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Drama

‘Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.’ - Bertolt Brecht

What makes Drama excellent at Chulmleigh?

Drama gives young people the opportunity to understand themselves, other people and the world around them. Our spiral curriculum reflects the DfE’s emphasis on developing confident spoken language, listening and communication, while giving pupils the opportunity to create, perform and respond to drama.

We want every pupil to develop their voice and confidence through improvising, devising, scripting, rehearsing and performing. Pupils learn to work with others, explore different perspectives and communicate ideas through character, movement and voice.

Drama also supports pupils’ wider learning. By exploring a range of plays, practitioners, cultures and real-world issues, pupils develop empathy, critical thinking and a deeper understanding of society, engaging with drama as an artistic practice and understanding how performance can communicate meaning.

Ultimately, we want pupils to leave Chulmleigh with greater confidence, stronger communication skills and the understanding that their ideas and voices matter.

Assessment

Pupils regularly receive informal and formal feedback on their rehearsal and performance work, taking on verbal and written form. Mid Term and Final Assessment performances are a crucial end product of hard work and dedication to sharing ideas, strong collaboration in group work and taking pride in rehearsing well.

GCSE Drama (Edexcel) pupils are assessed on their ability to perform as well as analyse theatre and are regularly assessed throughout the course, with in-class, homework and mock exams all leading the way to a confident approach to their final exams (performance and written paper).

Year 7 Curriculum

Term 1

Mime

  • Explore and apply the key principles of mime: imagination, consistency, clarity, silence and eye contact
  • Develop control and precision through the use of fixed-point technique
  • Create, rehearse and perform a short mimed sequence, communicating meaning without words

Clowning

  • Explore physicality through a range of clowning techniques and styles
  • Develop confidence, spontaneity and a willingness to take creative risks
  • Create, rehearse and perform for an audience in the round, using space and physical performance effectively.

Term 2

Storytelling

  • Develop storytelling skills through different styles of narration, use of space and the creation of freeze frames
  • Retell a well-known story, making deliberate choices about character, narration and performance
  • Explore how changing the narrator or perspective can reveal a different side of the same story

The Mysteries of Harris Burdick

  • Respond creatively to an ambiguous visual stimulus, developing original ideas and interpretations
  • Work collaboratively in small groups to develop and shape a performance
  • Apply and develop storytelling techniques to communicate meaning and engage an audience
  • Develop audience awareness by considering how performance choices affect the way a story is received

Term 3

Ernie's Incredible Illucinations, by Alan Ayckbourn

  • Explore how a written script can be transformed into a compelling live performance
  • Develop characterisation skills by using voice, movement, gesture and facial expression to create engaging characters
  • Develop vocal skills, including projection, pace, pitch, tone and clarity
  • Develop collaboration skills by working effectively as an ensemble and responding to the ideas of others
  • Explore the use of space through positioning, levels and purposeful movement on stage
  • Develop audience awareness by making purposeful performance choices that engage and communicate with an audience
  • Continue to build confidence through rehearsal, exploration and performance

Year 8 Curriculum

Term 1

What a Dad Did

  • Building on pupils’ experience and skills by adapting and reimagining a classic story for the stage
  • Using ensemble techniques and Physical Theatre within a naturalistic performance style to communicate the story and engage an audience
  • Encouraging pupils to trust their creative ideas and work collaboratively as a focused, responsive ensemble
  • Developing devising and performance skills in preparation for GCSE Drama

Term 2

Masks

  • Developing the fundamental skills and techniques required for mask performance: winding up a mask, exaggeration, safety, stock characters
  • Exploring the history and cultural use of masks across different periods and societies.
  • Collaborating to devise high-quality performance work, focusing on exaggerated physicality, body language and interaction.

Puppetry

  • Learning and applying the fundamental principles of puppetry, including breath, focus and weight.
  • Collaborating to devise and perform a puppetry piece in which the puppeteers become invisible to the audience.

