TITLE
LES
Understanding and Performing Ancient Greek Tragedies
DURATION
LEARNING &
EVALUATION
SITUATION
2 classes of 75 minutes
None
TEXT(S)
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MATERIALS
SUBJECT AREA
LEVEL
Internet Access
Projector
Drama
Secondary
Cycle One
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PROGRAM CONTENT
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Year 1 (Gr. 7)
Year 2 (Gr. 8)
Secondary
Cycle Two
Year 1 (Gr. 9)
Year 3 (Gr. 11)
Year 2 (Gr. 10)
Building a character
o Body: attitude, emotion, gestures, direction of gaze, rhythm,
gait, actions
Body techniques and expression
o Exaggeration, targeting of audience
Ensemble work
o Response to performance directions
o Response to visual and sound cues
o Adjustment of acting style to that of his/her partners
Playwriting methods
o Basic storyline
o Dramatic texts
Students will be able to:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
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–
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Identify the form and structure of a Greek Tragedy
Describe the function and role of the chorus in Greek plays.
Construct and perform a tragic play in which a character experiences a
catastrophe.
Secondary
Cycle One
SUBJECT-SPECIFIC
COMPETENCIES
CROSS-CURRICULAR
COMPETENCIES
Secondary
Cycle Two
Competency 1. Creates and performs dramatic works
Competency 2. Appreciates dramatic works
Competency 1. Uses information
Competency 6. Uses ICT
Competency 2. Solves problems
Competency 7. Achieves his/her potential
Competency 3. Exercises critical judgment
Competency 8. Cooperates with others
Competency 4. Uses creativity
Competency 5. Adopts effective work methods
Competency 9. Communicates
appropriately
Health and Well-Being
BROAD AREA
OF LEARNING
Personal and
Career Planning
CLASS PERIOD
& DURATION
CLASS 1
75 Min. for Activity
Environmental Awareness /
Consumer Rights and
Responsibilities
Media Literacy
Citizenship and
Community Life
LESSON PLAN
LEARNING ACTIVITY 1:
Introduction/Warm-Up
Begin by asking the class what they know about drama and its history. Just get a grasp on their
knowledge of the subject. You don’t necessarily even have to correct their misconceptions just
yet. Then introduce Euripides and his play “Medea”.
Talking points:
1. Euripides lived between 480-406 BCE in Athens. His work, along with Aeschylus,
Sophocles, and Euphorion are some of the only works from this time to have survived.
2. So he wrote “Medea” which is essentially a sequel to the myth of Jason and the Argos.
a. The story is: Jason came to Colchis, where Medea lived, to get the Golden
Fleece. So he did a bunch of tasks.
b. Medea being a sorceress (she was the daughter of Circe) helped Jason with
each task making him promise to marry her.
c. So Jason got the fleece and they ran away to Crete. Her father tried to stop
them, so Medea killed her brother to distract him. Some versions claim Medea
cut him into pieces and scattered them.
d. They got to Crete where Pelias would not give up his throne to Jason. So
Medea convinced the daughters of Pelias that she could make him young
again. She told them to cut up his body and throw it in a certain part. So Medea
and Jason had to run from Crete as well.
e. They finally landed in Corinth where they set up a new life, had 6 kids, and lived
happily ever after … at least for a while.
3. Show the students this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tqNTBgh1MU
a. It is made by a high school student, it is really entertaining, and most
importantly a really great summary of the play.
Development
Put up the PowerPoint (Appendix B). And begin discussing Greek theatre and its origins.
1. Dionysus – The god of wine, ritual madness, fertility, and theatre.
2. Story goes, there was some sort of genital plague going around and the men of Ancient
Greece prayed to Dionysus to get rid of it. As a thanks they had this huge festival in his
honor. The festival of Dionysia.
3. The Dionysia was intense. Everything shut down for 3-5 days. Everyone was expected
to attend. We do not have anything in current culture that is equivalent to this festival.
4. The festival revolved around drama productions. There were 3 types: Satyr, Comedy,
and Tragedy.
