Exploring Theatre focuses on the development of the total student, which includes developing personal resources, self-confidence, the ability to work well with others, and a life-long appreciation of theatre; learning to bolster self-concepts, build an ensemble, observe people and places more closely, move expressively, and become more aware of the senses; learning basic acting skills such as improvisation, characterization, role preparation, and stage movement; exploring a range of career or avocational opportunities in theatre and theatre education; understanding the various aspects of the production process; and studying special topics such as storytelling, oral interpretation, readers theatre, and puppetry. This text is an ideal introductory theatre text for both middle and high school. CONTENTS
UNIT 1: Getting Started in Theatre CHAPTER 1: Welcome to Theatre! - LESSON 1: Getting to Know You - LESSON 2: An Introduction to Theatre CHAPTER 2: You and Theatre - LESSON 1: Believing in Yourself - LESSON 2: Working with a Group - LESSON 3: Artistic Discipline - LESSON 4: Evaluation CHAPTER 3: Developing Your Personal Resources - LESSON 1: Imagination - LESSON 2: Concentration - LESSON 3: Observation - LESSON 4: Sensory Awareness - LESSON 5: Movement CHAPTER 4: Creative Drama - LESSON 1: What Is Creative Drama? - LESSON 2: Narrative Pantomime - LESSON 3: Story Dramatization
UNIT 2: Building Your Acting Skills CHAPTER 5: Developing Your Voice - LESSON 1: Relaxation and Breathing - LESSON 2: Quality, Pitch, and Flexibility - LESSON 3: Articulation and Pronunciation - LESSON 4: Volume and Rate - LESSON 5: Projection CHAPTER 6: Improvisation - LESSON 1: Improvisation - LESSON 2: Role-Playing - LESSON 3: Point of View CHAPTER 7: Characterization - LESSON 1: Stock Characters and Stereotypical Characters - LESSON 2: Creating Original Characters - LESSON 3: Writing Original Monologues CHAPTER 8: The Play and Your Part - LESSON 1: The Structure of Plays - LESSON 2: Preparing Your Part CHAPTER 9: Taking the Stage - LESSON 1: Types of Stages - LESSON 2: Stage Terminology - LESSON 3: Acting Technique
UNIT 3: Producing and Appreciating Plays CHAPTER 10: The Production Process - LESSON 1: Selecting the Play - LESSON 2: Selecting the Cast - LESSON 3: The Rehearsal Process - LESSON 4: The Performance CHAPTER 11: Behind the Scenes - LESSON 1: Theatre Safety - LESSON 2: The Production Team - LESSON 3: The Stage Crew - LESSON 4: The Prop Crew - LESSON 5: The Costume Crew - LESSON 6: The Makeup Crew - LESSON 7: The Sound Crew - LESSON 8: The Light Crew - LESSON 9: The Publicity Crew - LESSON 10: The House Crew CHAPTER 12: Theatre Appreciation - LESSON 1: Theatre Conventions - LESSON 2: Audience Etiquette - LESSON 3: Comparing Theatre with Other Media - LESSON 4: Evaluating Theatre and Other Media CHAPTER 13: Your Future in Theatre - LESSON 1: The Next Step - LESSON 2: Playwrights and Actors - LESSON 3: Producers and Directors - LESSON 4: Designers - LESSON 5: Other Careers
UNIT 4: Special Topics in Theatre CHAPTER 14: Mime, Pantomime, and Clowning - LESSON 1: Mime and Pantomime - LESSON 2: Clowning CHAPTER 15: Interpreting Literature - LESSON 1: Selecting and Preparing the Material - LESSON 2: Developing and Presenting the Selection - LESSON 3: Evaluating the Selection CHAPTER 16: Storytelling - LESSON 1: Storytelling Techniques - LESSON 2: Finding Stories to Tell - LESSON 3: Preparing to Tell a Story from a Text CHAPTER 17: Readers Theatre and Radio Theatre - LESSON 1: Readers Theatre - LESSON 2: Radio Theatre CHAPTER 18: Puppetry, Shadow Play, and Masks - LESSON 1: Making a Puppet - LESSON 2: Bringing a Puppet to Life - LESSON 3: Writing a Puppet Show - LESSON 4: Producing a Puppet Show - LESSON 5: Shadow Play - LESSON 6: Masks