'GOTCHA' Context AS Drama

Rachels Lesson

AS Drama

The Context of a Play
The context of Gotcha is the school system was just changing from grammar schools to comprehensive schools. Meaning comprehensive schools were seen as bad schools as anyone could get in. 
Margaret Thatcher was prime minister which many people didn't like. However she did help with the comprehensive school changeover. 
There are a few hints in the opening scene of Gotcha which suggest the time period it was set in as well as the context behind it. For example the mention of America invading China and McCarthy era. The kid also mentions being Working Class which again show the context as in the seventies the class system was more defined that it is now.

The differences between the context of Gotcha and my own context are that teachers hitting students was quite common then, however now it is seen as something that is completely unacceptable. Comprehensive schools are also more accepted and are no longer seen as bad schools. There is also a difference in the class system, there is a divide between classes but it is less prominent and it no longer defines you or says what you can and can't do. The school system seems to be more fair in this respect.

It's useful to know the context of the play because it means you can understand more what the characters are going through, particularly in Gotcha which contains many social and political view such as how you can easily be ignored if you aren't one of the smartest or most athletic students. Knowing what I know about the school system helped me understand what the Kid is feeling, because he is always being ignored. 

23/9/13 AS Drama

Rachels Lesson

Drama

'Gotcha'
- Neglected
- Private Place
- Isolated

1. Levels - higher/lower e.g. boxes
2. Sightline - Don't want anything to block the sightline of the audience
3. Colour - dull colours, old colours such as browns and blacks and dark colours and werid patterns
4. Proxemics - use of space, think of the space needed between the actors and the set.

16/9/13 AS Drama - Gotcha Reveiws

Rachels Lesson

Drama

Staging - Visual, Spatial and Aural

Props
Lighting
Staging
Sound - music
- atmospheric
- supporting vocals
- effects
Costumes

Types of Staging:
End on/Proscenium Arch/Invisible 4th wall

In the round/Arenas/Amphitheatre

Promenade - (up and down walking - audience sit either side of the stage)
Site Specific - the place inspires you to do the play a certain way (inspried by the space)

Gotcha Reveiws -
http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/gotcha-rev

http://www.whatsonstage.com/off-west-end-theatre/reviews/03-2011/gotcha_9722.html

http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/gotcha-c-nova-9238


'There’s a lot wrong with the comprehensive experiment – it was never properly funded, it was never finished, the schools weren’t properly put together'.

11/9/13 AS Drama

Rachels Lesson

Drama

What we need to write about in our blog<-----

Today we talked about what the year would in tale. 
Before christmas we will be doing just theory with a little buit of practical and after christmas we will be doing all practical.
In March we will be doing group work and in May we will be doing our duologues or monologues.

(We moved to studio)

We started off doing an exercise of numbers.



 1) The social, cultural, historical and political context

(The circumstances in which the play was written)

2) The visual, aural and spatial elements of production

(Ideas for staging, lighting, sound & costume)

3) The response to a practitioner

(Stanislavsky& Frantic Assembly’s ideas)

4) Non-verbal communication

(Movement choices)

5) Vocal awareness

(Voice work)

6) Characterisation

(How 3, 4 & 5 can be used to create a character)

7) Interpretation

(Your overall ideas for a production of the play)

8)Language

(How would your character perform scenes from the script)

Today we talked about what the year would in tale.

Before christmas we will be doing just theory with a little buit of practical and after christmas we will be doing all practical.

In March we will be doing group work and in May we will be doing our duologues or monologues.

(We moved to studio)

We started off doing an exercise of numbers. Each number was different e.g. 1 - 7. 1 was a number where you hardly move, you're very droopy, tired and slouchy and as each number builds the more energetic and awake you should look e.g. 7 was a run like you are late for something.