Chapter 19: Drama

After practicing the activities in this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Analyse the themes and techniques of plays and basic drama terminology.

2. Understand how drama skills and techniques are used to create characterization, mood, and atmosphere.

3. Analyse events in plays to deepen understanding of themes and characters, and to enrich performance.

4. Write a scene and know how to set out dialogue.

Keywords

• conflict
• climax
• fable
• narrator
• resolution
• set
• tension

Introduction

In this chapter, you will stage a simple play in a drama. To produce the play, you will use what you have learned so far this year about drama skills and techniques. You will also analyze aspects of the text while you plan and rehearse your production.

While reading extracts from plays, watching some drama productions, and acting out scenes from a play, you have learnt about the technical elements that playwrights include in their drama texts.

You have used drama terminologies, such as characterization, stage directions, dialogue, monologue, tension, climax, and resolution. You have also learned about the dramatic skills used to perform a play. These are the vocal elements, such as, pitch, volume, and tone, facial expression, and body language.

Activity 11.1 Read a play

You are going to stage the short play called The boy who cried wolf and perform it at school. It is a play that the whole class can perform. The play is based on a famous fable by Aesop. In a fable, some of the characters are often animals who behave like human beings. The theme of a fable is usually moral, with a message that teaches us a lesson that we can apply to our own lives.

Read the play by yourself. Pay attention to characterization, theme, and plot, and make notes while you read.

• characterization – the role players in the drama, usually people, sometimes animals or imaginary characters
• theme – the point the play wants to get across to the audience
• plot – the actions in the play and the tension it creates, usually building up to a climax and ending in a resolution

Activity 11.2 Describe the characters, plot and theme of the play

1. In groups, compare and discuss the notes you made while reading the play.

2. After your discussion, write answers to the questions in your exercise book.

a) What is the message that the play conveys? Describe a real life experience in your own life which fits in with lessons in this story.

b) Name three adjectives that describe the main character.

c) Which events or actions create the tension or conflict in the plot?

d) Identify the climax in the play. Remember, the climax in a play is the turning point that changes the fate of the main characters. It is often unexpected.

e) Describe the resolution of the play.

Activity 11.3 Choose the cast

The term for the group of actors taking on roles in a play, is called the cast. An important decision is the choice of the main actor, also called the lead actor. The lead role is the actor who is seen most on stage and who speaks the most.

1. The lead role in The boy who cried wolf is the herd boy, Adroa. Who in the class would like to get the part of the lead role? Your teacher will let you audition in class for the role. You will demonstrate your drama skills by choosing one of Adroa’s short monologues in the play, and performing it for the class. A girl can also audition for the part of Adroa.

2. The class will act as critics during the auditions. They will choose who they think is the best person for the part. The class critics will give each learner who auditions for the role a score for: use of body language use of voice: pitch, volume, tone facial expression conveying what the character is like.

3. The other big role in the play is the storyteller. You can use the same process to decide who will take on this role.

4. The rest of the class can take on the roles of the wolves and the goats. You can take turns if there are too many learners.

Activity 11.4 Plan the costumes for the play

1. Read the play again. While you read it, make rough notes about:

a) Costumes. Write down ideas for how the actors can be dressed or made to look like their characters. Think of ideas that are cheap and simple, and that you can make yourself.

b) Sound. Noises and music can make a production interesting, and add to the message it conveys. There are some stage directions for this in the text, but you need to interpret them and make choices. For example: What music does the boy listen to? How can you produce the howling of the wolves most effectively?

c) Props and set. How will you make the stage? What props do you need? Do you want to add anything to what the playwright has suggested?

2. Brainstorm and compare your ideas. Draw up a list of what needs to be prepared or made, who will prepare and make the things, and when it needs to be ready.

Activity 11.5 Rehearse the play

Before you can stage the play, you have to rehearse it. That means practicing to prepare for a public performance.

1. When you rehearse the play, you can:

• Interpret stage directions, for example, what does slinking and grinning mischievously look like?
• Practice the difficult things until you get them right, for example when the characters have to talk at exactly the same time.
• At rehearsal, the actors will demonstrate whether they know the lines or no
• Improve the things that are not working well, for example, the music you chose is too long, a prop is not working the way it should or the set is unconvincing.
• Try different things and see what works best, for example how the villagers should show that they are busy working, whether the narrator looks directly at the audience while he or she talks, etc.

2. Make notes at every rehearsal about what you have learned about improving the play. In class, brainstorm how you can improve these aspects at the next rehearsal.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

Characters

Narrator

Goats (six or more)

Wolves (six or more, same number as goats)

Six or more villagers

Herdsboy

Scene 1

(The herdsboy is sitting centre stage, on something that suggests a rock; the goats are all around him, grazing. Villagers are on stage left, working in the field. Find a way of dividing the stage in two sections.)

(Boy starts to yawn and stretch)

Narrator: Meet Adroa. Over weekends, it is his job to look after the village’s goats. He has to keep them safe from wolves. Wolves, you ask? Yes, wolves! (howling sound of wolves sounds off-stage) The village has been losing some goats to wild wolves. They come out of the mountains into the valley where the village is located. They roam around and catch the goats. (Howling repeats) So now they never leave the goats alone anymore. Never!

