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NSWDrama

Performance and Production Skills

6 dot points across 6 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do the four design elements (set, costume, lighting, sound) together construct the world of a theatre production?

The four design elements (set, costume, lighting, sound), including what each contributes to a production and how they work together to produce dramatic meaning
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on design elements. What set, costume, lighting and sound each contribute, the technical conventions of each, and how the four together produce the unified world of a production.
6 min answer →

How does a director develop a vision for a production and bring it to performance?

The director's role in theatre, including the development of a directorial concept, the rehearsal process, working with actors and designers, and the major directorial traditions
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on directing. The directorial concept, casting, the rehearsal process (readthrough, table work, blocking, runs), working with actors and designers, and the major directorial traditions (Stanislavski to contemporary practice).
5 min answer →

What is focus in performance, and how is ensemble work developed and sustained?

Focus and ensemble work as performance skills, including individual focus, ensemble focus, listening, responding, shared rhythm, and the practices that build ensemble
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on focus and ensemble. Individual focus (commitment to the imagined situation), ensemble focus (shared attention across performers), listening and responding, shared rhythm and breath, and the rehearsal practices that build ensemble work.
5 min answer →

How does a performer use the body as an expressive instrument, and how is physical performance developed?

Movement and physicality as performance skills, including posture, gesture, gait, stillness, spatial awareness, physical character, and the techniques used to develop physical performance
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on movement. Posture, gesture, gait, stillness, spatial awareness, physical characterisation; the practices of Lecoq, Laban and other physical theatre pedagogies; and how movement is developed in rehearsal.
5 min answer →

What are the production roles in a theatre company, and how do they work together to stage a play?

The production roles in theatre, including director, producer, dramaturg, stage manager, designers (set, costume, lighting, sound), and the relationships between them
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on production roles. The director, producer, dramaturg, stage manager, set designer, costume designer, lighting designer, sound designer, technical director, and how the roles interact across pre-production, rehearsal and performance.
5 min answer →

How does a performer use voice as an expressive instrument in theatre?

Voice as a performance skill, including breath, resonance, articulation, pitch, pace, volume and accent, and the techniques used to develop vocal range and clarity
A focused answer to the HSC Drama dot point on voice. Breath, resonance, articulation, pitch, pace, volume and accent; the techniques performers use to develop range and clarity; and the place of voice work in rehearsal.
5 min answer →