The 6th grade drama classes finished their speech unit on storytelling with some fabulous performances. Students wrote, memorized, and incorporated storytelling performance techniques to create funny, scary, and moving stories. Here are a few examples:
Alex S. : "The Dream Begins"
Regina M. : "One Wish"
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This group of 7th graders have produced some of the best iMovie projects to date for Drama class. They were taught cinematography and editing, and used their writing and acting skills to create a 5- to 7-minute film. We celebrated our achievements with a Film Festival, where we watched all 13 of the groups' films. What a great time! We laughed so much! (All 7th graders have their movies posted on their individual blogs, FYI!)
The 7th graders themselves voted on four categories at the film fest: best actor, best actress, fan favorite (favorite movie), and overall best picture (highest quality film). I'm pleased to announce the results!
The BEST ACTRESS winner was Aria S. for her role in "Frank the Fish." The movie (by Aria, Carson, and Julia) plays below:
The BEST ACTOR winner was Alexander C. for his role in "H.I.P.S. Don't Lie."
In an unusual result, "H.I.P.S. Don't Lie" also won for FAN FAVORITE AND BEST PICTURE. INCREDIBLE!!! Take a look at the movie below (by students David, Grant, Alexander, and Rene).
GREAT JOB EVERYONE!!!
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"Who's Line is it Anyway?" was originally a British tv show comprised of 4 improvisers and one host, performing improvisational acting games for the delight of a live audience. An American version of this show was created in the 1990's. Since the improvisers have the advantage of years of improv training, it is a great model for our 8th grade improvisation students to see the concepts we have been learning about in class in action. (And it's good for some hearty laughs at the end of the school day!)
Students: Please construct a thoughtful response to the following question in response to our viewing of "Who's Line is it Anyway?" in class. Feel free to comment on other students' ideas!
Name one improv technique that we have discussed in class that you saw well executed in the show. Give a specific, detailed example of how you saw it demonstrated and discuss how that impacted the other players on stage, the scene's quality, and/or the audience's reaction.
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An initiation in improv is the first statement or action that begins the scene. Strong initiations provide information and definition to what otherwise is an undefined scene with infinite possibilities. Strong initiations provoke a reaction from the other person, define characters, define setting, and/or show an important action. They can be verbal statements, physical actions, or a combination of both.
Add your own example of a strong initiation as a comment below!
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The seventh grade drama students are currently working on assimilating their new knowledge of cinematography, storyboarding, and editing and creating their own 5-7 minute short films. Students are currently filming their movies in a variety of creative locations and are being trained on iMovie editing software. Film footage is due in class next Wednesday so that we can begin editing. Good luck, actors/directors/cinematographers!
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The sixth graders just completed their first unit--a comprehensive introduction to the stage and acting. They learned a ton of concepts: stage geography, stage vocabulary, pantomime, voice technique, characterization basics, scripting, and directed and performed an original acting scene, written by their group. It's been an intense and fun first two months of drama class.
The students performed their final acting scenes, based on characters they created, in a scene they wrote. From the initial inspiration: a random picture of a random person, they created a silent history (backstory of the person's personality and life), all the way through scripting a written scene in proper play format, to the final product: a scene costumed, directed, and performed by the students, they were the beginning and end of this project.
Below is the written script created by Liz S., Jamie K., and Ava T. in period 6 and their performance that brings it to life. Enjoy!
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In review of our reading of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing in 8th grade, I want to challenge you to reflect on what we've read. Please post a well-constructed, 1-paragraph (minimum) response to one of the following prompts. Please feel free to comment on other students' responses.
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The seventh grade drama classes finished their first unit last week on public speaking. To wrap things up, they spent some time reflecting on their experiences and what they had learned; specifically, they focused on their strengths and weaknesses as a speaker. To read these insights and enjoy their final speeches, check out any of the 7th grade students blogs! Below are just a taste of some of the outstanding final speech performances.
Justin S.: "How to Pitch in Baseball"
Aria S.: "How to Make a Palacsinta"
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After bringing our Shakespearean sonnet performances to a close in our 8th grade drama classes, we took some time to try our hand at writing sonnets of our own! Students had to follow the structure of a sonnet:
All students handed in their attempts and I (Mrs. Roche) picked what I thought were the 5 best entries in each class period. From there, I read the 5 nominees to anonymously to the class, and the class voted on the best sonnet. Overall, there were many strong and inspiring entries--I was very impressed. The two winning sonnets (one from each class) are transcribed below. Enjoy!
Period 8 Sonnet Winner: Mick R.
The battle on the horizon is near, Warriors shake and tremble with terror, Sun still hidden from day, arousing fear, A vulture waits for someone's grave error. Armies grow closer, a sighting declared, And so arises a deafening roar, Captain is leading warriors prepared, The day shall go down forever in lore. A father thinks back to his only son, As the charge begins, so his hope does end, Too late is it now for the man to run, He needs to use his sword and shield to fend. A white flag flies and the ground has run red, All is joyful but the son's father is dead. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Period 9 Sonnet Winner: Jamie S.
That tiny button shaped piece of candy Liquefied, melting in my open hand Given to me by my dear Aunt Sandi Only 5, standing my feet in the sand. These colors filling my mind with wonder I need to try one little button piece, I wanted a box to hide them under Once my candies are gone, would my fun cease? As a little girl I started to cry The "happy birthday" stamp starting to fade, Were my own m&m's going bye-bye? Like other treasures buried with a spade. After a bite my mouth filled with disgust, Those m&m's are not the things I lust!→ Add CommentsTags:
The spring play, "The Straight Skinny," has wrapped auditions. Check out the cast list at the spring play website! Click here to go to the site!
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