Year 11 Directing Folio
A Guide to completing the Task
Student Question:
Where do I
Start?
Mrs. Beattie’s
Answer:
At the beginning,
take it step by step.
Manage your
impulsivity!
1. Have you read the whole play? Yes (this is brilliant) No (than you need to read
it NOW, how can you do an assignment on a play you have not read?)
2. Rationale of the play.
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You need to write this like an essay in small paragraphs.
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So what do you need to talk about?
 Tell future directors, actors, stage managers what inspired the
play.
 What are the themes or messages that the author is trying to get
across to the audience?
 Elements of drama, how are they used in the play to bring the
theme forward. (Don’t panic the elements of drama are on the
next page!!)
 What conventions of Eclectic theatre are evident?
 How do the conventions of Eclectic theatre enable the elements
of drama?
 What is your vision as a director? How are you going to make
your vision real on the stage?
 How does Lighting, sound, blocking, set design, costume design
impact on your vision, how are these used to highlight the
elements of drama or as conventions of eclectic theatre.
The Elements of Drama/ The Bones of Drama
Relationships
Relationships are central to all dramatic action:
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relationships between people
the relationship between people and ideas
the relationship between people and the environment
Tension
Tension is the force that drives the drama. There are four main types of dramatic
tension:
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the tension of the task
the tension of relationships
the tension of surprise
the tension of mystery
Focus
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Exploring one aspect of the situation which we wish to develop and staying clear
about our intention - driving our character and associated contents forward in the
performance.
Time & Place
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Dramatists need to carefully choose the place where the action takes place as this
can greatly affect the events and tensions within the drama.
Aspects of place include:
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the range of characters
closed and open settings
contrasting settings
messages of place
In drama we ask ourselves the following Time in action:
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closed and open time frames
messages of period
associations of period
constraints of period
exploring causes
exploring effects
Language
In drama we express our ideas, our feelings and our needs to each other by:
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the words we say
the way we say them
our body language
The language of the drama:
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the situation
the roles
the relationships
the images
Movement
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images in action
stillness and contrast
Mood
This is the feeling or atmosphere that is created by, and emerges through, the dramatic
action.
Symbol
Symbols are what the drama makes you understand - they sum up the meaning of the play,
sometimes even on a subconscious level. Symbols can be expressed through language,
movement, visual images.
We can see symbol through:
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gestures
objects
All this combines to make
Dramatic Meaning the Human Context (Roles, Relationships and Situations)
In drama, we are the creators. The elements are the bones which make up the entire body of
dramatic action. The story, the situations, the people and the tension which drives it,
breathes life and spirit into our creation.
Contrast is now commonly accepted as an element of drama
3. Drawing a Set Design
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When you draw your set design you need to include in your rationale why you have
designed your set the way you have.
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How do you write the rationale for the set design? You need to tell me why you
have chosen to do the scene the way you have, when and where your scene is set
(these are the elements of time and place), what mood are you trying to create, have
you used particular colours to symbolise a certain thing or mood? Does your scene
give focus to a particular idea and why?
4. Costume Design Pages
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Make sure you draw a costume for every character
Use templates to help you design your costumes.
Make sure you label costumes and they are in colour, you may like to
add small swatches of material.
Writing a costume rationale. What do you include? What is the
cultural or historical setting? What is the social setting? (e.g. set in the
present, surf culture, at school). What are you trying to represent with
these costumes? Why did you choose the colours you did? Does
colour effect mood? What is the hair style, remember costume is
everything about the character from the top of their head to their toes.
5. Lighting and Sound
 You need to think about lighting your scene. Why have you lit it in a
particular way? How does lighting impact on eclectic conventions you
have used? What elements of drama does it reinforce or foreground.
What is important about foregrounding? IE if the lighting is symbolising
turmoil, why would you need to show that, are you creating tension, are
you giving focus to the subtext of the play or the lines?
 Sound is important.
Sound can establish time and place
Sound can create a particular mood or tension
Sound can focus the audience
Contrast of sound, can direct an audience’s attention to a particular
place you want them to look.
You need to write a rationale for each of the following:
Your set design
Your costume design
Your sound and lighting
When you have written a paragraph for each one you need to
notify me and email me you work please.