes, including research, reflective practice, peer to peer learning and formative assessment with detailed written feedback.

• The approach of the module is vocational in content and delivery and encourages students to participate in reflection on their own practice, independent study and research and embeds the concepts of peer to peer feedback within the rehearsal room. Students are encouraged to utilise materials on SURREY LEARN and also receive individual tutorials from staff to help in forming their learning experience.

• Students receive regular verbal feedback both individually and as a group during each class which they are encouraged to journal and use for reflection.

• Students are encouraged to self-assess and peer-assess within the class structure and as part of the ethos of continuous actor training.

• Lesson plans are structured to take account of and deliver for students with a specifc bias toward visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning enabling differentation of techniques within the class and a sensitivity towards inclusivity.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: AMT2012

Other information

Under the three term structure that commences from academic year 2019/0 – this module’s delivery is year-long due to the teaching occurring in Teaching Blocks 1, 2 and 3.

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2020/1 academic year.