Bard to the Bone Teachers’ Resource Kit

Created & performed by shake & stir theatre co Teachers’ Notes compiled by Naomi Russell. © This Resource Kit is protected by Copyright. Limited photocopying for classroom use permitted by educational institutions

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Established in 2006, shake & stir has rapidly become one of Australia’s leading contemporary youth theatre companies. shake & stir produce an annual season of inschool and Mainhouse productions and a series of in-school workshops for primary and secondary students reaching a combined total audience of over 180,000. In-school productions include 50-minute Shakespeare adaptations, Shakespeare compilations and a program of moral-based performances targeting key issues affecting youth. shake & stir was the first company to incorporate extensive multimedia into in-school productions and the first to offer a Shakespeare performance specifically created for primary students. shake & stir’s Mainhouse productions extend upon the in-schools program targeting audiences both young and young at heart. In 2011, shake & stir’s Helpmann Award nominated STATESPEARE embarked on a four-month national tour, visiting theatres in QLD, NSW, VIC, SA and TAS. In 2012, shake & stir staged their adaptation of George Orwell’s 1984 at QPAC. This sold-out production received rave reviews, broke box office records and will embark on an extensive national tour in 2014. In 2013 shake & stir will be presenting 3 Mainhouse productions. In January, the company's youngest Mainhouse production Out Damn Snot was co-produced with La Boite Theatre Company. From February shake & stir’s multi award-winning adaptation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm will tour theatres nationally, returning to QPAC in May for a strictly limited season. In August, the company’s new production Tequila Mockingbird, inspired by Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, will premiere at the Cremorne Theatre QPAC. In addition to a busy annual performance schedule, shake & stir theatre co has an after school drama program reaching approx 400 primary and secondary students across South East QLD. shake & stir theatre co is a privately owned company, co-founded by Ross Balbuziente, Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij that operates outside of government support. For full information please visit www.shakeandstir.com.au Mission: To motivate, educate & relate to youth via theatre and an infectious enthusiasm for the live arts.

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About the Show: All you need to know! Synopsis: Shakespeare In a Nut Shell! Shhh! Theatre Etiquette: The do’s and don’ts Shakespeare: What you need to know Shakespeare: The Globe Getting Busy: Classroom Activities - Pre and Post Show Activity 1. Warm Ups! Activity 2. Word Bingo Activity 3. Rumour Has It... Activity 4. 1 Scene, 3 Ways Activity 5. Have You Ever? Activity 6. To Wii or Not to Wii? Activity 7. The Jury’s Out Activity 8. Pairs Match Up What now? Classroom Resources Dramatic Elements in Bard to the Bone Possible Responding/Essay Questions Reviewing the Show! Student Worksheet

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All of the activities in this booklet have been created to be used pre or post show. Some are more suited to a Drama classroom, whilst others were created for English or History - BUT all can be adapted for use in your subject area! You are the teacher, you know your students best. Please enjoy the activities and the show! If you have any questions please contact our Education Manager, Naomi Russell: [email protected] Also, we would love to hear from you or your students - if they want to share any particular creative tasks they have completed please email: [email protected]

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TIME: 50mins + 10min structured Q&A/discussion. PLAYS COVERED: Hamlet, Macbeth & Othello ACTIVITIES AND DISCUSSIONS WILL COVER UNITS STUDIED IN: Drama, English and History.

We’ve taken three of Shakespeare’s most dangerous men and thrown them into one show. As each leads us through their play, the audience is left to consider some questions; How will Macbeth cope and get on with his life fresh from murdering King Duncan? Why does Iago hate Othello and can he manipulate and convince him to kill the love of his life? When will Hamlet stop thinking and start doing and what lengths will he go to avenge his Father’s foul and bloody murder? As each story unfolds, the audience will be left stunned with the scope and scale of each play. Who said Shakespeare isn’t cool?

