A Level Drama and Theatre Studies develops your enjoyment of, and interest in, drama and theatre. During the course you will gain experience of theatre from a variety of historical periods and you will learn to perform in a range of styles. Theatre visits and performance workshops form an essential part of the course so that you get to experience drama as a creator, performer and critic. We follow the AQA specification.
“Since I joined Dereham Sixth Form College I’ve had no regrets about choosing Drama. I have enjoyed being with other students who share the same energy and enjoyment towards the subject. In particular, I have enjoyed learning about the wide variety of practitioners and texts to perform from.”
Adam
Hear from our Head of A Level Drama – video coming soon!
Miss Harris
Head of Drama
Drama and Theatre Studies complements many different A Level subjects, particularly English, Dance, Music, History, Psychology, Sociology and Media Studies. Drama helps you to develop important skills such as imagination, confidence and communication, as well as fostering creativity. This gives Drama and Theatre Studies students skills that are very attractive to a huge variety of employers.
Year 1
In the first year you will study some key areas of theatre studies to give you a firm grounding for further study. These include:
- Seeing and critiquing live productions
- Studying a prescribed play
- Experiencing a range of theatre companies and practitioner styles
- Presentation of a devised drama
Year 2
In the second year you will examine a few chosen areas of theatre studies in greater depth:
- Seeing and critiquing more live productions
- Further prescribed plays, including a pre-twentieth century play
- Presentation of an extract from a play in the style of a key theatre practitioner
Assessment
The course has three assessed components.
Component 1 is one open book exam paper of 3 hours which makes up 40% of the A Level. It will assess your knowledge and understanding of drama and theatre, your study of two set plays and your analysis and evaluation of the work of live theatre makers. The paper contains one question (from a choice) on one of the set plays, one three part question on a given extract from one of the set plays and one question (from a choice) on the work of theatre makers in a single live theatre production.
Component 2 consists of a working notebook and devised performance which makes up 30% of the A Level. It will assess your process of creating devised drama and your performance of devised drama which will take place in Year 12 of the course.
Component 3 consists of a performance of an extract and a reflective report which makes up 30% of the A Level. It will assess your practical exploration and interpretation of three extracts, each taken from a different play with one extract to be performed as a final assessed piece. The reflective report analyses and evaluates theatrical interpretation of all three extracts.
Entry Requirements
Minimum 65444 including 6 in Drama and 5 in English Language or Literature.
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