DramaQ&A by dot point

Characterisation: building and sustaining a role by combining voice and movement with an understanding of the character's status, motivation, relationships, objectives and inner thoughts, and responding in role to other performers.

Movement as an acting skill: using posture, gait, gesture, facial expression, eye contact, body language and use of space (proxemics) to create character, convey emotion and communicate meaning to an audience.

The performance: the coursework practical worth most of the course marks, in which you present drama as an actor (in two contrasting roles) or in a production role, demonstrating skills appropriate to your chosen specialism for an audience.

Voice as an acting skill: using pace, pitch, pause, projection, tone, clarity, emphasis, volume and accent to create character, convey emotion and communicate meaning to an audience.

Creating and devising drama: responding to a stimulus, generating and developing ideas, and shaping them into drama with a clear purpose, target audience, form, genre, structure and style, then refining it through the rehearsal process.

Dramatic conventions and techniques: using devices such as mime, narration, monologue, soliloquy, aside, flashback, freeze-frame, tableau, thought-tracking and slow motion to shape and communicate meaning in drama.

Form, genre, structure and style: understanding and choosing the form (such as a play, monologue or improvisation), the genre (such as comedy or tragedy), the structure (such as linear, episodic or flashback) and the style (such as naturalism or physical theatre) of a piece of drama.

Analysing a live theatre production: observing and evaluating the acting and production skills in a piece of live or studied theatre, describing the choices made in voice, movement, lighting, sound, set and costume, and judging how effectively they communicated meaning to the audience.

Evaluating your own and others' drama: reflecting on the development and performance of drama, judging the effectiveness of acting and production choices, identifying strengths and areas for improvement, and supporting judgements with reasons and evidence.

The question paper: the externally marked written exam testing knowledge and understanding of drama, in which candidates respond to questions on acting and production concepts, often by reflecting on their own practical work and on a piece of live or studied theatre.

Costume and make-up as production skills: using clothing, accessories and make-up (including straight, character and special-effects make-up) to communicate a character's age, status, period, personality and condition, and to support the style and purpose of a production.

Directing as a production skill: realising a vision for a production by interpreting the text or devised piece, guiding performers, blocking the action, and coordinating the production skills to communicate a clear concept to an audience.

Lighting as a production skill: using intensity, colour, direction, angle and special effects (such as spotlights, blackouts, gobos and fades) to create mood, focus attention, indicate time and place, and support the style and purpose of a production.

Props, set and staging as production skills: using properties and set design to establish setting, period and mood, and choosing a staging form (proscenium arch, thrust, theatre-in-the-round, traverse or promenade) that suits the production and the audience's relationship to the action.

Sound as a production skill: using music, sound effects, recorded and live sound, volume and timing to create mood and atmosphere, establish setting, signal action and support the style and purpose of a production.