Macbeth is a soldier and after winning a war is promoted by the King. He meets 3 witches who tell him that he is going to be King one day. His wife thinks this means he has to kill the King for the prophecy to come true, so he does! She then goes mad and kills herself (as you do). Meanwhile Macbeth goes completely power crazy and kills (or orders someone else to kill) anyone that might get in his way, even women and children. He becomes quite paranoid and goes back to the witches. They say that no one ‘born of woman’ can hurt him. He thinks he’s safe. BUT Macduff (the goody) was born by caesarean, so kills him, clever. Basically everyone dies.

Hamlet’s Dad (the King) has just died and so to get over this loss his widow (Hamlet’s Mother) marries his brother (Hamlet’s Uncle). Hamlet doesn’t think this was a great idea. He then gets visited by the ghost of his dead Dad who tells him that he was poisoned by his brother (now King, as he married the Queen....) Hamlet decides to revenge his dead Dad....by acting crazy. In the meantime he manages to confuse his girlfriend (Ophelia) who then, broken hearted, kills herself. Nice. Hamlet eventually kills a few people, including his Uncle, who accidentally also poisons his new wife. Oops. Basically everyone dies.

Iago is a bitter solider working under Othello. He gets mad when he isn’t promoted to Lieutenant (Cassio got that job) so decides to make Othello’s life hell. He hears that Roderigo really fancies Othello’s wife, so he thinks by breaking Othello and Desdemona up he’ll feel better about not getting promoted. He very sneakily makes Othello believe that Desdemona cheated on him with Cassio. Othello believes him. He then confronts his wife (who naturally denies all, as she’s innocent) but he kills her anyway. The truth eventually comes out and Othello kills himself. Iago is sentenced to death. So, basically everyone dies. 4

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shake & stir is a live theatre company and many of your students may be unfamiliar with standards of behavior for a live theatre audience. Below are some guidelines for your consideration. Please go over these points with your students prior to the performance: 

We encourage your students to actively participate in our performances by applauding, laughing and asking/answering questions at the end.

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Food or drink is not encouraged during a performance as it is distracting to both the actors and other audience members.

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General chitchat, talking and moving around the classroom or performance space while the performance is underway is not encouraged. Live theatre is different to Television or Film – the actors on stage can hear and see as well! If a student needs to leave the performance space for any reason during a performance, please ensure this is done quickly and quietly.

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Questions are welcome and encouraged but will be restricted to the designated 10min question time at the end of each performance.

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Please ensure that your students switch off their mobile phones and leave them in their bags before the performance begins.

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Finally - enjoy the show!

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William Shakespeare - a name that many people in the western world know, but don’t know much about. Shakespeare is widely regarded as the most influential writer and dramatist of the English speaking world, and it would be quite difficult to disagree! But what is it that has made his works stand the test of time? Is it because his stories are filled with wonderful, richly created characters? Or is it because the language used is just so beautiful? Maybe it was because the stories he wrote are both inspiring and still relevant 400 years after their authorship and not notwithstanding their age, still can seem so thoroughly modern. No matter what the answer, there is no denying William Shakespeare was a genius. The works of William Shakespeare have contributed significantly to modern literature. They are continually worked and reworked and are a solid starting point when learning about English history and literature, storytelling and poetry. But who was the man behind the legend? Baptized in Stratford upon Avon on April 26th 1564 (and thought to have been born on the 23rd of the same month), Shakespeare was eighteen when he married Anne Hathaway, a woman nearly twice his age. In 1586, Shakespeare moved to London to seek his fortunes. Unlike many other infamous artists who achieve fame and success many years post mortem, Shakespeare was fortunate to enjoy the fruits of his labor while alive and die a wealthy and successful Artist. By 1595, Shakespeare had achieved sufficient renown to be invited to join the Lord Chamberlain's men (an acting company that performed frequently before Queen Elizabeth’s court) and following Queen Elizabeth’s death in 1603, the company was awarded a royal patent by the new king, James I, and subsequently changed its name to the King's Men. This title made Shakespeare the official playwright to the King and Queen of England. By 1597 Shakespeare had become very wealthy and was awarded a coat of arms for his family. Shakespeare’s growing wealth and affluence enabled him to become a one tenth owner of the then famous, now infamous, Globe Theatre – a theatre still used regularly by the Royal Shakespeare Company for the presentation of Shakespeare’s works. By 1611, Shakespeare left London, returned to Stratford and died in 1616 at the age of 55.