The stage:
1. Basically no set.
2. Orchestra – where the chorus sings and dances.
3. Theatron – basically where the audience sits. Could sit up to 14,000 people. The actors
would be incredibly far from the people even half way up the stands.
4. Skene – The backdrop of the play. Also used for storage.
Masks
1. The masks were designed to amplify sound in one direction, which means there could
not be a lot of movement and actors needed to face the audience at all times.
2. These masks were also larger than life, exaggerated to show emotions to audience in
the back, and, obviously, were unable to change the emotion on the mask. This means
characters would be sort of limited to one facial emotion.
3. Also, no peripheral vision.
Structure
1. Prologue – Characters talk about what happened before. It’s usually a connection to the
myth.
2. Parados – The entrance of the chorus.
3. Episodes – 3-6 episodes. Defined by: new character enters, dialogue happens, then we
go into a stasima.
4. Stasima – Formal choral odes between episodes. There is strophe and antistrophe,
which means back and forth. This mirrors the choral movements and the dialogue, which
is a back and forth between characters and chorus.
5. Catastrophe – Where the perpiteia and anagnorisis happen. This is the reversal and the
recognition. We see this today too. In Richard III, “A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a
horse!” It’s the moment in which a reversal of fortune occurs and the character realizes
something very important. This happens in any movie where someone has been getting
taken advantage of and at the moment that they realize it, it’s too late; their life is
changed forever.
a. So the reversal happens and then there is the realization. The closer together
and more logically linked the better (according to Aristotle).
b. Oedipus is another great example. He finds out he fulfilled the prophecy through
the messenger. So these things happen at the same time. He then stabs out his
eyes which is the catastrophe.
c. Also notice that Medea never gets these things.
6. Exodus – the final song, chant, dance, and exit of the chorus.
Role of the Chorus
1. Embodies the theoretical principle – the chorus reflects on the events and gives the
audience ideas about what should be happening/what is going wrong.
2. Mediator between stage life and real world – really interesting way to make the play
seem more relevant. The chorus interacts with both fictional and real world.
3. Present communal effect of the incidents of plot – Ties in to first point about giving the
audience ideas. Gives a sense of community to these ideas. “We as a people, as a
society, believe this.
4. Embodiment of a norm – again, same as above.
Closure/Wrap-Up
Make sure the students really understand the structure of Greek Tragedy because next, they will
be writing their own tragic plays.
They will take a situation from this list:
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Someone borrows a pencil and forgets to give it back.
You hold the door for someone, but they don’t say thanks.
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Your parents ask you to take out the garbage, but you don’t feel like it.
Someone coughs in public without covering their mouth.
A wrong number or telemarketer calls your phone.
You see that your friend reads a message you send them, but does not respond.
Someone steals a joke you made.
Your friend starts hanging out with someone you do not like.
A friend or acquaintance forgets to wish you a happy birthday.
Your favourite sports team loses to your least favourite team.
You friend acts differently around another friend or his/her parents.
The students will take one of these subjects and make it into a Greek tragic play. In terms of
structure it must have peripiteia and anagnorisis that lead to catastrophe. There obviously does
not need to be a chorus or have an episodic nature, but will need a beginning, middle, and end of
course.
Have them write out at least a plan for their play.
On a separate piece of paper, have the students write a quick exit card: What did I learn, what
did I find interesting?
Extension/What’s Next?
Next class they will be performing their tragic plays.
Multi-level Modifications
If applicable, explain how you would modify this activity for exceptional students (who may have
either advanced skills or require additional supports, modifications, or accommodations.
CLASS #
# Min. for Activity
PERFORMANCE TASK: TITLE
Before having the students perform, have them do a warm up activity. Here is an example:
Chorus Warm-Up
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Get the students to perform a nursery rhyme as the chorus from Greek theatre.
The students should stay and move as a group. Their movements should be in sync.
Any nursery rhyme goes. Here are some examples:
o Mary Had a Little Lamb
o Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
o Jack and Jill
o Do You Know The Muffin Man
o Little Miss Muffet
o Humpty Dumpty
o Hey Diddle Diddle
o Hickory Dickory Dock
Also, allow them to rehearse for 5-10 minutes.