Term 3

Murder Mystery

  • Explore the ‘Whodunnit?’ genre through an original Edwardian-era story, drawing links to the Titanic narrative
  • Use hot seating to develop characters, backstory and motivation
  • Explore possible scenes and dramatic possibilities through teacher and pupil demonstrations
  • Create and develop characters and plot through improvisation
  • Devise a scene with a strong emphasis on place, secrets and complex relationships
  • Build confidence and develop performance skills through rehearsal, refinement and extension
     

Year 9 Curriculum

Term 1

Status

  • Exploring how status can be communicated through characterisation and interactions
  • Experimenting with status reversals and their impact on relationships and performance
  • Developing confidence and spontaneity through improvisation
  • Exploring how space and proxemics can be used to create meaning and communicate relationships

Stage Combat and Macbeth

  • Learn the fundamental techniques of non-contact stage combat, with a focus on safety and control
  • Build on previous work exploring status and characterisation to create a convincing, tension-filled scene
  • Apply these performance skills through the dramatic world of Shakespeare’s Macbeth
  • Explore status, power and shifting relationships through a series of scenes
  • Demonstrate developing performance skills through the assessment of a final rehearsed scene from Macbeth

Term 2

Devising Project

  • Using a stimulus as a starting point to devise an original piece of theatre for a specific audience
  • Exploring Brechtian techniques and considering how they can shape meaning and create a specific impact on an audience
  • Researching and developing the stimulus to inform the creative direction and development of the final performance

Term 3

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

  • Exploring Physical Theatre, drawing on the work of Frantic Assembly and the National Theatre’s original production
  • Developing trust, collaboration and risk-taking through ensemble-based performance
  • Learning and applying a range of Physical Theatre techniques to create dynamic and effective performance
  • Exploring how physical performance choices can translate the story from page to stage

Year 10 Curriculum

Term 1

  • Participate in the Coram Shakespeare Schools Festival, creating an ensemble piece of theatre, and thus solidify the class as a cast
  • Understanding key concepts and vocabulary 

Term 2

  • Learn about different styles of theatre, notably Brecht, Stanislavski and Physical Theatre
  • Complete Component 1: Devising Theatre and 2000-word portfolio (40%)
  • Watch Live Theatre Productions and start work on how to answer Component 3 style exam questions

Term 3

  • Component 3: ‘DNA’ by Dennis Kelly, explore the text as actors, directors and designers in preparation for the Year 10 mock written exam
  • Live performance review notes and practice questions

Year 11 Curriculum

Term 1

  • Choose plays/groups for the Component 2 Performance Exam (2 extracts from the same play)
  • 1hour theory lesson a fortnight, continuing understanding of production elements to apply to DNA and Live Theatre
  • Watch the digital version of a Live Theatre Production to use in the mock exam
  • December mock exams (Component 3 written, 1 extract Component 2 Performance)
     

Term 2

  • Rehearse Component 2 Performances
  • Write Creative Intention to submit to exam board
  • Watch more live theatre and complete final 500-word Live Review notes

Term 3

  • Component 2 Performance Exam with visiting examiner (around Easter)
  • Final revision for Component 3 Written Exam
  • Component 3 Written Exam (around the start of May)

Future Careers

Drama develops transferable skills that can support a wide range of future careers, including:

  • Acting and performance - theatre, film, television and voice acting
  • Directing and theatre production - directing, stage management and producing
  • Writing and creative industries - playwriting, screenwriting and content creation
  • Media and broadcasting - presenting, journalism, radio and television
  • Teaching and education - drama, performing arts and wider education roles
  • Public-facing careers - law, politics, marketing, journalism and public relations
  • Leadership and management - developing communication, collaboration, creativity and confidence
  • Creative industries - events, arts management, design and cultural organisations

Curricular enhancement opportunities (e.g. Fieldwork, trips, competitions etc)

The Drama Department offers a wide range of opportunities for pupils to develop their skills, confidence and passion for the performing arts. These include Drama Club, activities led by our Drama Captains, Cabaret Nights in collaboration with the Music Department, and Musical Theatre Club. Pupils also have the opportunity to perform annually in the Coram Shakespeare Schools Festival, taking their work to a local professional theatre. Our Open Studio provides pupils with dedicated space to rehearse and develop their performance work beyond lesson time. Chulmleigh College is also proud to offer LAMDA lessons, with a strong history of pupils achieving Merit and Distinction results across Grades 1–8.

 

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