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He left as his contribution to the world 37 fully completed plays, many poems and sonnets and lives on in memory as one of the most revered figures in literature of all time. The plays of William Shakespeare are commonly broken into four (4) periods aptly titled the First, Second, Third and Fourth Periods. The first period is considered his experimental or preliminary period and ended around 1593. Plays written and produced during this time include Titus Andronicus, The Comedy of Errors and The Taming of the Shrew. The Second Period marked the establishment of Shakespeare and ended around 1601. During this time famous works including Romeo and Juliet, The Merchant of Venice and A Midsummer-Night's Dream and the history plays, Henry IV, Parts I and II, Henry V, Richard II, King John and Julius Caesar were created. The third period ending in 1610 was the climactic period of Shakespeare’s works and produced the tragedies Hamlet, Macbeth and Othello as well as comedies Twelfth Night and All's Well that Ends Well. The fourth and final period marked the cessation of Shakespeare’s works and ended around 1611. It was during this period that The Tempest was written. The majority of Shakespeare’s work was created over a period of 20 years. 37 considerably lengthy plays in nearly half as many years?! Not bad considering the lack of modern day writing resources such as computers.

Shakespeare’s works have undoubtedly stood the test of time. So how can something written over 400 ago, still seem so fresh? And why is it important for students these days to study his works? A huge reason to study Shakespeare is the rare quality of writing found within his work. His genius is evident both in the breadth and the depth of the subject matter of his numerous plays, many of which are counted among the greatest works in English literature. His ability to combine insight and wit within his writing makes his makes his characters and their journeys so intriguing and interesting to learn and read about.

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Here are some points to consider as to why we should consider Shakespeare a necessity in modern day teaching.  Shakespeare’s characters, stories and themes are a source of meaning and significance for every generation. For example: 

Familiar human relationships, eg. Father and Daughter, Husband and Wife  Familiar emotions, eg Jealousy and Love  Familiar issues, eg. How should people live together? Why do humans go to war? The difference between private and public behaviour? The connection between the individual and society?  Studying Shakespeare’s work gives us another view of the world – a

strong educational reason to explore his plays. 

His plays appeal because they are unfamiliar and extraordinary  The plays give us characters with different ways of living and different values  We can use our imaginations to explore these different worlds, eg Venice, Scotland, Padua  Shakespeare is a genius of significance in the development of the

English language, literature and drama. 

All students should have the opportunity to make up their own minds about Shakespeare

 Shakespeare’s language gives students an opportunity to extend their

own language. Shakespeare’s language can be studied, imitated, used for personal recreation  When students respond to the challenge of Shakespeare’s language they understand the power of language 

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One of the most amazing things about the language of Shakespeare is that when considered in light of the limited resources of the time, Shakespeare wrote his plays with next to no formal education and with no help from modern tools such as dictionaries or thesaurus's. We do know that when Shakespeare was growing up, the King’s New Grammar School taught boys basic reading and writing and it can be assumed that Shakespeare attended this school since it existed to educate the sons of Stratford. However, due to a lack of evidence that suggests otherwise, Shakespeare, whose works are studied hundreds of years later at Universities, never attended one himself! Despite this fact, Shakespeare is credited by the Oxford English Dictionary for the inclusion of almost 3,000 words into the language. Not bad for someone with only a very basic education! Some people dedicate their entire lives to the study of William Shakespeare so it’s very understandable why young people today find Shakespeare's language somewhat daunting. However, there are many identifiable phrases that we have unknowingly adopted from the Elizabethan language. In fact, the language we speak today is only considered one generation removed from what was spoken in Shakespeare's day.

