PRELIM REVISION
VOCABULARY WORKSHEETS
VOCAL TERMINOLOGY
 TONE – How you express emotion. The tone of your voice
can let the audience know if you are sad, happy, angry
 ARTICULATION - How clearly you pronounce your words –
could suggest a well/poorly educated character. Good
articulation is essential in performance so that the audience
can understand you clearly
 ACCENT– To show where a character is from
 EMPHASIS – Putting stress on certain words to
communicate purpose
 INTONATION – The rise and fall of your voice – rise can be
used to show uncertainty or fall can show
arrogance/dismissal
 PACE – Fast paced can indicate a nervous character or
desperation, slow paced can show a calm, controlled
character
 PAUSE – Pause can add tension to dialogue which is
essential in good drama – more can be said in a moment of
silence than in a page of dialogue
 PITCH – High voice may indicate fear or nervousness or
femininity. Low could indicate strength and control,
masculinity
 VOLUME– Shouting does not always create best dramatic
impact, sometimes speaking quietly demonstrates more
threatening behaviour
MOVEMENT TERMINOLOGY
We use NATURALISTIC movement to aid
characterization
 Body Language – to convey
emotion/personality
 Facial Expression – to convey emotion
 Gesture – to convey emotion/personality
 Eye contact – can be used to show status
 Posture – can be used to show background,
age, status
Some Other Helpful Vocabulary
 PROXEMICS – Where you positioned on stage
in relation to the other actors
 MASKING – When the audience can’t see you
or another actor because of where you are
standing
 BLOCKING – Deciding on all the moves for
actors
 INTERPRETATION – To understand in your
own way
 STATUS – Who has the power, authority or
importance
TENSION REVISION
Tension is the driving force behind a drama. It creates a
challenge for the audience – ‘what happens next’ – and
prevents the drama becoming boring.
 Action  Conflict –
 Mystery –
fight, explosion, kiss
argument, disagreement, war of wills
fear of the unknown worse than facing the
fear
 Movement –
sudden stillness in a frantic piece or vice
versa
 Shock/Surprise something unexpected
 Status –
suddenly a quiet seemingly insignificant
character comes into the action or how you
portray status (if you stand next to
someone looking threatening how does the
threat change if you now stand behind
them)
 Silence –
Harold Pinter writes in pauses to create
tension
 Threat/
Pressure
Harold Pinter – what is lurking outside, or
an actual threat by one character to
another
 Dramatic Irony- When the audience knows/see’s something
that the actor doesn’t yet know
 Theatre Arts  Acting
Technique –
Lighting and sound effects and other
theatre arts can also be used to create
tension
Use of voice and movement
DRAMA CONVENTIONS REVISION
They are used to make parts of the drama more interesting to an
audience.
• FLASHBACK –
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Used in non-linear dramas to move
the action between the present and
back in time
FLASHFORWARD – Used in non-linear dramas to move
the action between the present and
the future
FROZEN PICTURE – A still image
MIME –
Action with no words
MONOLOGUE –
A lengthy speech delivered to the
audience or other characters, Can be
used to express emotion, create
tension, or supply audience with
information
MOVEMENT –
A significant change of pace
SLOW MOTION –
Action slowed down to create impact
NARRATION –
Someone on stage telling the story,
parts of the story or keeping the
audience informed of the action
VOICE OVER –
A voice heard but not character not
seen –like ‘Big Brother’ – Can be
used to create tension or helpful if
there is a lack of actors
ASIDE –
When a character says a quick line to
the audience without the other
character hearing – used a lot in
pantomimes
SOLILOQUOY –
A lengthy speech delivered by an
actor that is telling the audience their
inner most thoughts – they are totally
alone on stage or unaware of other
characters presence – it is like
reading out loud a ‘Dear Diary’ entry
– can be used to show the characters
inner thoughts and help audience
understand their deep emotions
TABLEAU –
Another word for a frozen picture
DRAMA FORM AND STRUCTURE REVISION
Drama form is the overall style of a Drama – the structure is how
that drama is laid out.
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Play (scripted or improvised)
Dance Drama
Mime
Monologue
Movement
Musical
Pantomime
Comedy
Tragedy
Docu-Drama
Forum Theatre – Used by Augusto Boal and it allows the
audience to influence or change what is happening on stage
 Linear Structure –
Beginning, Middle and End
 Non-Linear Structure– Jumping between present, past and
future and requires the use of the
flashback or flashforward convention
THE DEVISING PROCESS
 RESEARCH
 PRESENT IDEA’S TO GROUP
 SELECT THEME
 RESEARCH
 3 STORYLINES
 SELECT STORYLINE
 CHARACTER PROFILES
 IMPROVISATION
 BEGINNING, MIDDLE, END
 IMPROVISATION
 FORM, STRUCTURE, CONVENTIONS
 SCENE BREAKDOWN
 REHEARSE