Assessment
Students will be assessed based on a rubric (Appendix A).
Evaluation Criteria
In their performance, the students must:
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Avoid blocking and turning their back on their audience
Speak loudly and clearly.
Have a story with a beginning, middle, and end.
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 Their Tragic plays must have peripiteia and anagnorisis
 They must keep in mind they have an audience to entertain
These criteria as well as the rubric will be evaluated
Extension/What’s Next?
Next class they will study Commedia dell’Arte.
APPENDIX A
DRAMA PERFORMANCE RUBRIC
Name:___________________________________
Class:___________________
Criteria
5
4
3
2/1
VOICE
Voice was loud
and clear;
words were
easily
understood
Student spoke clearly
but it was difficult to
understand some of
the script; could’ve
been louder.
Voice and language
was not very clear;
could’ve been
much louder.
Could not
understand what
was being said due
to unclear and low
speech.
AUDIENCE
Audience felt
like part of the
show.
Was aware and wellconnected to the
audience.
Needed more
audience
awareness and
connection.
No audience
awareness or
connection at all.
Good use of
stage and
movement—
did not turn
back to
audience
Almost used entire
stage—turned away
from audience only
once or twice.
Could have used
more of the stage;
must concentrate
on facing forward.
Needed more
blocking—always
face audience and
use the stage!
Enticing vivid
detail used in
script/dialogue;
evident reasons
for the
performance.
Script/dialogue was
well-written;
considerable detail
with good purpose.
Some detail used in
script/dialogue;
needed more of a
purpose.
Script/dialogue
contained no
purpose and very
little detail.
Dramatic
conventions
were used
seamlessly to
enhance
performance
Great use of
gestures, facial
expression and
body
movement!
Committed,
cooperated &
concentratedWOW!
Dramatic conventions
were used
appropriately in the
performance.
Dramatic
conventions were
used awkwardly in
the performance.
Dramatic
conventions were
not used in the
performance
Contained some facial
expression, gestures
& body movement.
Needed more facial
expressions
gestures &
movement.
Contained little to
no facial
expression, gesture
or movement.
Semi-committed,
concentrated &
cooperativeGREAT!
Almost committed,
cooperative &
concentratedNOT TOO
BAD…
No commitment,
cooperation or
concentration
MORE
REHEARSAL!
BLOCKING
SCRIPT/
PURPOSE
(When applicable)
ADHERENCE
TO
CONVENTIONS
FACIAL
EXPRESSION/
BODY LANGUAGE
OVERALL
TOTAL
Final Grade:
Additional Comments: ______________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
APPENDIX B
https://www.dropbox.com/s/9nrnzqner5dt7ur/Greek%20Tragedy%20Medea.pptx?dl=0
Reflection on LES
This lesson was extremely successful for me. I was fortunate enough to teach an exceptional
group of students who participated fully and enjoy drama very much. The success is also due to
engaging the students in an academic subject by giving them a vision and model in which to follow.
The video that is used in this LES won the students over completely. They were able to see in which
direction we were going as a class and how they could be creative and entertaining with this
subject. This allowed for the rest of the lecture to run smoothly. Students asked questions about the
application of certain conventions in plays and were listening attentively in order to figure out how
to make their own tragedy.
I made sure to spend a lot of time on perpiteia and anagnorisis since these ideas can be hard
to grasp and I linked it to many popular movies and television shows I could think of. I think this is
very useful in engaging the students and providing concrete examples, but in order to flow
smoother I should have come up with a better list of concrete examples as a plan B if I could not
think of anything on the spot.
The students were very excited to put on their own versions of a tragedy. Some of them
really connected with the prompts while others used the prompts to get to even better ideas. The
performances reflected their enjoyment of the subject and task; I did not give out any mark lower
than an 80 and I sincerely laughed during the performances.
An aspect that could be added to round out the lesson and have the students engage with
competency 2: appreciates dramatic works, could be a self-reflection and/or a peer reflection. I
would like to come up with a template in which students can reflect on their performances and the
performances of others. This reflection template could be used throughout the year and become
part of the classroom routine.