Adroa: (Boy starts to yawn and stretch) Oh, no. Still hours to go before the sun sets! I’m so bored! There is nothing to do. Thank goodness for my radio!

(Boy tunes in the radio, modern music starts playing)

Goat 1: He’s bored? Why?

Goat 2: Yes, why? It’s great out here. Peaceful.

Goat 3: Exactly. Not so peaceful with his music, though.

Goat 4: We have a good time just hanging out here together on the slopes.

Goat 5: He misses his friends.

Goat 6: I get that, yes. I mean, there is only one of him. All these hours. Poor guy.

(Speaking to himself)

Adroa: I feel like having a good laugh. I’m going to pretend there is a wolf here, attacking all the goats. Imagine how the villagers will rush up here in a flash. Won’t that be fun? Teach them to send me up here all on my own. (Grins mischievously)

Goat 1: Oh, no, now listen to him.

Goat 2: Sounds like trouble.

Goat 3: For sure it does.

Goat 4: The villagers won’t like feeling like fools.

Goat 3: Why can’t the boy just sit in peace?

Goat 4: Would you if you were him?

Adroa: OK, here I go. (Boy switches off his radio. He goes stage left and shouts out.) Wolf! Wolf! Help! The wolf is coming! I can’t stop him. Please, help! (The villagers run towards center stage with sticks, hoes and shovels. The goats huddle together.)

Father: (While running) I’ll get him, Adroa, don’t worry.

Villager 1: Where did he go?

Villager 2: Where? Where?

Villager 3: Did you see the wolf?

Villager 4: Did he go back to the mountains?

Villager 5: Has he killed any goats?

Adroa: (Suppressing giggles) False alarm! False alarm! I thought I saw the wolf, but it must have been a shadow. I’m sorry.

Villager 6: False alarm. Let’s get back to work. (Exit villagers. The goats bleat happily. The boy sits on his chair laughing and the goats gather around him, relaxed.)

Scene 2

Narrator: The excitement of tricking the villagers pleased the herdsboy. So, next weekend, he felt like repeating his game. This time the goats didn’t know that it was a trick.

Adroa: Wolf! Wolf! The wolves are coming. There are lots of them. Help! Help! (Goats scatter off-stage, right. Enter father and villagers, brandishing their sticks and hoes again. Frantic goat bleating from off-stage)

Father: Where, where?

Adroa: (He points off-stage, right.) They went this way. They’re chasing the goats!

Villager 1: Oh no!

Villager 2: We’ve got to stop them!

Villager 3: Let’s follow the wolf tracks.

Villager 4: But there aren’t any wolf tracks!

Villager 5: Only goat tracks!

Villager 6: There were no wolves here …

Adroa:

Villagers: (They all talk angrily at the same time, some muttering under their breath.) False alarm! Let’s go back to work. This boy is playing the fool with us. He is wasting our time. He’s just a joker.

Goats: Walking back to centre-stage, all talking at exactly the same time) He frightened us. He’s supposed to look after us. The boy is a fool. He needs to grow up. I’ll never believe him again.

Adroa: (Laughing out loud, he turns on his radio and dances to the music) Hee-hee! That was so much fun! I almost believed myself!

Scene 3

Narrator: The next weekend, the boy is herding again. It is a hot day. The goats are yawning loudly, lying around listlessly. The boy has fallen asleep next to them. (Wolf howling from the right. Then a pack of wolves slink onto the stage, entering right.)

Wolf 1: (Whistles) Have a look at this!

Wolf 2: Oh yes!

Wolf 3: Lots and lots of goats.

Wolf 4: And the boy is by himself.

Wolf 5: And fast asleep.

Wolf 6: Dinner time! (Wolves come to centre stage and prowl around dramatically, gesturing to the audience to be quiet. They each grab a goat, snarling and growling. The goats put up a struggle, but the wolves drag them off- stage. Frantic bleating.)

Adroa: (Wakes up with a start from the commotion, just in time to see the last goat being dragged off. He jumps up, screaming in a panic.) Oh no! My goats! Help! Wolf! Wolf! The wolves are here! For real, this time. They’re here. Help, help. Oh please, come. I know I’ve been playing the fool but not this time! Please, come, please! (The villagers are stage left, miming working. They look in his direction, cupping their ears. They shake their heads and continue to work.)

Narrator: He called and called but no one came. The villagers were fed up with his lies. The wolves took all the goats. Nobody believes a liar, even when they are telling the truth! (Adroa sinks down on the ground with a groan.

by Leoni Hofmeyr

Activity 11.6 Write your own play

1. Work in pairs. Create a short, simple play script. Follow the guidelines provided below.

a) Discuss and decide on a theme for your play. Use an experience that one or both of you has had, or a story that you are both familiar with. This should be something dramatic, and include a problem that must be solved. You could consider rewriting a fable, and turning it into a play.

b) Plot the play with rising action, a climax and falling action.

c) Plan and write out the dialogue.

d) Use stage directions to show how the actors should move, and how they should speak.

2. Exchange books with another pair and read each other’s plays.