If you do find it difficult to speak out loud, or understand Shakespeare’s language, here are a few handy tips and guidelines to keep in mind: 1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7.

Think about the words you believe are important and emphasise them. Pause at the commas, semi-colons and full stops. If there is no full stop at the end of a line, read straight on to the next line. Ignore that the word might start on a new line. ‘– ed’ at the end of a word is pronounced as a separate syllable: advis-ed inform-ed trench-ed. If the full syllable is not to be pronounced an apostrophe is used: advis’d inform’d trench’d Try to think about and give expression to the feelings of the characters. Wherever possible, convey these feelings by your tone of voice, your facial expressions, your gestures and your movements Don’t rush to get through the speech – take your time and if you are having trouble or unsure of any words, don’t be afraid to ask for help.

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’

–

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Theatre was quite different back in Shakespeare's days. Shakespeare wrote many of his play for the queen of the time, Queen Elizabeth I. Despite being written with royalty in mind, theatre was more like a sporting match, and wasn't nearly as sophisticated as it tends to be these days. It is believed that the very first Elizabethan plays were acted out in animal baiting rings or in the courtyard of local inns. It was not until 1576 that the first playhouse, known as The Theatre, was built on the outskirts of the city of London. The most famous theatre associated with William Shakespeare, and indeed a theatre in which Shakespeare was a part owner, was The Globe, which has an exact working replica standing in its place in England. Audience's at The Globe were very rowdy and were encouraged to comment and even boo or hiss! Plays were also often performed in the outdoors. Due to the obvious lack of technology and electronic lighting effects of the time, performances took place during the day so that the stage could be illuminated by natural light. The people who stood around the stage were called groundlings. They paid one penny (or approximately $2 today) to enter the theatre. One of the major differences between now and theatre in Shakespeare days, is that women were not permitted to become actors. So all the characters in Shakespeare's plays were acted by men, or more accurately, young boys who had high pitched voices. Image of the original Globe Theatre

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Warm Up! The following games can be played before the activities or as a good warm up game to get your class going.

Shakespeare, Shakespeare Students stand in a circle. Go around the circle and students choose a Shakespearian character or associated word (no double ups allowed). One person starts the game by saying their character/word twice and then someone else in the circle (try to encourage them to not choose the person next to them). EG ‘Shakespeare, Shakespeare: Hamlet, Hamlet’. The person who is Hamlet continues the game. ‘Hamlet, Hamlet: Iago, Iago’..... The twist of the game comes by telling students they cannot show their teeth whilst speaking (and they can’t simply cover their mouth with their hands!). A funny game to get students laughing and acting silly in front of each other. Variations: Can be played using their names, or colours, moods, anything to suit your class!

[___________] in a minute Students are to improvise a scene with the time limit of a minute. This may mean they have to speed up the scene dramatically, or act it all out it all in slow motion. The ‘blank’ is given by teacher. Possible ideas could be: ✧The story of Macbeth in a minute ✧Shakespeare’s life in a minute ✧King Duncan’s death in a minute ✧Shakespearian death scene in a minute ✧The Witches’ Prophecy in a minute

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Word Bingo! The following game is great as a starter in an English or History lesson, or as a fun ‘writing’ game in Drama. This game gets students familiar with some of the language in Bard to the Bone and also gauges their prior knowledge. It can be played multiple times with the same or different words depending on the level of the class or challenge required.

