Approach 4 for using the film at AS/A2

Two one-hour lessons

Subject ranking: Drama/English/Film/Media

Focus

Bringing the script to life.

Aim of the lesson

To explore how a section of a script is brought to life by actors and directors.

Learning areas

• Stage business - How do the actors use physical movement to create drama?
• Characterisation - How are the characters created? What performance techniques do the actors use?

What you need

• Photocopies of the text pp 38-39 (Eyre Methuen edition): the bag sequence in Act II, from Aston's 'I got your bag' to Davies 'He's a bit of a joker en'he.'
• A video or DVD of the film set at this scene;
• A TV and video/DVD player.

Lesson 1

• Explain that the focus of the lesson is stage business and characterisation and discuss what the terms mean.
• Explain the characters and background of the play. Make a note of the fact that, at this point in the text, Davies does not know who Mick is, and that the bag, which Aston gives to Davies, is not actually Davies' bag at all, and that they both know this, as revealed later in the scene.
• Ask the students, in groups of three

  a. to read the section of text;

  b. to read it again, highlighting all the stage directions;

  c. to act out the scene using a bag to get a feel for the stage business involved;

  d. to rehearse their versions of the scene.

• Now watch the scene from the film with particular attention to how the interpretation differs from their own. Discuss this.
• Watch the scene again, this time focusing on how it works in terms of the stage business with the bag.
• Watch it again, this time focusing on how it works in terms of timing, pace, eye contact.
• With particular reference to the relationships of the characters involved, ask the students to comment on what they think is going on in the scene. Watch the sequence again with the relationships in mind.
  • How is the relationship between Aston and Mick conveyed? How are their relationships with Davies shown?
  • How is the information that the bag does not actually belong to Davies used at this point in the film?
  • How do the actors perform this?
  • How is this used to create dramatic irony?
• How do the three actors create the characters? Ask them to note down any points on characterisation as they watch the sequence again.
  • How does Davies react when he finds out that Mick is Aston's brother?
• During discussion of the scene, use the pause/freeze frame button to highlight use of camera angles, pace, and facial expressions. (If you look very closely you can see that Aston is very slightly smiling when Davies drops the bag - why?).

Lesson 2: Performance techniques

• Explain to the class that the focus of this lesson is performance techniques and how we identify and record them.

Voice

• Tone - describes the quality/style of the voice, and the mood being conveyed;
• Pace - speed of delivery;
• Accent - regional, national, etc;
• Expression - the emotional content of the voice;
• Emphasis - what words are being stressed;
• Volume - loud/soft, whispered;
  • Pitch - high pitch, low pitched, modulating. Ending a sentence on a higher pitch makes it sound like a question.

Physicality

• Facial expressions - smiling, frowning, blank; where are the actor's eyes looking? etc;
• Gestures - using the hands. What are the actors doing with their hands?
• Body language - posture: slumped, standing, sitting, etc; how - and what does this tell us?
• Movement - pace, style, speed, where to and from. Describe the mood created by the movement: is it nervous, angry, aggressive, gentle and how is this shown?
• Position on stage - where are the actors?

Interaction

• Eye contact - or lack of it. How? Relate this to facial expressions and body language.
• Touch - gentle/hard? Where? With what? Kissing? Pushing? Fighting?
• Proxemics - the actors' positions on stage in relation to each other to communicate information to an audience.
• Watch the sequence again.
• Give the group the following exercise to complete while watching the sequence about three more times. (Although they have seen it several times by now they will still need to watch it again.) Explain that there are no right and wrong answers as such.
  • a) During the early part of the scene Aston speaks at a ------1------pace and in a ------2------ tone. He speaks at a ------3------ pitch with a ------4------- expression. His body language is ------5------, and is combined with ------6----- facial expression. He moves at a ------7------ pace and in a -----8------ rhythm. His proxemics to Mick and Davies are ------9------- and he makes ------10----- eye contact. His physicality and interaction combined with his use of vocal techniques create a very effective characterisation of Aston as -------11-------.
  • b) During the bag-swapping scene Mick's body language is ------1------ and he has ------2------ movements. These are combined with ------3------ eye contact and a ------4------ facial expression to create a sense of ------5------.
  • c) During the scene Davies' vocal techniques are a ------1------ accent, at a ------2------- pace in a ------3------ tone and with a ------4------- expression. He tends to use a -------5------ pitch and emphasises the words-------6------- when his bag is first taken, then ------7------ as he gets angry.
• Let the group share their ideas and compare and contrast their answers, watching the sequence again as necessary.
• An interesting exercise for Drama students is to ask them to 'translate' the responses into answers to the following questions:
  • How would you direct the actor playing Aston in the sequence?
  • What physical techniques would you want the actor playing Mick to use in the section when he is taking the bag, up to when he leaves the room.
  • What vocal techniques would you advise an actor playing the role of Davies to use in this section of the text?
• Finally, you could give students the following as a suggested response to an alternative way of playing Davies in the scene:
• 'If I was the actor playing Davies in the scene I would be very agitated and have a very upright straight body posture, trying to stand as tall as the other two even though I would be shorter than the other actors, as this would create a comic effect for the audience. I would have my hands raised to protect myself but also to show that I am willing to fight, as Davies is often willing to demonstrate a violent streak in the play. My movements would be quite quick, allowing for my age, and my eyes would be darting between the two brothers as I try to grab the bag. My facial expression would be determined, shown by grimacing and screwing up my eyes, but I would also want to show the audience that I am scared of Mick, by narrowing my eyes a little too much when he is saying "Don't overstep the mark, son", so that it looks like I am squinting, and my cheeks would also raise a little too far, giving the audience the impression that I am scared of being hit.' (A. Gears)

I have used this sequence of lessons very effectively with Drama students who could see an immediate relevance to both their practical and written work, as well as giving them an insight into the play and introducing Pinter in an accessible way.