What is the OCR Practitioners in Practice component, and how is the practitioner-influenced devised piece assessed?
Component 01 (H459/11 to 14), Practitioners in Practice: the non-exam devising unit, creating an original practitioner-influenced piece as a performer or designer with a portfolio, assessing AO1, AO2 and AO4 (120 marks, 40 percent).
How the OCR Practitioners in Practice component (H459/11 to 14) works: the non-exam devising unit in which you create an original practitioner-influenced piece as a performer or designer, with a portfolio, assessing AO1, AO2 and AO4 across 120 marks (40 percent).
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
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What this dot point is asking
Practitioners in Practice is Component 01 of OCR Drama and Theatre (H459/11 to 14): the non-exam devising unit and the largest single component, worth 120 marks (40 percent). You study at least two practitioners and one extract from a performance text, then create an original devised piece influenced by those practitioners, as a performer (H459/11 or 12) or a designer (H459/13 or 14), documented and evaluated in a portfolio. It assesses AO1, AO2 and AO4. This dot point covers the component and its assessment; the devising process, the extract exploration, the portfolio and the reflective report have their own pages.
The answer
This is the component where you make original theatre. It is the biggest single piece of the qualification, and it rewards three things together: creating and developing ideas (AO1), realising them in performance or design (AO2), and evaluating the work (AO4). Examiners reward a piece that is genuinely shaped by its practitioners, well realised, and honestly evaluated.
What the component is
You study at least two practitioners or companies from OCR's list and one extract from a performance text, using both to feed an original devised piece. You work in a single role: performer (H459/11 or 12) or designer (H459/13 or 14) in a chosen discipline. The piece is created collaboratively but assessed individually, and it is supported by a portfolio that documents and evaluates the process.
How it is assessed
The component is internally assessed and externally moderated. Its 120 marks split across three objectives: AO1 (around 50 marks) for creating and developing ideas and connecting practitioner theory to practice; AO2 (around 40 marks) for realising the piece in performance or design; and AO4 (around 30 marks) for analysing and evaluating the work. AO3 is not assessed here. The spread means the creative process and the evaluation matter as much as the final performance, which is unusual among the components.
The two practitioners and the extract
The two practitioners give the piece its theatrical language, and you must combine their influences into one coherent style. The extract from a performance text is explored practically to feed the devising (a source of ideas, techniques or material), not performed as the assessed outcome. Both are tools for creating original work.
Examples in context
A performer in this component might take a stimulus (a news image of a community displaced by a closure), study Brecht and Frantic Assembly, and explore an extract from a relevant play for ideas and techniques. They would devise an original piece collaboratively, letting Brecht shape the episodic structure and social argument and Frantic Assembly shape the physical relationships, then rehearse it to a strong realisation. Throughout, they would document the practitioner research and the development of the ideas (AO1) and evaluate what worked and what did not (AO4) in the portfolio. The three strands together, idea, realisation and evaluation, are what the component rewards.
Try this
Q1. State the marks, weighting and objectives of Practitioners in Practice. [3 marks]
- Cue. 120 marks, 40 percent; it assesses AO1 (create and develop ideas), AO2 (realise the piece in performance) and AO4 (analyse and evaluate), approximately AO1 50, AO2 40, AO4 30. AO3 is not assessed.
Q2. What two things must you study to feed the devised piece? [2 marks]
- Cue. At least two practitioners or companies from OCR's list, and one extract from a performance text (explored to feed ideas, not performed as the outcome).
Q3. Explain how the influence of your chosen practitioners shaped the creation of your devised piece. [10 marks]
- What the marker wants. The two practitioners and stimulus named, and a clear account of how their methods shaped the research, rehearsal, structure and style with specific examples, plus reflection on the effect of those decisions, not a plot summary.
A note on application
This guide is AI-written and not individually human-reviewed. The component is internally assessed and moderated by OCR; always confirm the current requirements, portfolio formats and practitioner list against OCR's non-exam assessment guidance, and remember that the portfolio carries most of the marks alongside the performance.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of OCR exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
OCR H459/11 NEA12 marksExplain how the influence of your chosen practitioners shaped the creation of your devised piece. [12]Show worked answer →
A reflective devising question rewarding a clear account of practitioner influence on the creative process (AO1 and AO4).
Method. Name the two practitioners and the stimulus, then explain how their methods shaped the devising: the research, the rehearsal techniques, the structure and the style, with specific examples from your process.
Develop. The top band shows the practitioners genuinely driving the creative decisions and reflects on the effect of those decisions, rather than naming practitioners as a label. Weak answers describe the plot of the piece or list activities with no practitioner link.
OCR H459/11 NEA8 marksExplain the role of the portfolio in the Practitioners in Practice component. [8]Show worked answer →
An explanation task on the assessment structure of the component (AO1 and AO4).
Method. Explain that the portfolio documents and evaluates the devising process: the research into practitioners, the development of ideas, and a reflective evaluation of the work, evidencing AO1 and AO4 alongside the AO2 performance or design.
Develop. A strong answer notes that the portfolio can combine written prose and recorded presentation within OCR's permitted formats, and that it is assessed, not just a record. The best answers connect it to the marks (AO1 and AO4). Weaker answers treat the portfolio as an afterthought or a diary.
Related dot points
- The devising process: working from a stimulus through research, exploration and improvisation, developing and structuring original material, and refining it into a finished practitioner-influenced performance (AO1 dominant).
How to take a devised piece from a stimulus to a finished performance in OCR Drama and Theatre: research, exploration and improvisation, developing and structuring original material, and refining it into a practitioner-influenced performance, to earn AO1.
- Exploring an extract for the devised piece: practically investigating one extract from a performance text through the methods of the two chosen practitioners, to generate ideas, techniques and material for the original devised work (AO1).
How to use one extract from a performance text through the lens of two practitioners to feed an OCR devised piece: practically investigating the extract to generate ideas, techniques and material for the original work, to earn AO1.
- The devising portfolio: documenting the practitioner research, the development and selection of ideas, and the creative process of the devised piece, in OCR's permitted written and recorded formats, to evidence AO1 (with AO4).
What the OCR Practitioners in Practice portfolio is and how to use it: documenting the practitioner research, the development and selection of ideas, and the creative process of the devised piece, in OCR's permitted written and recorded formats, to evidence AO1 alongside AO4.
- The reflective report: evaluating the devised piece and your own contribution, judging how effectively the practitioner-influenced work communicated to an audience, what succeeded and what would be developed, to earn AO4.
How to write the reflective evaluation of your devised piece in OCR Drama and Theatre: judging how effectively the practitioner-influenced work communicated to an audience, what succeeded and what would be developed, evaluating your own contribution, to earn AO4.
- Choosing and combining two practitioners for Practitioners in Practice: selecting two complementary or contrasting practitioners or companies, applying their methods to research and devising, and combining influences into a coherent style.
How to choose two practitioners for the OCR Practitioners in Practice devising unit and combine their methods coherently: selecting complementary or contrasting practitioners, applying their techniques to research and devising, and fusing influences into one clear style, for AO1 and AO4.
Sources & how we know this
- OCR A Level Drama and Theatre (H459) specification — OCR (2016)
- OCR Practitioners in Practice non-exam assessment guidance — OCR (2016)