How to play.... 1. Put up a list of 20 words on the board. 2. Students draw a naughts and crosses table in books. 3. Students choose 9 words that they think they know the meaning of and write these in their table. 4. Teacher randomly reads out the meanings of the words on the list (but not the word itself). 5. Students cross off words they have when they hear the meaning of it. 6. Bingo is won by being the first to get a line of 3 (or all 9 depending on how long you want the game to last!). Two example lists can be found on the following page...

banish

wither

perjury

lewd

afeard

fraught

tyranny

knave

damnation

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List One (Intermediate)

Meaning to read out....

List Two (Challenging)

Meaning to read out....

Shakespeare

The playwright responsible for Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet.....

Hail

To bow down or worship.

The Globe

Shakespeare’s Theatre.

wither

to shrivel or fade away, or lose its youth.

Macbeth

A character who took bad advice from witches and his wife.

thy

a personal pronoun such as your/my (depending on the context)

Othello

A play about rumors, cheating and revenge.

beguile

to influence by tricking, flattery or charm.

Hamlet

A character who saw the ghost of his dead father.

plague

a serious disease. Or to torment and overwhelm.

Tragedy

Very sad, ends badly.

chalice

a drinking cup or goblet.

prophecy

To be told something about the future.

damnation

eternal punishment.

revenge

To seek justice for a wrong especially in a mean way.

cherubim

an angel.

subtext

The meaning behind the words. what the person is really thinking.

afeard

to be afraid.

interpretation

The way in which you read and take meaning from a text.

valour

boldness, courage or determination.

performance

To act out something for an audience.

avaunt

be gone, go away.

suspicious

To be wary of someone or think they have done something wrong and spy on them to check.

fraught

filled with or weighed down.

interrogation

To question someone in order to seek the truth.

tyranny

cruelty, unmerciful violence.

manipulate

To twist something to your own advantage.

lewd

rude, crude or vulgar.

betrayal

To be unfaithful or disappoint someone by turning against them.

perjury

lying to someone in power (eg the court or to the King)

blame

When you hold someone else responsible.

banish

to be sent away and not allowed to return.

coward

Being too scared to do something.

piteous

evoking or gaining pity.

despise

To hate.

fishmonger

a seller of fish. Also sometimes refers to a pimp in Shakespeare texts.

tedious

Boring or long winded.

paradox

a contradiction that may actually be true. An opinion that goes against the norm.

psychologist

A person who is trained to analyse people’s behaviours and help them improve.

knave

An untrustworthy or dishonest person.

envious

To be jealous of someone or something.

arrant

absolute or notorious

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Rumour Has it… Before beginning prep the students NOT to use names or actual events when responding to the statements. Bullying will not be tolerated! Materials Needed: pens and printed off sheets of paper (template below). This activity focuses on rumours and how quickly they can get out of hand. Around the room place a sheet of paper with a ‘status update’ or ‘text message’ on the top. Students then move around the room and add to each status or message building the rumour as it goes. Make the original statement as ‘open’ as possible. Alternatively, if students are sitting at desks the sheet can be passed from one student to another along a row. Once the activity has finished, read through the responses as a class and debrief. Questions to consider: Why do rumours start? How quick can they get out of hand? Is it easy to take something someone said out of context? What problems arise when you can’t see the person you’re speaking to? Which characters in Bard to the Bone took information out of context? Why did Shakespeare let his characters come to tragic ends? Even though we looked at Facebook/SMS, these problems are not new ones, rumours have been spreading since the dawn of time.... Extension: Ask students to do a ‘mock’ Facebook status for one of the characters. Then add to the status with comments from other characters. Could be completed individually or as a group activity.

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William went from being ‘in a relationship’ to ‘single’

_______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________

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Billie Bard

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1 scene 3 ways This activity focuses on subtext, tone and motivation. It aims to show students that by changing any of these three things, the intention of the scene can change dramatically. Working in pairs students practice the following script exactly as it is to begin with. Tell each group one of the three scenarios to base characters on. Once everyone has the hang of it, show some to class. Ask students to continue the improvisation to see where it goes....

