Company and Performance

In the Company and Performance area of study, students draw links between theory and current dramatic arts industry practice to envision and form their own dramatic company. The company may involve the class as a whole or comprise several smaller companies from within the class. Students may choose to name their company and develop a rationale, vision statement, or mission statement of their shared dramatic intent.  

Students explore what they want to say as artists and develop ideas for creative expression. They grow as cultural leaders by considering how their dramatic company may provide original and/or alternative artistic perspectives, viewpoints, and stories. They design opportunities for these to be presented using entrepreneurial thinking and processes. 

Through investigation and experimentation, students identify the impact and significance of their ideas and potential products for audiences, and apply the dramatic process to create meaningful outcomes. Individual students adopt a role or roles, and collaborate to conceive, create, and present a realised dramatic product or products. Guided by the teacher, students specialise in one or more roles within their company and their performance, including, for example: 

• actor 
• designer^# 
• director 
• stage manager 
• dramaturge 
• playwright 
• screenwriter 
• cinematographer 
• editor 
• publicist and promoter. 

^# e.g. set or production, costume, make-up and hair (and/or mask), publicity and promotions, lighting, sound, music and/or composition, SFX, multimedia, front-of-house. 

In envisioning their company and creating a dramatic product or products, students develop the skills and understanding to realise themselves as artists. Teachers nurture students’ performance skills and ensemble skills, and mentor students in the development of their vocal, physical, psychological, intellectual, and emotional faculties as dramatic practitioners. Teachers are encouraged to foster an immersive classroom environment to maximise the experience of students as dramatic artists. Students learn about, experiment with, and practise performance skills, including, but not limited to:  

• voice 
• characterisation 
• movement and gesture 
• focus and energy 
• stagecraft 
• ensemble skills 
• conceptualisation of dramatic ideas. 

To create their product, students apply the dramatic process. The dramatic process is a dynamic and flexible series of phases in the development of a dramatic outcome. Students apply each phase actively as they transform their ideas into concrete dramatic outcomes. The diagram below describes a version of the dramatic process. It is an example and not a comprehensive list of all of the activities within the phases of the process. It identifies the general principles and sequence of phases for making and presenting drama. It is not intended to be prescriptive, and valuable learning opportunities may be found in reconsidering and adapting this model to students’ immediate contexts. The diagram also models a version of entrepreneurial and design thinking and includes reference to entrepreneurial processes and activities.

 

Students present their dramatic product to an audience. The scope and scale of the presentation of dramatic product is dependent upon the interests of the students, the context and culture of the school, and the resources available. For example, products may range from an in-class performance for peers, through to a full-scale production in a theatre or the equivalent for a screen production. 

The choice of dramatic product is determined by the vision of the company and may be realised in a variety of forms including, but not limited to: 

• a whole-class performance of a shared text or excerpts 
• a series of devised or published vignettes linked by a dramatic text and/or style 
• a short film in the style of a selected practitioner. 

In realising their dramatic product, students should ensure that audience development and the leadership of artistic and cultural discussion feature as key considerations in their company’s vision. The identification of an established audience, as well as developing strategies for reaching new audiences, should be investigated. Entrepreneurial skills, including marketing, publicity, and promotions, should be a focus for each company in tangibly meeting its artistic intentions. For example, media releases, creating an online presence, and creative publicity may be featured in the company’s vision, and may be enacted, either hypothetically or in practice, to develop an audience for the dramatic product.