Acting Shakespeare
- Course Code: DRA030
- Dates: 30/10/24 - 04/12/24
- Time: 18:30 - 21:00
- Taught: Wed, Evening
- Duration: 6 sessions (over 6 weeks)
- Location: Keeley Street
- Tutor: Simon Darwen
Course Code: DRA030
Duration: 6 sessions (over 6 weeks)
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
This course is designed to broaden and develop your skills when working with heightened language and to provide an opportunity to develop character and scene work to a high standard. We will use a range of exercises that will explore and unlock the text as we identify and use the clues and devices that Shakespeare has built into the text to inform decisions about character and to bring a scene and/or monologue to life.
What will we cover?
• Verse and prose form
• Text and scene analysis for clues to performance
• A range of exercises that will explore and unlock the text
• Scene rehearsal
• Performance in class.
Please note that acting classes by their very nature can involve exercises and the exploration of material that some students may find challenging.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Analyse a Shakespearean monologue and or a scene for clues to your performance
• Demonstrate character physically with confidence
• Perform a Monologue and/ or scene from Shakespeare with confidence.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This is a practical class. Commitment and focus are needed. These classes are for students who have some prior experience of acting; you should have completed at least acting Beginners and one improvers course or their equivalent elsewhere. You should be able to speak English fluently.
In order to get the most from the course you will be able to:
• Listen and respond to instructions and feedback
• Communicate clearly in discussion and drama practice
• Read and respond to a variety of text
• Give and receive constructive feedback
• Take notes
• Work within groups and pairs safely.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
In pairs, groups and individually.
You will need to prepare work and learn lines outside of the sessions.
As part of the course content, your tutor may record your image for initial and ongoing assessment purposes. You are entitled to decline to participate in the recording of your image.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
You will be provided with a copy of the scenes. You may wish to purchase a copy of the plays that we are working with, to study more extensively outside of class. Wear comfortable clothing that you can work freely in.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
A general acting class or advanced scene work. Consider auditioning for the Acting Diploma or our Foundation course. Ask your tutor for advice about other suitable courses, or email the Drama Department
You may also be interested in joining the Level 3 Acting Diploma DRC101 in September 2022. Contact drama@citylit.ac.uk for advice.
Simon has worked as a professioanl actor since 2003. Working extensively in theatre, he has acted with companies including The Royal Shakespeare Company, Out of Joint, Paines Plough and played numerous theatres up and down the country and overseas. He is also an established voice actor, specialising in audio books and has numerous television credits to his name. Simon's specialist area is working largely in the realm of audition technique, scene study and professional practice. At City Lit he teaches Audition Ready and the the intensive Audition module on the Acting Diploma (Level 3). Simon has also directed the showcases for accredited drama students. Over the last 5 years simon has been an Acting and Professional Practice teacher/facilitator at The Arts Educational Drama School and Buckinghamshire New University.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