A: What time is it? B: I don’t know. A: You don’t know? B: I just said, I don’t know. A: Ok. B: Good. A: Well then… B: Well what? A: Well…aren’t you going to say anything? B: What do you want me to say? A: I don’t know. B: Right.

Scenario 1: A is the parent; B is the child. Scenario 2: You are in a relationship, but A has just been told that B is cheating on them. B is not. Scenario 3: You are friends chatting on the phone, this is mid conversation. B is mad at A but won’t say why. 20

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Shakespeare’s Twist: Once the students have established their roles, they are then given an alternative script that matches the situation they have just been given, therefore they must keep their intentions and characters the same. These excerpts come from Bard to the Bone.

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Once the students have had a read through of the scripts they could: ✧ Write the subtext of their character under each line. ✧ Have a go at translating the text into modern language. ✧ Impro the rest of the scene and see where it leads... ✧ Look up the scene in the corresponding Shakespearian text and read it in context. Cut together a new scene based on the two characters.

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Have you ever? Teacher to ask the class the following statements. Students could answer by moving to one side of the room for yes, the other for no; they could simply raise hands, or write the answer down if anonymity is required. Could be used as a starter or plenary in a lesson or to promote healthy discussion around themes present in Bard to the Bone. Have you ever....... Listened to bad advice? Acted sick to get out of school? Pretended not to see someone you didn’t want to talk to? Lied to your parents? Exaggerated on Facebook? Acted differently around different groups of people? Pretended to be someone you’re not? Thought something but not said it aloud? Believed a rumour without checking out if it was true? Started a rumour about someone? Done something you’ve later regretted? Misinterpreted a text message? (out of context) Variations/Where to next? 1. Once students answer yes/no to a question they get in pairs with someone who answered the same as them and share the story or explain why they wouldn’t do that. 2. Write a journal entry / soliloquy about one of the things they answered yes to. 3. Discuss as a class the moral and ethical issues around a few of these statements. Use teacher judgement to decide what would work for your class dynamic. Push students to think about human nature and how we all fall short of society’s standards every now and then. Relate back to characters in the play. Was Macbeth just listening to his wife too much? Did Iago really think through his plan against Othello? Why did Othello instantly believe that Desdemona was cheating? Did Hamlet go too far with his act of madness?

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To Wii or not to Wii? Using one of the plays or themes explored in Bard to the Bone as inspiration, create a VIDEO GAME that helps represent this idea. You could present this as a series of storyboards from the game, with the rules explained underneath; it could be based on an existing video game with the rules changed/manipulated to suit the theme of your choice; or you may wish to design the box the game comes in with explanations on the back cover - be as creative and innovative as possible!

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The Jury’s out. Pretend you are a lawyer for any of the three ‘Bad Boys’ in the play. Write the closing statement that would be read to the jury, convincing them that the character is innocent. Present these to the class (who act as the jury) and vote to see if they are guilty/not guilty. Variations: Pretend you’re the prosecutor and you must convince the jury of the character’s guilt. Create a punishment that fits the crime and persuade the jury to enforce it.

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Pairs Match Up! Before Class: Cut out the cards below keeping two piles: Shakespearian and Modern. As students walk in the room they are given a card with either a Shakespearian sentence or the modern translation. They must walk around speaking their line until they find their pair. Once they have all matched up they read their cards aloud to the class. Bonus points if they know who said it/ What play it’s from! (Answers in the 3rd column) Variations: Could also be used as a puzzle where students are given all 30 phrases and translations and must match them all up (does require lots of cutting though!)

