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David Porter » Drama Teaching » School Productions from Devised Drama

School Productions from Devised Drama

School Productions from Devised Drama is now a resource available on TES Resources

My School Productions from Devised Drama, is a teaching resource for the drama teacher looking to experiment with developing devised dramas into full school productions as a change from the usual scripted suspects schools so often use. It’s now available.

Based on real experiences of devising a range of ideas developed into public shows at both Benjamin Britten High School, Lowestoft and Kirkley High School, Lowestoft it provides over 200 starting points, development grids, character ideas, themed approaches, drama teacher ‘block buster’ suggestions and research references galore.

School Productions from Devised Drama is published on TES Resources with a free detailed Introduction followed by 13 separate sections:

1. Getting started, getting excited
2. Using (local) history
3. Using the 1960s
4. Using teenage angst
5. Using tradition
6. Using the generations
7. Using literature, TV and film
8. Using characters to drive a story
9. Using a practitioner (style before content)
10. Using ideas before content
11. Using a message
12. Using boundary-breaking ideas

There are enough ways into a production to satisfy the most nervous teacher at the threshold of entering the edgy world of devised performances in full public view.

Styles explored range from soap to docudrama, verbatim to promenade, commedia dell’Arte, medieval style drama, a Shakespearean idea, developing ideas from film, panto, Punch and Judy, life cycles to musical plays and shows with music and dancing too.

With lashings of comedy, intentional and unintentional tragedy and everything in between, many of the pieces lean towards the darker side often beloved of teenagers. Many of the ideas and projects are usable in the drama lesson if not worked up to a school production.

In total, School Productions from Devised Drama adds up to close on 100,000 words and with the Introduction free the separate sections cost £62 reduced to £49 if bought as a bundle.

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