| Unit name | Making Theatre |
|---|---|
| Unit code | THTR10013 |
| Credit points | 40 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Reimers |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Theatre |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
This unit provides you with the opportunity to plan and implement a performance from early research and development activities through to an integrated staging. It is designed to provide you with a strong foundation in the skills you will need to make performances throughout the programme, developing your knowledge of key practitioners and production processes, as well fostering practical theatre-making skills. As the core mandatory unit of your first year of study, Making Theatre introduces the mode of critically-engaged practice which underpins all work in the Department. It also provides an opportunity for you to work collaboratively with your peers to create a performance.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study:
Making Theatre provides the foundation for all subsequent performance-based work on the programme, introducing core skills in areas such as dramaturgy, scenography, directing, acting, design, production. It introduces key processes such as keeping a workfile and completing risk assessments, which will apply to most subsequent performance and practice-as-research (PAR) units in the Department. The unit will also help you to develop transferable skills in group work, critical analysis, and presentation, which you will draw on in your programme and beyond.
Overview of content
The first teaching block will focus on research and development activities, introducing the work of key practitioners and exploring the relationship between theory and practice in the process of creating critically-informed work. In this teaching block, you will develop practical skills in workshopping and generating ideas for performance-making. It will provide conceptual introduction to scenography and dramaturgy, and a hands-on introduction to a range of laboratory skills.
The second teaching block turns its focus to performance-making, and you will implement scenographic and dramaturgical concepts in practice. Through studio-based learning, you will develop production, design, directing, and acting skills. Over the course of the teaching block, you will sustain a creative process from initial ideas through performance, to reflection and evaluation, applying peer and tutor feedback to continually develop and improve your work.
How will you, personally, be different as a result of the unit
After taking this unit, you will have a broader understanding of the practicalities and potentialities of theatre-making processes and a sense of where your own particular interests and skills may lie. Having integrated a range of performance elements – for example text, scenography, movement, costume, and lighting – you will have a stronger appreciation of how meaning is made in performance. You’ll also have a clearer understanding of the relationship between theory and practice, with additional knowledge of key practitioners and theoretical approaches, which you can go on to apply to your own creative work. You will have gained confidence in your ability to participate in the process of making theatre. By working closely with others as a member of a group, you will improve your skills in collaboration, communication and the art of compromise. Finally, by engaging in reflective practices such as keeping a workfile, you will develop as a reflective and adaptive, creative, collaborative practitioner.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
The unit takes a student-centred approach to learning, designed to foster your autonomy and independence as performance-makers. In the first teaching block, you will engage with a range of studio-based practical activities which will prepare you for integrating multiple performance elements in the second half of the unit. In the second teaching block, you will undertake project-based learning, as you work collaboratively with your peers to create a staging integrating multiple performance elements.
In addition to weekly workshops, you will also participate in weekly lectures and provocations, where you will encounter key concepts and approaches. Throughout the unit you will also undertake independent research, developing your research skills and your ability to apply these to practice. By making work in the Department’s theatres, you will gain industry-relevant production skills.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Each week students will learn through doing in a series of workshops and practical tutorials, receiving peer and tutor feedback continuously. Students develop a workfile of weekly progress, which will be shared and discussed at various points throughout the year.
Tasks which do not count towards your unit mark but are required for credit (zero-weighted):
Group presentation/speculative staging in the Wickham Theatre (0%, Required for credit) [ILO 2]
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Group performance/staging, 3 min/pp (60%) [ILOs 1-3]
Independent Reflective critique, 800 words (40%) [ILOs 2, 4]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
The following re-assessment options will be available in the event of students being unable to take or pass the first assessment:
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. THTR10013).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