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BARD TO THE BONE FOCUS The focus in BARD TO THE BONE is “The frame that directs attention on the themes of tragedy and revenge found in the men of Shakespeare’s to what is most significant and intensifies the dramatic meaning”. most famous plays. We are forced to focus on the human instinct and the choices these men made and how it affected others. TENSION Tension in BARD TO THE BONE is “The force that engages the created between each of the performers and audience in the characters and the various storylines dramatic action”. in the play. Tension is already created when the Shakespearian character is interviewed/interoggated by a ‘modern’ character. The tension of relationships is very evident. You could examine how the tension changes dependant on the modern or traditional context of the play. SPACE In the play you could look at how the “The personal and general space actors manipulate a simple space to used by the actors. It focuses on create a range of locations and environments. the meaning of the size and shape of distances between actor You could also examine the and actor, actor and objects physicality of the characters and how (props and sets) and actor and audience.” the actors manipulate their physical form to portray and represent different people.

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MOOD “The atmosphere created. Mood concentrates the dramatic action and moves the audience in emotionally appropriate directions.”

CONTRAST “The use of difference to create dramatic meaning.”

SYMBOL “The use of objects, gestures or persons to represent meaning beyond the literal.”

ROLE “Taking on a role requires performers to accept the physicality, attitudes and beliefs of the characters they are playing.”

The mood in the play is an important point of focus for the story. The mood helps to communicate how the story is affecting the characters lives and the lives around them. Mood is critical in the play as it dictates the audience’s reaction to a particular situation and it can also influence how we feel for a certain character. In Shakespeare we quite often see the construct of a hero and villain. What makes us create those assumptions about those characters? Are these assumptions always true? The contrast within BARD TO THE BONE is explored through the use of the different texts. How does each text resonate with the audience and how do they ‘combine’ the texts to create sense and meaning? Also, think about the contrast of ‘modern’ VS ‘traditional’ and how the directors were able to manipulate this. Here you could explore how the characters use symbolic costuming and props to represent themselves or their ideals/values. What is important to these characters and how so? The roles in BARD TO THE BONE are defined by the situations they place themselves in.  How could each of the characters break out of their current struggle?  What about their choices changes the way they act/react?  How do the actors embody each of the different roles and do so convincingly?

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‘Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.’ Discuss this statement in relation to one of the characters portrayed in Bard to the Bone. In your response you should consider: how the script was manipulated to show only certain sides to the character; the evidence given in Shakespeare’s script; and how you felt as an audience member responding to this character.

‘The director’s job is to interpret and coordinate all aspects of the production from text to reception.’ How did the director specifically use space and blocking to enhance the relationship of characters, create mood and develop tension?

‘Appropriate design enhances the overall effect of a production and enables the director to achieve artistic unity in a production.’ What elements of design, lighting, Audio/Visual were used in Bard to the Bone? Examine the effect they had on the audience and critique their overall suitability. In your response you should consider the symbolism of these design features and how well they helped shape the drama on stage.

Write a review of the play Bard to the Bone. You should focus on 2 - 3 key scenes/moments and the validity of these. Remember to include a brief synopsis; critique of the acting, representation of characters, direction and style; strengths and weaknesses of the production and and overall opinion. 30

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As a student watching live theatre, you need to be aware of how you felt, what elements worked well and how the director and actors achieved their goals. Use the following sheet to help analyse the play - write as much as you can and make sure you think about WHY they did things the way they did. What were they trying to achieve?

ADAPTED BY: DIRECTED BY: ACTORS:

Briefly outline the plot in 75 words or less and then evaluate how effectively the play entertained the audience. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 31

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Why are the characters so engaging? You can elaborate on one character more however you need to address at least 2 of the characters in the play. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

How did the screen/music/sound fx/images help create mood/tension in the play? How effective were they? Explain two examples in detail. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 32

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What themes and issues are illuminated in the play? Explain how. What questions are raised for the audience? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

Identify the major tensions in the play that entertain the audience/elaborate on one of the major themes. Analyse two specific examples. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 33

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How were costumes used in the production? Were they symbolic in any way? Explain two examples in detail. _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________

Why would you recommend this play? Why would it appeal to your target audience? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ The shake and stir creative team would LOVE to hear from you be it glowing, bad or ugly.... Send us your reviews: [email protected] 34