MOOD
and
ATMOSPHERE
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Mood and atmosphere
help
create the feelings and
emotions for the
audience.
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It also creates tension.
The audience wants to know
what will happen next.
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Tension
Tension is the driving force of drama.
It causes others to want to know what happens
next and sustains interest and momentum.
It creates challenges and prevents the drama
from becoming boring
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.
Tension can be created
through:
• movement
• shock or surprise
• silence
• action
• conflict and confrontation
• mystery
• relationships and status
• threat or pressure
• dramatic irony
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Acting techniques can be used to heighten
tension and create mood and atmosphere,
through:
• movement
• pace
• pause
• silence
• voice
• eye contact
• moves
• physical contact
• contrast
• positioning
• timing
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Theatre arts can be used to heighten tension
and create mood and atmosphere, through:
• costume
• lighting (LFX)
• music
• make-up (including masks)
• props
• sound effects (SFX)
• set
• special effects
• staging
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Here are some examples of Theatre
Arts adding mood and atmosphere:
Costume:
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Lighting
The colours of the gel used in the lights can be really
effective in creating mood and atmosphere such as:
RED – ANGER, TENSION, FEAR AND ENVY
GREEN –JELOUSY
BLUE – SADNESS
PINK – ROMANCE
YELLOW – WARMTH AND CALM
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Music and SFX
Click on the sounds below for examples of Music and
SFX which create particular moods such as romance,
tension and comedy:
Music
Sound effects
Or visit Free Sound effects
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Make-up
Make- up can help to show a characters health,
age, situation and can generally create the
appearance of a character.
In terms of helping to create mood and
atmosphere and tension, you could use it to show a
character has been injured, is upset or ill or for
any other purpose relevant to your drama.
Click HERE for some great examples of stage
make-up
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Props
The use of a prop knife, gun or violent weapon will
always heighten tension due to the dangerous
suggestion of this.
A personal prop could also heighten tension such as a
pack of cigarettes, broken glasses or empty wallet.
Set props can also heighten tension such as a broken
glass, torn letter or broken lamp or picture.
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Set
Set is used to show where a drama takes place and it also helps
to place a drama in a certain time.
It can create mood and atmosphere and tension through the
place that it is set e.g. a derelict building, bank vault,
abandoned car or police cell, to name a few.
The set and furniture used can reflect the time period, the
standard of living and character situation, all helping to add to
the mood and interest of your work.
Click on this site for some great examples of set in creating
mood and atmosphere Set Design
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Special Effects
Mirror ball, Strobe light and Smoke machine are your main
special effects. These can obviously be very useful for
creating mood and atmosphere.
The Mirror ball is perfect for creating a Nightclub or party
atmosphere.
The Strobe light gives the effect of slow motion which can be
useful in choreographed fight scenes and slowly building the
tension from these.
The Smoke machine or fog machine as it is also known, can help
to create and eerie and spooky atmosphere.
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Staging
How you choose to stage your performance can help you to
create mood and atmosphere. Such as by using Theatre in the
round your audience are very close to the performance,
enabling the actors to move through the space closing the
actor/audience gap.
If you use Promenade Theatre the audience can choose to
follow a particular moment of action or interest.
Similarly if you choose a Proscenium Arch you can freely use
your set and scenery to help you to create the desired mood.
Consider the other types of staging. How would you use these
to help you to create a particular mood or atmosphere?
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Revision
Mood and atmosphere questions can be found in both sections
of the paper.
Look at the past paper questions on mood and atmosphere
below and use your understanding gained from reading this
presentation to help you to answer these.
Complete these on paper or in WORD and email to your
teacher. These are suitable for all levels.
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Section 1 Questions
1. Choose one piece of drama that you have either performed in or have
watched during your course. Identify a moment of Tension and describe
what happened.
2. Describe how the acting techniques and theatre arts were used to
enhance the tension?
3. Choose a drama that you have recently performed. Describe the mood
and atmosphere at the start of the drama.
4. How did you create this mood and atmosphere? Refer to Theatre
Arts, acting techniques, or anything else you may have used from slide
five.
5. Did the mood and atmosphere change during the drama? Identify this
moment. How did you enhance the change in mood and atmosphere?
Make reference again to Theatre Arts, acting techniques or
information from slide five.
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Section 2 Questions
Look at this stimulus, then answer the following questions:
A derelict building
Thunder and lightning
Night time
Enter two characters
1. Describe the mood and atmosphere you would wish to create at the
start of the drama.
2. How could this mood and atmosphere be created through what the
audience sees before the characters enter?
3. How could this mood and atmosphere be created through what the
audience hears before the characters enter?
4. How could this mood and atmosphere be created through the ways in
which the two characters make their entrance?
5. Describe how the two characters might look. Your answer must refer
to physical description, make-up and costume. You may also include
other visual information.
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Well Done
You have now completed revision on mood and atmosphere.
NOW evaluate your understanding:
Red- still struggling
Amber understand some
of this revision
Green- fully
understand
If you require more help inform your teacher and refer to your
Revision Booklet.
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