Theatremaking

• Credit value: 0 credits at Level 4
• Convenor and tutor: Dr Elizabeth Bennett
• Assessment: two pieces of coursework of 1500 words (50% each)

Theatremaking is a skills-based workshop series that builds an essential foundation for your practice and thinking as a creator of theatre and performance. Throughout the year, you will engage with a range of practices and techniques across the spectrum of theatre and performance. You will develop awareness of the function of games and exercises in the creation of performance, become familiar with techniques of movement, voice, improvisation and writing, and experiment with performance-making strategies including adaptation, performative responses to site and techniques of documentary theatre. You will maintain a practice journal critically reflecting on the games, tasks and strategies you engage in.

Alongside your development of skills as a theatremaker, you will be enabled to assess the effects of creative practice as a means of questioning and exploration. The practice-based work of the module will be supplemented by a range of critical texts for your independent reading and research.

Indicative syllabus

• Performance practices and techniques including but not limited to theatre games, movement, voice, improvisation, writing exercises, adaptation, performative responses to site, documentary theatre techniques
• Critical reflection upon performance practice
• Uses of performance in processes of questioning and exploration
• Individual and group work

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• demonstrate knowledge of a range of performance practices
• apply techniques of analysis and documentation to a range of performance practices
• engage in consideration of performance-making as both technique and outcome of research
• work independently and in the context of a group.